Three things to know about the county's farmer incubation program

Bernalillo County has over 200 acres of agricultural land, but not all of that is in production. Some of the county-owned farmland is leased to farmers, while some is used for educational programs such as Grow the Growers.

Here are three things to know about the county’s Grow the Growers program.

1. People who want to learn about farming can get a hands-on lesson.

Grow the Growers is a free program that runs from March to November to teach people how to farm and to incubate food production businesses.

The program has three levels of involvement: interns, who get farming experience and participate in workshops to learn skills like food distribution and business planning; incubators, who lease land from the county and get more farming and business mentorship; and the independent business phase, where growers still can get affordable land and water through a contract with the county and get assistance in finding long-term land and water access.

2. The program is hosted at the historic Gutiérrez-Hubbell Open Space.

Grow the Growers farms on the Gutiérrez-Hubbell Open Space property, which has an adobe structure from the 1850s, an acequia, an orchard and 8 acres of farmland.

The Gutiérrez-Hubbell house is on the Camino Real and was built after Juliana Gutiérrez and James “Santiago” Hubbell married in 1849. It is on the New Mexico Register of Cultural Properties and was the first Bernalillo County Open Space property, purchased in 2000.

The Ag Center on the open space property is the home base for most of the agricultural programs. Last year, Grow the Growers farmed on 4 acres and was able to grow 20,000 pounds of produce, according to Open Space manager Mari Simbaña.

3. Grow the Growers is meant to help create community.

County programs like Grow the Growers are not just about boosting businesses or bringing food to underprivileged neighborhoods, according to Simbaña. They are also about training people to contribute to the community.

“No matter where you’re located or what your background is, you deserve to have healthy food, and it is possible to grow more produce in our community,” Simbaña said.