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Thursday, December 3, 2015

Harvesting a Tradition Kercheville practices and advocates urban farming to promote growth in the community.

Story by: Michaela Miller Photos by: Zach Kitchen and Mike Clark

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imothy Kercheville, 33, bends down to pick up a turnip out of his friend’s garden that he created himself. He picks it up, dusts it off a little, then takes a bite to make sure it taste’s good to add to his dish called “Kim chi”.

Kercheville is a farmer and farming consultant in the community where he practices ecologically sustainable farming ranging from 500 acre farms, to small community gardens.

“In 2011 I planted my first seed, heirloom tomatoes, and that’s when I terraced the slope of my first garden,” said Kercheville. “People started visiting my garden and I started getting requests from people to go and make them a garden.”

Kercheville is originally from Orange County California and moved to Bowling Green in 2010.

His grandparent’s lived local, and he would leave southern California and would visit them, whenever he got the chance, growing up.

“As I came out to visit every summer I was coming from a burning hillside country to a lush, green land of variegated waterways and trees and all types of natural beauty,” said Kercheville. “As a child, it seemed like the land of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn and as an adult that’s not faded for me.”

Kercheville described living in California like living in a desert, and growing up visiting Kentucky is what got him interested in farming.

Continue the story on 4E

Timothy Kercheville, 33, gathers turnips, daikon and garlic to be given to the White Squirrel Brewery.

If the owner and head chef enjoy this sample he will become their primary supplier of produce.

4E Made’nKentucky

Thursday, December 3, 2015

Daily News, Bowling Green, Kentucky

Made’nKentucky

Daily News, Bowling Green, Kentucky

Thursday, December 3, 2015

5E

Farm today, grow tomorrow Made’nKitchen

Recipie and photo by: www.thekitchn.com

Continuing from page 1E “The soils here are extremely fertile, there’s a wonderful opportunity for anyone who wants to cultivate here,” said Kercheville. “I mean trees here can grow out of a rock, I’ve never seen a place so abundant with trees.”

Kercheville works with farmers and individuals wanting to start gardens in the community, but also sets up every week at the Farmers Market to sell produce such as turnips, kale, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, radishes, cabbage, peppers, garlic and many other items.

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“The community farmers market gladly accepted me and they helped me become a farmer by allowing me to sell my goods,” said Kercheville.

I just had a meeting with the owner of the White Squirrel tonight to try and sell some of my produce there.”

Timothy Kercheville, 33, gathers turnips from his farms. His daily life is mostly located outside in his friend’s farm or consulting with other farmers. Kercheville loves his produce.

“As a young person who’s trying to mature in the field you can turn people off in the beginning,” said Kercheville.

He also works on a farm he visits when he stays in an old cabin that he pays utilities for, a few miles outside of town. Although he works alone on this particular farm, he said that he usually works in a team of about three people.

He said from seeing what mistakes he had made in the beginning when starting out with farming, it made him that much stronger now.

He also works closely with the property owners of all the gardens he is hired to make.

“I think there is an emerging culture of younger famers around here,” said Kercheville. “They may not have made the names for themselves yet, but the more I get engaged in the community, the more I realize that more people are using the land for production.”

Kercheville rests next to his truck after harvesting turnips and daikon radish.

“It lit a fire inside me to try harder, to impress upon people the possibilities they might not see.”

Kercheville has grown to love farming for cooking purposes and helping people with it over the past few years. He tends to gardens and enjoys making fresh vegetable meals.

One of his favorite meals that he eats every day is called “roasting root crop”. “I eat this about three times a week,” he posted on his Facebook page along with the recipe.

By helping other farmers and landowners raise ecologically sustainable land, he also grew as a person and learned how to master his craft.

“At first, there was a lot of skepticism, but as I began to interact on more and more lands and more people became more actuated with my gardens, there was a lot more respect for what I was doing,: said Kercheville of when he first started planting the gardens.

