ANEW Insight

How Growing Food Heals Communities: From Patio to Power with Tina Davis | ANEW Ep 95

Dr. Supatra Tovar Season 1 Episode 95

Send us a text

 What if the key to better health, food security, and social justice starts with a single seed?

In this compelling 96th episode of the ANEW Insight Podcast, Dr. Supatra Tovar sits down with Tina Davis, CEO and Founder of Soulful Soil Farms, to explore how growing your own food can be a revolutionary act of healing, empowerment, and independence. From starting on a patio windowsill with a few hydroponic units to managing community gardens across Los Angeles County and the Inland Empire, Tina’s journey shows us that access to nourishment isn’t a luxury—it’s a birthright.

Tina shares her inspiring transition from working in the corporate healthcare system to becoming a gardening advocate and food justice warrior. She explains how gardening is more than just a hobby—it’s a return to our roots, a form of preventative healthcare, and a powerful tool to reclaim agency over our bodies and our communities. You’ll hear how Tina’s mission goes far beyond growing vegetables—it’s about dismantling systems that prioritize profit over nutrition, healing chronic illness naturally, and teaching essential life skills to underserved populations.

We also dive into:

  • How food deserts and corporate agriculture contribute to poor public health
  • Why gardening is a form of resistance and a pathway to social equity
  • What to grow in small spaces like patios, balconies, or windowsills
  • How gardening impacts youth, families, and community engagement
  • Natural ways to manage chronic conditions like high blood pressure through herbs and nutrition
  • The surprising emotional and mental health benefits of tending a garden

Dr. Tovar and Tina also discuss the challenges of maintaining community gardens, how to engage the next generation, and how even a single herb plant on your windowsill can begin to shift your health and mindset.

Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just starting with a 5-gallon bucket, this episode will inspire you to see soil as a source of sovereignty. Tina reminds us that food is medicine, gardening is education, and access to land is a social justice issue. And it all begins with one step: start growing.

Watch and listen now at anew-insight.com and on all major podcast platforms. Ready to break free from diet culture and reclaim your well-being? Enroll today in the Deprogram Diet Culture online course at anew-insight.com.

Find more episodes on YouTube (@my.anew.insight), Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and follow us on Instagram, Threads, TikTok, and Facebook @my.anew.insight.


 #urbangardening, #foodjustice, #sustainablefarming, #communitygardens, #hydroponicgardening, #growyourownfood, #gardeningforhealth, #patiogardening, #herbalmedicine, #fooddeserts, #naturalremedies, #socialjusticethroughfood, #tinadavis #anewinsight #anewinsightpodcast #drsupatratovar #nutritionalpsychology  #gardeningeducation, #nutritionequity, #healingthroughgardening, #naturalliving, #holistichealth, #gardeningtips, #plantbasedhealing, #diyfoodsecurity, #verticalfarming, #

Thank you for joining us on this journey to wellness. Remember, the insights and advice shared on the ANEW Body Insight Podcast are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before making any changes to your health routine. To learn more about the podcast and stay updated on new episodes, visit ANEW Body Insight Podcast at anew-insight.com. To watch this episode on YouTube, visit @my.anew.insight. Follow us on social media at @my.anew.insight on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Threads for more updates and insights. Thank you for tuning in! Stay connected with us for more empowering stories and expert guidance. Until next time, stay well and keep evolving with ANEW Body Insight!

00:00:02:02 - 00:00:04:15
Welcome to the ANEW Insight podcast


00:00:04:15 - 00:00:08:08
empowering and inspiring your journey
to optimal health.


00:00:08:08 - 00:00:12:01
Hosted by Doctor
Supatra Tovar, clinical psychologist,


00:00:12:01 - 00:00:17:06
registered dietitian, fitness expert
and author of Deprogram Diet Culture:


00:00:17:06 - 00:00:22:11
Rethink Your Relationship with Food,
Heal Your Mind, and Live a Diet Free Life.


00:00:22:11 - 00:00:25:09
I follow my guests’ journey
to optimal health,


00:00:25:09 - 00:00:29:15
providing you with the keys
to unlock your own wellness path.


00:00:29:15 - 00:00:32:03
Tune in and evolve with us.


