A SOUTHWESTERN POINT OF PRIDE FEATURE PHOTOS AND ARTICLE BY HEIDI CRNKOVIC ~
Although “red or green” is the question of choice when dining in the Land of Enchantment, pecans surpass chile as one of New Mexico’s top-dollar agricultural crops. It’s no surprise that these crunchy delights come paired with a green or red chile powder in ready-to-go containers at novelty shops along the state’s well-traveled highways. In fact, you’ll often find your red or green chile enchiladas followed by a slice of pecan pie especially when visiting Doña Ana County, where 70 percent of the state’s industry acreage lies. The more temperate climate of Southern New Mexico coupled with enough below freezing days, a helpful factor in the harvest process, makes this area of the state an ideal candidate for raising North America’s only native tree nut. In fact, New Mexico ranks second only to Georgia in pecan production, but has the distinct advantage of a dryer climate that spares the trees from the fungus that Georgia pecan farmers combat. The Mesilla Valley is home to such commodities as chile, cotton, alfalfa, onion and lettuce, but as you travel through the valley, passing tidy rows of pecan trees, it is obvious that yet another crop is a point of pride. Following the Rio Grande, you’ll find a set of orchards heavy-laden
with a bountiful harvest. There, hauling “chile trash,” (a high protein chile byproduct that can be fed to cattle) to his herd of commercial Angus who forage near their home and orchard, you’ll find Michael Salopek, owner of Five Friends Farms, third-generation pecan farmer and agronomist. Michael resides in the first Earthship home built in this Southern New Mexico county. His picturesque house took nearly four years to build and speaks volumes of Michael’s thrifty, yet effective nature. The home boasts exterior walls crafted from repurposed tires and aluminum cans and the interior decorated and structured with lumber recycled from livestock handling facilities. Michael’s wife, Charlene is responsible for the pecan farm’s accounting, but also has adorned their beautiful home with historical and unique décor, which almost always has a story and sometimes incorporates pecans. The name Salopek is synonymous with pecan farming and true to tradition, Michael’s daughter, Karajane now manages the majority of her father’s acreage and is the family’s fourth generation to raise pecans in the area. Originating from Croatia, the Salopeks migrated to the United States to work in the coal mines. Much like many of the 4
