Gardens flourish on Pine Ridge

[Tanuki]

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/article/gardens-flourish-pine-ridge-145921

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..."As the project’s gardeners repay loans, they build a positive payment history, improve their credit score and qualify for additional loans, including from the new federal credit union that opened on Pine Ridge this month, said Lakota Funds business success coach/loan officer Tonia Young, Oglala.

Partners in the gardens project include South Dakota State University’s extension service, the university’s Lakota Beginning Farmer/Rancher Training Program, National Relief Charities and the youth center in Kyle, South Dakota.

The opportunity to improve tribal members’ health was another incentive for the 21 gardeners. Pine Ridge is a place where people still line up monthly for government rations doled out from the back of a truck—including low-quality items such as white flour, canned goods and a cheese-like substance. “Commods caused our diabetes,” Yellow Hawk said.

The increasing availability of junk food has exacerbated the problem, said Young. “Nowadays, mountains of soda pop are sold here, along with chips, cookies and other unhealthy foods.”

In contrast, the food Yellow Hawk and fellow gardeners grew this past season was not only nutritious but grown without pesticides or other chemicals. Though the program’s participants have not gone through the expensive, complicated process of obtaining USDA certification, their gardens are essentially organic. By using drip irrigation, Yellow Hawk and other gardeners managed all this with minimal use of water, delivered right to the plants.}..."

[leftyladyfrommo]

1. That's great.

Life on Pine Ridge is hard. Just having a good source of fresh produce is wonderful.

Maybe they can make money selling it to local grocery stores.

[loudsue]

2. This is so great for the folks in Kyle.

I hope this spreads all across the Lakota territory...hell...across all the reservations in the country. Native American populations are among the poorest Americans economically. What better to lift up the Native Americans than getting back to the blessings of the land (Grandmother).

[Rockyj]

3. On my rural reservation in Oregon

the only store was filled with aisle of junk food.
I would love to see a peoples co op of organic foods sold instead.

[Coyotl]

4. No substitute for giving them their land back!

The People of the United States stole their land. It should be returned.

[jwirr]

5. As I road the bus here in rural NE MN I was delighted to see the number of Native homes with a

garden along side it. I think most of these were independent though. As far as I know the tribe has no organized program to help people in this endeavor. Wish they did.