00:00:34:14 - 00:00:37:05
Hello, and welcome to the ANEW Insight podcast.


00:00:37:05 - 00:00:42:16
I'm Doctor Supatra Tovar,
and I'm so excited to have CEO and founder


00:00:42:22 - 00:00:47:09
of Soulful Soil Farms,
Tina Davis, with us today.


00:00:47:09 - 00:00:48:21
Tina, welcome.


00:00:48:21 - 00:00:50:02
Thank you, thank you for having me.


00:00:50:02 - 00:00:53:01
So excited to pick Tina's brain today.


00:00:53:01 - 00:00:56:22
Tina and I met while we were doing
some donation drive work


00:00:57:04 - 00:01:00:17
for Eaton fire survivors,
and I was so impressed by Tina.


00:01:00:23 - 00:01:03:18
We're going to be talking a little bit
about that towards the end.


00:01:03:18 - 00:01:06:19
But before we get into anything,
I'm going to tell you a little bit


00:01:06:19 - 00:01:09:19
more about Tina
and then we'll get into our questions.


00:01:10:21 - 00:01:15:10
Tina Marie Davis is the CEO and founder
of Soulful Soil Farms,


00:01:15:15 - 00:01:19:06
a social enterprise committed
to empowering diverse communities


00:01:19:11 - 00:01:22:09
through sustainable farming practices.


00:01:22:09 - 00:01:25:03
Tina believes that gardening
is a powerful tool


00:01:25:03 - 00:01:29:10
for social justice and independence
through soulful soil farms.


00:01:29:12 - 00:01:33:11
She is helping individuals and communities
reconnect with the land,


00:01:33:20 - 00:01:38:20
learn how to grow their own food
and achieve greater economic independence.


00:01:39:07 - 00:01:43:01
Her work bridges the gap
between environmental sustainability,


00:01:43:07 - 00:01:46:07
food security and social equity.


00:01:46:07 - 00:01:48:02
Tina, welcome.


00:01:48:02 - 00:01:51:01
Thank you, thank you again for having me. Yes. Thank you.


00:01:51:01 - 00:01:54:09
As soon as I found out
that Tina was doing this, I knew


00:01:54:09 - 00:01:58:22
I had to have her on the podcast
because I really believe that there's


00:01:59:00 - 00:02:02:00
a lot of issues in our food system,


00:02:02:09 - 00:02:05:08
especially with produce.


00:02:05:09 - 00:02:09:06
And we're seeing a lot of,
you know, E.coli


00:02:09:06 - 00:02:12:06
and a lot of,
contamination of our produce.


00:02:12:06 - 00:02:15:01
And so I thought it would be so good
to have Tina on,


00:02:15:01 - 00:02:19:17
to talk about what we can do
as individuals to empower ourselves


00:02:20:10 - 00:02:23:10
to start gardening
in whatever way is possible.


00:02:23:10 - 00:02:27:15
But before we get into that, Tina,
you know, you've created


00:02:27:15 - 00:02:31:06
Soulful Soil Farms to promote
social justice through gardening.


00:02:32:04 - 00:02:36:00
How and why did you become passionate
about this cause?


00:02:36:12 - 00:02:41:04
Well, I, I grew up on a farm. In Compton there’s
Richland Farms.


00:02:42:16 - 00:02:44:03
In Richland Farms.


00:02:44:03 - 00:02:46:00
So growing up in that


00:02:46:00 - 00:02:49:00
atmosphere,
it kind of this full circle for me.


00:02:49:16 - 00:02:55:00
As an adult, I spent most of my years
in corporate in the healthcare industry.


00:02:55:13 - 00:02:58:04
I was on the clinical side, and then
I was on the business andmin,


00:02:58:04 - 00:03:01:11
So I got 
to kind of see both sides of that world.


00:03:02:08 - 00:03:03:17
And I really wanted to step


00:03:03:17 - 00:03:05:18
away and still


00:03:05:18 - 00:03:09:20
work in the form of health care but not,
you know, health care as we know it.


00:03:10:07 - 00:03:13:07
And gardening was just the answer.


00:03:13:23 - 00:03:15:06
Wow. What


00:03:15:06 - 00:03:18:06
what form of health care
were you working on?


