I connected with Aleesha Rouse, a young farmer who is ready to bring fresh food and community to the table.

Do you want to introduce yourself?

Hi my name is Aly Rouse, I’m just a simple woman trying to open up a farm.

I should note for the reader, Aly is currently picking up her craft room and dancing to some DnB music while I annotate our conversation. This is how she keeps focus with me in our conversation.

We went to the New CT Farmer Alliance’s Farmer 2 Farmer Conference in Meridian CT, can you tell us more about why you went, and what they are about.

I went to the conference to make more connections and see people I haven’t seen in the past year. Vania is a local farming buddy, she spoke at the conference about advocating and farmer support. As farmers winter is our ownly down time, through the summer and fall we are deep into farming. So I don’t really see these people or hear how their season went, until about this time of year. They help farmers get connected with resources and networks.

How long have you been in the farming community?

The end of 2020? It might have been the end of 2021. Yeah it - No the end of 2020, sorry. I was working at the Creative Living Community, which is a non-profit farm in Coventry that services adults with disabilities.

That was the start?

Yeah, because I was the farm manager there so that’s how I started working towards agriculture. But growing up in my Mom’s garden got me started. If she could work in her garden, she would be outside doing it. When I think hard work I think going outside and working up a sweat in the garden then coming inside for a cool glass of lemonade she laughs

That’s cute, the lemonade ending. Can you talk more about the conference and what you walked away with?

I think it gave me more piece of mind going, it does look like CT as a state is going to help with farm money. There are a lot of people working so we don’t get screwed over on a federal level. There is a lot of tension in politics and they are trying to protect small farmers the best they can.

So what are your aspirations as a small farmer?

If I could dream big I’d love to provide to 60% of the community with the land access we could potentially use here. But my goal is to start with 1 acre of land then build up to provide to all Windham schools , farmers markets, and family owned shops. I’d love to supply to the local bodega, I know La Mexicana Grocery and Taqueria, I want to hear what they are looking to sell and what the community needs.

What’s land access like for small farmers like yourself?

Impossible. I’ve been working at it for 4 years and todays economy it’s hard to develop enough savings as a single person that would be able to pay for the needs of a farmer.

What can someone do to get land?

There are grants and loans with the USDA, but money lended needs to be paid back. Funds don’t get covered like a farmhouse and such. There is a link that connects farm owners to perspective farmers which people have leased. Some towns have opened leases that are a little complicated. Why I’m pushing to get farm land this year is because there is a land access grant that is coming out thanks to the hard work of folks at Uconn Extension. This work is important because BIPOC people don’t have capital to property so its important we get access through funding. Land access is one the hardest parts about farming.

So say its 5 years from now, you have your land, you have your farm, your have your farmhouse. What’s happening on the land?

Oh yeah, Hosting Solstice dinner parties, green houses , veg and fruit plots, We would be an open table to the community hopefully bringing a bunch of different recipes from the community to the table. Yeah,food is important so of course I want to grow food people want. Growing things like Nopales, a prickly peared cactus, which can grow up to like New Hampshire. I hope to dedicate a lot of time to perennial plants. Hosting private parties for the community, deffinetly not a wedding spot though.

What’s been the hardest part of this chapter of your farming journey?

Getting land is probably the hardest part, getting land that I can do what I’d like with it.

And the easiest part?

I don’t even know! I think it’s all been very difficult.

Well I hope it’s rewarding in the least, Thanks for answering my questions!

Cool!