Dream of Wild Health Indigenous Farm

Seeds and centuries of gardening knowledge feed a community at Dream of Wild Health farm.  

Inspired by the people it serves and centuries of gardening knowledge, Dream of Wild Health embodies working with nature. One of the oldest, continually operating Native American nonprofits in the Twin Cities, Dream of Wild Health’s intertribal working and teaching farm brings together the best of seed saving, Earth-focused farming practices and youth development. In short, this farm is flourishing.

“We are working to repair the health of our relatives through food,” says Neely Snyder, St. Croix Ojibwe tribal member and executive director of Dream of Wild Health. “We believe food is medicine. This starts with our young ones, so they understand that nutrition is vital to our overall health.

“Our families wanted to reclaim their traditional relationship with the Earth, which is how the organization began,” Snyder says. “We are working to restore the health and well-being of our community through increased access to the foods that we grow.”

Farm of the Future, Because of the Past

Together they’re living out this mission on their farm in Hugo, just north of the Twin Cities. The farm welcomes native youth and volunteers of all backgrounds to dig into the process of growing food with nature. Visitors are reminded that we are all part of nature, not separate from it; that we eat because of the gifts of the earth.

As gardeners, we recognize nature for the teacher it is. That practice of paying attention is at the heart of how the farm operates. Jessika Greendeer, a Ho-Chunk Nation tribal member and a Deer Clan member, was their seed keeper and farm manager for four seasons. Greendeer instilled the practice of treating seeds as relatives while listening to the land for where and what to plant. This rich knowledge base also explains why many gardeners are paying closer attention to Indigenous farming and gardening practices.

Depending on when you visit the farm, you could see swaths of pollinator habitat (so many sunflowers!) in bloom, hear the insects at work, smell the lingering smoke of the morning prayer fire or feel ice-cold water up to your elbows as you help wash freshly harvested vegetables. This is like other small-scale farms—with a few distinct differences.

DWH is a nonprofit focused on teaching the next generation to respect the land and farm it well. Currently, it teaches these values through youth programs like Garden Warriors, Cora’s Kids, Youth Leaders and an on-farm internship.

Dream Beginnings

The organization began in 1986 as an Indigenous outreach program called Peta Wakan Tipi. The focus on foods and medicines emerged in 1998 in response to resident requests. A gift of an Indigenous seed keeper’s lifelong seed collection in 2000 created a tangible beginning point for the farming operation. DWH purchased its first 10 acres of farmland in 2004. The organization has farmed the land ever since, adding crops and volunteers along the way.

In 2020, DWH added 20 acres just down the road from the existing farm, which provides space to grow more food, while apprenticing Indigenous farmers on-site. Plans for the newly acquired land include an orchard, a processing and packing building plus a space for the community to gather.

Beyond Organic

The greenhouse is where the season begins and where the harvests dry or cure. Fields nearest to the greenhouse are rotationally planted in market crops like Indigenous varieties of corn, squash, herbs and greens. A recently added moveable high tunnel extends the harvests. DWH grows with “regenerative farming practices” that often go beyond organic. These practices include leaving the land fallow in between cropping and growing cover crops to restore nutrients and balance to the soil. Another notable practice is having crews of volunteer gleaners harvest the last of crops and fruits, keeping the total farm waste down to only 20 pounds. Astonishing, given that the average American wastes over 200 pounds of food per year.

Integral to the farm’s operations are the swaths of pollinator plantings. You’ll also find medicinal herbs and dozens of berry bushes, plus fruit and nut trees interplanted amid the fields as a way to mitigate disease and increase pollination. The farmers have worked to regenerate not only the seed stock but the soils they grow in as well. Greendeer urged gardeners to think before they dig, saying, “Let your intuition guide you, and consider what your methods do to the Earth that provides for you.”

Saving Seeds and Knowledge

Seeds are seen as relatives to Indigenous growers, not commodities. But seeds were separated from their Native American families. Indigenous seed keepers, like Greendeer, have emerged over the last decade to find and regrow those ancestral seeds. Getting those seeds back into the hands of their original families is a process known as “Seed Rematriation.” She recommends that those interested in purchasing and growing Indigenous seeds buy from Seed Savers Exchange in Iowa.

For those ready to start saving their own seeds, Greendeer suggests starting with beans. “They’re one of the easiest and most rewarding seeds to save,” she says. To save bean seeds, wait until the pod dries in fall and harvest. There is a less than 1 percent chance that the seed will be cross-pollinated. This happens only when a native bee chews through a bean flower to access pollen. “Seeds tend to stay true to type,” she says, adding that after seven years of saving and regrowing a type of seed, the seed is considered your own variety. You could even rename it if you chose to.

For more information, look into my article on Seed Saving for the Home Gardener

Sharing Local Flavor

As vegetable gardeners know, growing food is one thing, making it into dishes people love is another. Part of the mission of DWH is to bring Indigenous foods to their communities and the Twin Cities at large, and DWH has been part of a surge in interest in Indigenous foods and restaurants, supplying produce and working with local chefs. “Our vision for a healthier and stronger community means getting Indigenous foods into the mouths of our people,” says Snyder.

In addition to selling produce at the Midtown Farmers’ Market and the Four Sisters Farmers’ Market, DWH offers a food share program similar to community-supported agriculture shares. Sean Sherman, chef, DWH board member and author of The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen purchases produce from Dream of Wild Health for use in his Minnepolis-based, James Beard Award Winning restaurant, Owamni.

Dream of Wild Health also offers volunteer and educational opportunities. Attending talks, classes and volunteer days at the farm has made me a better gardener. It is inspiring to see how food can be grown on a large scale without the use of chemicals. The relationships between the soil and the endemic plants and animals remain at the core of the farm’s operations as it continues to grow. We can all benefit from cultivating a deeper respect for the soil and remembering that we are gardening as part of nature, not separate from it.

Resources

Buffalo Bird Woman’s Garden (Minnesota Historical Society Press, 1987) by Gilbert L. Wilson is a compilation of Hidatsa gardening techniques.

Braiding Sweetgrass (Milkweed Editions, 2013) by Robin Wall Kimmerer examines modern sustainability efforts through a traditional Indigenous lens. Kimmerer dives into how today’s botany is braided together with traditional teachings.

Get Involved!

Visit dreamofwildhealth.org for more information on ways to increase your native plant and medicinal herb knowledge. You can also volunteer for Farm Fridays, a chance to work on the farm.

Dig Into Indigenous Foods,
Michelle

Copyright 2021, Michelle Bruhn. Reprinted courtesy of Northern Gardener magazine, 1935 West County Rd. B2, Suite 125, Roseville, MN 55113.