00:03:18:07 - 00:03:22:04
So I started in clinical, I was a CNA, I was restorative home


00:03:22:04 - 00:03:25:04
then I did, skilled nursing.


00:03:25:08 - 00:03:27:15
And I was in school for my LVN


00:03:27:15 - 00:03:30:11
going to work my way up to RN, and I


00:03:30:11 - 00:03:33:10
am, I get attached easily.


00:03:33:10 - 00:03:36:08
So the first time someone that I was,


00:03:36:08 - 00:03:39:08
you know, healthy
working with passed away,


00:03:39:15 - 00:03:43:17
it just it completely changed my spectrum.


00:03:43:17 - 00:03:45:01
I just couldn’t.


00:03:45:01 - 00:03:46:22
It was I was taking my work home.


00:03:46:22 - 00:03:48:05
Oh I bet.


00:03:48:05 - 00:03:50:03
So I wanted to stay stay in healthcare.


00:03:50:03 - 00:03:51:15
So I switched over to business admin


00:03:52:18 - 00:03:55:18
and I most of that time, I did,


00:03:56:14 - 00:03:56:23
I did


00:03:56:23 - 00:03:59:23
prescription, I did claims.


00:04:00:17 - 00:04:03:00
And I worked my way up to director.


00:04:03:00 - 00:04:08:20
Wow. So the transition
to gardening, why gardening, in particular?


00:04:08:21 - 00:04:11:21
Gardening as a form of health care,
as the original form of health care actually.


00:04:12:04 - 00:04:14:21
Yeah. You know, we go back to our roots.


00:04:14:21 - 00:04:20:09
There weren’t CVS’s and Riteaid’s on every corner we went to the earth.


00:04:20:15 - 00:04:23:17
You know the earth provides absolutely 
everything that we need.


00:04:24:04 - 00:04:27:04
So I started doing a deep dive.


00:04:27:10 - 00:04:31:10
And it just kind of
I went down a rabbit hole and never came out,


00:04:31:10 - 00:04:33:23
[laughter] and never came out.


00:04:33:23 - 00:04:39:11
Well, tell people a little bit about
because I think I understand


00:04:39:14 - 00:04:43:15
that food is medicine, and I think people
are really starting to grasp that,


00:04:44:03 - 00:04:46:17
but really define for people


00:04:46:17 - 00:04:49:17
why gardening is health care.


00:04:49:20 - 00:04:52:20
Gardening is health care. One, it’s organic.


00:04:53:01 - 00:04:55:20
And again, because the earth provides
everything we need.


00:04:55:20 - 00:04:58:19
More specifically, I deal a lot with herbs.


00:04:58:21 - 00:05:00:06
I'm learning remedies.


00:05:00:06 - 00:05:03:06
I bought a book of herbs to to learn


00:05:03:17 - 00:05:06:19
and then to also teach, you know,
different herbs that we can grow.


00:05:06:19 - 00:05:09:16
That is for natural healing.


00:05:09:16 - 00:05:10:23
I have high blood pressure. 


00:05:10:23 - 00:05:14:07
My dad has high blood pressure. A sister of mine
has high blood pressure.


00:05:14:07 - 00:05:15:03
So I started to.


00:05:15:03 - 00:05:15:18
Okay, so how.


00:05:15:18 - 00:05:18:04
Can I heal my body naturally?


00:05:18:04 - 00:05:21:00
How can I treat my high blood pressure


00:05:21:00 - 00:05:22:04
without taking the medicine?


00:05:22:04 - 00:05:24:18
Because again, I was in the pharmaceutical industry.


00:05:24:18 - 00:05:26:10
It's $1 billion industry.


00:05:26:10 - 00:05:28:23
You know, what I've learned is.


00:05:28:23 - 00:05:31:02
Regardless of what cures are out


00:05:31:02 - 00:05:34:09
there, like money is in medicine,
you know, it's not in the cure.


00:05:34:20 - 00:05:39:12
And working in that field, I got to see,
you know, kind of like the dark side of that,


00:05:39:12 - 00:05:40:16
 and so.


00:05:40:16 - 00:05:43:02
I know firsthand how poisonous those


00:05:43:02 - 00:05:44:04
pills can be.