Ingredients 1 medium head (2 pounds) napa cabbage 1/4 cup sea salt or kosher salt (see Recipe Notes) Water (see Recipe Notes) 1 tablespoon grated garlic (5 to 6 cloves) 1 teaspoon grated ginger 1 teaspoon sugar 2 to 3 tablespoons seafood flavor or water (optional, see Recipe Notes) 1 to 5 tablespoons Korean red pepper flakes (gochugaru) 8 ounces Korean radish or daikon, peeled and cut into matchsticks 4 scallions, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

I think there is an emerging culture of younger famers around here,

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As Kercheville believes that Kentucky is defiantly a cultivate state, he believes it’s also one for the farming community to grow as well. Kercheville recently partnered with other local artists in the community who have a house where they gather, Kerecheville, along with other artists of the community who meet at the house planted a garden in the yard as a way to collaborate with the locals.

Homemade Kimchi

He also has big plans for the future of the Bowling Green community and how to spread ecologically sustainable farming through the different art forms.

“I feel like what I try to do is artistic,” said Kercheville. “I would like for it to be imprinted in the popular culture more.”

Kercheville visited “The White Squirrel” and brought them a sample of his produce. They want to start planning monthly farm-to-table dinners.

It’s not set in stone yet, but they are very willing to work with Kercheville on providing local grown food to sell to their customers.

Rempostent molor reperum ipsae pores aliquo This Saturday, he will be participating in the construction of an earthquake proof home from recycled materials. He is coordinating an Earth Skills gathering at the site of the Big-to-Do.

The recipe calls for fresh turnips, garlic, and diced peppers. He also sells these vegetables at the local farmers market as well as a bigger variety.

Kercheville holds a handful of turnips.

By getting involved in the community, he would like to see the arts, music, churches, restaurants and businesses in the community get involved with his farming to make it more popular in the region.

With his love for home-grown vegetables and what it takes to grow these crops, he also embraces the beauty of it.

“Seeing the beauty of these gardens and farming systems unfold in a vegetative state, towards the sunlight and wrapping together is such a wonderful harmony,” said Kercheville. “It’s a private love and experience”.

With Kercheville being a part of the young generation of farmers, it can be hard to try and do something different when communities are used to their own ways.

Kercheville chops vegetables for making kim chi.

He mashes his harvested vegetables , in order to brine his Kim chi.

“I believe it would be a wonderful thing to behold and a better place to live,” said Kercheville. g

Kercheville speaks with Sean Stevens, the co-owner of White Squirrel Brewery about using his produce at White Squirrel.

Instructions 1. Slice the cabbage into quarters and remove the cores. Cut each quarter crosswise into 2-inchwide strips.

2. Salt the cabbage in a large bowl. Using your hands, massage the salt into the cabbage until it starts to soften a bit, then add water to cover the cabbage. Put a plate on top and weigh it down with something heavy, like a jar or can of beans. Let stand for 1 to 2 hours.

3. Rinse the cabbage under cold water 3 times and drain in a colander for 15 to 20 minutes.

Rinse and dry the bowl you used for salting, and set it aside to use later.

4. Meanwhile, combine the garlic, ginger, sugar, and seafood flavor (or 3 tablespoons water) in a small bowl and mix to form a smooth paste. Mix in the gochugaru, using 1 tablespoon for mild and up to 5 tablespoons for spicy (I like about 3 1/2 tablespoons).

5. Gently squeeze any remaining water from the cabbage and return it to the bowl along with the radish, scallions, and seasoning paste.

6. Using your hands, gently work the paste into the vegetables until they are thoroughly coated.

7. Pack the kimchi into the jar, pressing down on it until the brine rises to cover the vegetables.

Leave at least 1 inch of headspace. Seal the jar with te lid.

8. Let the jar stand at room temperature for 1 to 5 days. You may see bubbles inside the jar and brine may seep out of the lid; place a bowl or plate under the jar to help catch any overflow.

9. Check the kimchi once a day, pressing down on the vegetables with a clean finger or spoon to keep them submerged under the brine. Taste a little at this point, too! When the kimchi tastes ripe enough for your liking, transfer the jar to the refrigerator. You may eat it right away, but it's best after another week or two.

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