Grow Your Own

“Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens,” said Thomas Jefferson, “They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bands.” Over 200 years later, Jefferson’s cultivators can call themselves The Greenhorns, thanks to the media support offered by director and activist Severine von Tscharner Fleming. “We want to reclaim place. We want to steward. We want to feed, and we want to access the generosity of photosynthesis directly—with our hands touching the soil,” says Ms. Fleming, the creator of The Greenhorns, which serves as the title of her upcoming documentary film and as an inclusive label for the emergent generation of fierce young American farmers.

The 20th Century “American Gothic” image of stern, aging farmers has faded and a new icon has risen: Greenhorns are vibrant, self-made, often first-generation farmers who have chosen a lifestyle that flies in the face of what is generally expected of America’s young adults. Along with a team of equally inspired writers, designers and multi-genre communicators, Fleming has built an unrivaled body of resources for young farmers. TheGreenhorns.net offers a preview of Fleming’s documentary, profiles of working Greenhorns, an official blog, and a free download of The Greenhorn Guide for Young Farmers. You can also “nominate a farmer,” as the project is building a database of farmers who employ “unconventional marketing practices, unusual land tenure arrangements and visionary crop choices.” Watch the trailer here.