00:05:44:04 - 00:05:47:04
And I wanted to


00:05:47:12 - 00:05:52:07
really figure out how I can live my life
with high blood pressure


00:05:52:07 - 00:05:55:11
treating it naturally, holistically, organically.


00:05:55:11 - 00:05:57:05
And so gardening


00:05:57:05 - 00:06:00:15
that was like literally the answer,
you know, again, because the earth provides


00:06:00:15 - 00:06:04:13
everything we need now
it’s a matter of growing it, caring for it,


00:06:04:13 - 00:06:06:14
and more importantly, teaching it.


00:06:06:14 - 00:06:09:18
Yes. And, as a dietitian in the hospital,


00:06:09:22 - 00:06:12:22
we would treat plenty of people
with high blood pressure.


00:06:13:08 - 00:06:17:05
And we would do that through food
and recommendations,


00:06:17:12 - 00:06:22:07
primarily the Mediterranean,
and Dash diet combined.


00:06:22:12 - 00:06:24:10
It's called the Mind diet.


00:06:24:10 - 00:06:28:21
Is what is the most, 
you know, currently recommended diet


00:06:29:01 - 00:06:32:07
to naturally
treat your high blood pressure.


00:06:32:07 - 00:06:35:09
And of course, that includes plentiful


00:06:35:10 - 00:06:38:14
fruits and vegetables, herbs


00:06:38:17 - 00:06:42:16
as well as as well as massive reduction
in sodium.


00:06:42:16 - 00:06:45:17
You guys, we get way too much sodium,


00:06:46:01 - 00:06:51:03
especially in processed food,
but also in takeout food and fast food.


00:06:51:18 - 00:06:55:10
So I am totally, 100% with you on that.


00:06:55:23 - 00:06:59:09
Now, gardening itself has long
been associated


00:06:59:09 - 00:07:04:14
with health and sustainability, but
you see it as a form of social justice.


00:07:04:14 - 00:07:06:07
I do as well.


00:07:06:07 - 00:07:10:03
Can you just elaborate on the connection
for our listeners?


00:07:10:09 - 00:07:15:00
Yeah, gardening as a form of resistance,
you know, it challenges


00:07:15:10 - 00:07:18:10
social inequality, it challenges food deserts.


00:07:19:04 - 00:07:20:13
And it really


00:07:20:13 - 00:07:22:19
puts the tools in our hands that we need.


00:07:22:19 - 00:07:26:06
There are so many underserved


00:07:27:13 - 00:07:30:15
communities,
particularly communities of color.


00:07:30:15 - 00:07:33:15
Where we don't have access to,


00:07:34:11 - 00:07:36:22
fresh food,


00:07:36:22 - 00:07:38:14
land to grow.


00:07:38:14 - 00:07:41:12
But there's a McDonalds on
every corner, you know,


00:07:41:12 - 00:07:44:19
and you'll see that
when the demographic changes


00:07:45:08 - 00:07:50:00
and you'll see Whole Foods
as opposed to liquor stores.


00:07:50:04 - 00:07:52:23
You know, or,


00:07:52:23 - 00:07:55:23
Sprouts as opposed to donut shops.


00:07:56:16 - 00:08:00:06
And so because it is a form of resistance


00:08:00:06 - 00:08:04:20
like in teaching,
it is, is where I think it's the key is.


00:08:05:14 - 00:08:06:07
Yeah. Because you’re


00:08:06:07 - 00:08:09:04
educating the community.


00:08:09:04 - 00:08:12:04
And those who are willing to learn,


00:08:13:21 - 00:08:17:09
It’s a life skill, you’re really changing
a life, you know what I mean?


00:08:17:17 - 00:08:21:02
And the fact that it is a form of resistance,


00:08:21:02 - 00:08:23:08
I think, everyone should have


00:08:23:08 - 00:08:25:02
that skill in their back pocket.


00:08:25:02 - 00:08:27:00
Yes. Because if you were to,


00:08:27:00 - 00:08:30:00
like, really define the resistance,


00:08:30:02 - 00:08:33:22
it would be against corporations
essentially,


00:08:34:06 - 00:08:36:23
that try to provide us food


00:08:36:23 - 00:08:40:05
that does not actually nourish or heal us.


