09/09/2026
12 years ago, a farmer and I planted abonos verdes (cover crops) in my Peace Corps community of La Colmena. It was an uphill battle selling the idea to subsistence farmers. I now see how difficult it is for cover cropping to fit into a financially self-sustaining system. I didn’t have the luxury of extra space to put certain areas out of production until this year. Very happy to finally have another piece of the rotation puzzle.
Today I finally did the thing that inspired me to start farming. I tilled new ground and broadcast a cover crop mix of winter rye, crimson clover, and field peas. The clover and peas will add organic matter and a little bit of nitrogen, and will die this winter. The rye will keep growing in the spring and suppress weeds until I terminate it late spring and transplant into it. It’s the best way to build soil if you the have time to wait for it and the financial reserves to live on in the meantime.
It’s a wild and precious thing to look back on 12 years of your life and see it come full circle.
