Today we’d like to introduce you to Carrie Thompson Jade Townsend
Hi Carrie Thompson, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
The Black Radish is an urban farm and CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) in the heart of South Minneapolis. We work with and within the local community to convert ornamental lawns or unused private spaces into lush, food producing gardens. We then plant, maintain and harvest these spaces giving the homeowner a share of weekly produce and collecting the rest. Essentially we trade produce and maintenance for land and water use. We grow a handful of specialty crops for the occasional Pop-up Market and local restaurant sales while our main focus of production is a wide range of vegetables for a 50 member weekly CSA. Once a week during the growing season we set up a small shop/produce stand where CSA members are invited to pack their own bags giving them the opportunity to take only what they need for the week. Any weekly excess (and there is always a lot) is donated to the Sanneh Foundation’s weekly food distribution program at Corcoran Park.
What began as an experiment 7 years ago with 10 CSA members and one converted yard has turned into a full blown mission to provide healthy, hyper-local food using environmentally sound practices to an ever growing number of people. We strongly believe there need to be both “micro” and “macro” solutions to how we produce food toward a shared vision of community and planetary health. Additionally we produce a weekly instagram story and/or reel about what we are learning and doing with content ranging from farm updates to informative comics and instructional drawings to step-by-step gardening how-to’s.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Applying traditional regenerative agricultural practices to raised beds and shaded backyards can provide challenges to be sure. By trading for the land we use to farm we have found an in-around to the obstacle of land ownership but that comes with its own set of logistical challenges that we embrace wholeheartedly. For better or worse. For instance, temperatures, amount of light and soil quality are going to be pretty uniform on a larger plot of land that one would associate with “traditional farming. While our patchwork of properties spread throughout the neighborhood are wildly inconsistent in temps, amount of light per day and the quality of the soil. We’re not complaining though, it’s all part of the game we love. From the Squash Vine Borer to soil aggregate instability to emotional burnout, we take a wild ride through new challenges and obstacles every season.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Such vague questions… if we are talking about defining success for The Black Radish i would say it looks like growing our operation to a point where we are more financially solid and able to develop an educational curriculum, pay our volunteers and be living proof that there are viable options in a world dominated by industrial farming. However if we are defining success on a more personal level we believe that success in this life really amounts to the things most overlooked, like a home with food and hot water, a happy family, good friends, a strong community, good health and a solid purpose.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.theblackradishmpls.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theblackradish_/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theBlackRadishMPLS/