00:08:40:05 - 00:08:43:19
It's really designed
to keep us kind of addicted to the food,


00:08:44:05 - 00:08:48:13
really allowing only those options.


00:08:49:02 - 00:08:52:02
If you're living in an area
that's a food desert


00:08:52:04 - 00:08:55:18
and you talked about
not having accessibility to land.


00:08:56:03 - 00:08:58:08
So how do you help people address that?


00:08:58:08 - 00:09:01:22
Like for me personally,
I'm starting to grow my own produce.


00:09:02:04 - 00:09:04:19
I don't have, you know, I live in a condo.


00:09:04:19 - 00:09:09:12
So I've gotten into hydroponic gardening,
which, you know, if you look at


00:09:09:12 - 00:09:14:03
the outside of my my windows,
I might look like I might be a pot farmer.


00:09:14:03 - 00:09:17:22
I am assuring you I'm growing vegetables
even though it's illegal here.


00:09:19:17 - 00:09:21:12
But how do you help people


00:09:21:12 - 00:09:24:20
in these food deserts
if they don't have land?


00:09:25:06 - 00:09:28:17
Can you guide them towards
accessible community gardens?


00:09:29:02 - 00:09:30:18
Teach them hydroponics. What do you do?


00:09:30:18 - 00:09:32:02
Education is key.


00:09:32:04 - 00:09:33:22
A lot of people aren't aware.


00:09:33:22 - 00:09:35:18
One, you don't need a lot of land.


00:09:35:18 - 00:09:37:08
You don't need land.


00:09:37:08 - 00:09:39:18
Honestly, period. To to grow.


00:09:39:18 - 00:09:42:02
You can grow on your balcony you can live 
in an apartment and grow.


00:09:42:02 - 00:09:43:22
There’s vertical growing.


00:09:43:22 - 00:09:46:22
There's you can do raised beds.


00:09:46:22 - 00:09:48:19
There’s raise beds on wheels,
 like mobile,


00:09:48:19 - 00:09:52:10
like there's so many different ways
you can do herbs on your windowsill.


00:09:52:10 - 00:09:54:08
You can get a little 5 gallon


00:09:54:08 - 00:09:55:22
bucket in the corner and grow lettuce.


00:09:55:22 - 00:09:59:08
You start anywhere, my
my thing is that just start,


00:09:59:19 - 00:10:02:19
you know, and if you don't know how,


00:10:02:23 - 00:10:05:10
then there's resources,
you can provide resources.


00:10:05:10 - 00:10:08:05
 like you said, different community gardens.


00:10:08:05 - 00:10:11:02
We’ll come out
and and teach you,


00:10:11:17 - 00:10:13:04
look at your space,


00:10:13:04 - 00:10:16:21
give you some suggestions based on
what it is you want to grow.


00:10:16:23 - 00:10:20:09
But there's so many different ways
to just start.


00:10:20:09 - 00:10:22:15
It doesn't have to be massive
you know, 


00:10:22:15 - 00:10:25:14
I started in a little patio,
a little patio.


00:10:26:04 - 00:10:29:12
Now I have a backyard and my garden is


00:10:30:01 - 00:10:31:19
full of crops.


00:10:31:19 - 00:10:35:14
And now
I'm gonna start working on my front yard.


00:10:36:09 - 00:10:37:21
But I started on the patio.


00:10:37:21 - 00:10:40:04
I started on a patio on a window sill.


00:10:40:04 - 00:10:42:01
So that you don't need a lot of space,


00:10:42:01 - 00:10:46:06
it's really about just doing the research, knowing
what resources are available to you.


00:10:46:16 - 00:10:51:08
What community gardens are available to
you and what community is available to you. Yes.


00:10:51:16 - 00:10:56:11
I mean, for me, I got a few different
little hydroponic units from Amazon.


00:10:57:00 - 00:11:00:05
I grow my own lettuce, kale, spinach.


00:11:00:12 - 00:11:03:14
I have all sorts of herbs like basil.


00:11:03:14 - 00:11:07:13
I have scallions, I have cilantro, which


00:11:07:16 - 00:11:11:18
oh my goodness, you guys . The smell is amazing right. If you 


00:11:12:08 - 00:11:15:01
if you have had store bought cilantro


00:11:15:01 - 00:11:19:05
and you grow your own,
there's no comparison.


00:11:19:11 - 00:11:22:10
I'm growing tomatoes, I have little yellow
squash


00:11:22:10 - 00:11:25:21
is starting to grow and some zucchinis I'm
like so proud of it.


00:11:25:21 - 00:11:29:11
I call it like praying to my garden altar.


00:11:29:11 - 00:11:33:08
I'll like kneel in front of me
like, hello little plants, how are you?


00:11:33:09 - 00:11:34:16
Please grow for me.


00:11:34:16 - 00:11:39:02
I love it and I do think it does free you.


00:11:39:16 - 00:11:43:14
We can't necessarily always rely on our


00:11:43:14 - 00:11:48:03
our food system,
but plus the nutrients are missing.


00:11:48:03 - 00:11:52:03
Our soil is not plentiful enough,


00:11:52:11 - 00:11:55:17
to give us the vitamins and minerals
that we really need.


00:11:55:17 - 00:11:58:22
So growing your own food can be so


00:11:59:23 - 00:12:03:10
empowering and so healthful for your body.


00:12:03:17 - 00:12:07:06
So tell us about the work that you do
with communities


00:12:07:11 - 00:12:09:21
to encourage the practice of gardening.


00:12:09:21 - 00:12:15:18
How do you how do you get to people
and and encourage this and work with them?


00:12:15:23 - 00:12:17:15
A lot of people have


00:12:17:15 - 00:12:20:15
learned about me through word
of mouth, and our social media.


00:12:21:16 - 00:12:27:02
I started out partnering with, Music Changing
Lives, which is a big organization


00:12:27:02 - 00:12:29:07
in San Bernadino.


00:12:29:07 - 00:12:30:12
They have a two and 


00:12:30:12 - 00:12:33:18
half acre piece of land that I manage,


00:12:34:06 - 00:12:37:18
and that gives me the opportunity
to have that


00:12:37:18 - 00:12:41:10
hands on everyday, outside
 of my own garden, of course..


00:12:42:02 - 00:12:45:02
And then you get people
who reach out through social media,


00:12:45:16 - 00:12:48:16
people will drive by the garden,  like business cards.


00:12:49:09 - 00:12:51:23
But I do I manage the garden out there.


00:12:53:11 - 00:12:54:17
I had someone reach out to me


00:12:54:17 - 00:12:57:20
about revitalizing a garden
in the city of Paris.


00:12:59:02 - 00:13:00:23
Collectively with other organizations,


00:13:00:23 - 00:13:04:06
we've built over 15 community gardens.


00:13:04:11 - 00:13:07:11
In parks and recreation,
and that's just with the youth alone.


00:13:07:21 - 00:13:10:18
So it's kind of by like word of mouth
you know, people start to see.


00:13:10:18 - 00:13:15:13
And I feel like gardening
is starting to kind of trend.


00:13:16:04 - 00:13:18:22
I just really hope that it's one that lasts.


00:13:18:22 - 00:13:21:22
Yes. It's, it’s


00:13:22:04 - 00:13:24:00
we’re getting pretty busy
I love it.


00:13:24:00 - 00:13:27:02
So it's just really kind of grassroots
through


00:13:27:02 - 00:13:30:16
social media,
through people hearing about you.


00:13:31:02 - 00:13:34:05
And then you're helping to build


00:13:34:08 - 00:13:37:18
these gardens
in their different communities.


00:13:38:00 - 00:13:42:09
So 15 give us a kind
of a little geographical picture


00:13:42:10 - 00:13:44:18
and don't have to name them all.
That’s okay, most of them


00:13:44:18 - 00:13:46:10
are parks in L.A. County.


00:13:46:10 - 00:13:49:10
There are about four in the Inland Empire,


00:13:49:23 - 00:13:52:06
but a big part of those are with 
L.A. Parks and Recreation.


00:13:52:06 - 00:13:53:11
So, you know, L.A.


00:13:53:11 - 00:13:56:13
is is huge, but it's also very dissected,


00:13:56:13 - 00:13:58:15
so there's different parts of L.A.


00:13:58:15 - 00:14:01:15
that we've been able
to erect gardens at


00:14:01:17 - 00:14:04:04
and we're doing it again this year. 


00:14:04:04 - 00:14:05:10
I love this.


00:14:06:12 - 00:14:07:02
So in


00:14:07:02 - 00:14:10:02
your experience,
what's been the biggest barrier


00:14:10:02 - 00:14:15:00
to getting diverse communities involved
in gardening and sustainable farming?


00:14:15:19 - 00:14:18:19
The biggest barrier would have to be


00:14:19:00 - 00:14:22:15
for us, specifically access to just land.


00:14:23:16 - 00:14:25:23
You know, we were blessed again
to be able to work with 


00:14:27:21 - 00:14:30:17
in that two and a half acres of land, there's


00:14:30:17 - 00:14:34:12
another piece of land in Marino Valley
that's about eight acres that we're working on.


00:14:35:06 - 00:14:38:10
But for us, specifically access to land


00:14:38:17 - 00:14:42:19
outside of that generalized,
I would say sustaining.


00:14:43:08 - 00:14:46:19
Sustaining has been probably
one of the biggest barriers that I've seen


00:14:47:07 - 00:14:50:23
because, you know, it’s fun to plant and play in soil, and you know watch


00:14:50:23 - 00:14:53:23
seeds from start to grow
and see the seedlings and,


00:14:54:23 - 00:14:57:23
and then there's pulling weeds.


00:14:57:23 - 00:15:01:14
And there's, you know, making sure
irrigation is set, making sure it's


00:15:01:14 - 00:15:05:15
getting proper sunlight and making sure
companion planting is done properly.


00:15:05:21 - 00:15:07:19
So there's work that goes into it.


00:15:07:19 - 00:15:12:05
And once the fun part is done,
sometimes it's hard to keep communities


00:15:12:06 - 00:15:16:13
engaged and maintaining
you know, maintaining the garden


00:15:17:04 - 00:15:20:11
through its process so that it can
continue to thrive and grow and feed.


00:15:23:01 - 00:15:26:01
We get the community involved.


00:15:26:06 - 00:15:27:20
It's, some people don’t realize


00:15:27:20 - 00:15:31:08
the work that goes into it I guess,
and after the fun part is over,


00:15:31:19 - 00:15:34:19
it's kind of like,
you know, we still got [laughter]


00:15:34:19 - 00:15:37:03
We still got work to do, let’s 
get out there 


00:15:37:03 - 00:15:40:21
and pull some weeds. Like there's steps and processes
to keep, to keep it thriving.


00:15:40:21 - 00:15:43:21
And sometimes you, you lose people,


00:15:44:17 - 00:15:46:15
you know, people are too busy,


00:15:46:15 - 00:15:48:17
tired after work.


00:15:48:17 - 00:15:50:01
Homework with the kids.


00:15:53:00 - 00:15:56:00
Access and and maintaining


00:15:56:00 - 00:15:59:00
has been a challenge in some areas. Yes.


00:15:59:18 - 00:16:02:18
Well, what's one success story that,


00:16:03:05 - 00:16:07:20
you know, people have, you know, overcome
the the drudgery of the weed pulling?


00:16:08:10 - 00:16:11:10
What's been there like bountiful yield.


00:16:11:11 - 00:16:15:04
Success stories, there's a couple,
one particular that stands out.


00:16:15:04 - 00:16:19:03
So there are kids that come and
volunteer in San Bernardino.


00:16:20:12 - 00:16:21:18
And they volunteer


00:16:21:18 - 00:16:23:19
once a month, they work for a week 


00:16:23:19 - 00:16:25:04
Urban Conservation Corps.


00:16:25:22 - 00:16:29:06
For one of those kids,
it was his first time gardening.


00:16:30:05 - 00:16:33:03
So he stuck to me like glue.


00:16:33:03 - 00:16:36:17
So we went plot by plot,
 I was explaining what each plot


00:16:36:17 - 00:16:40:00
was, what we were throwing,
I explained seasons


00:16:40:23 - 00:16:44:03
and he was so intrigued, so intrigued, so


00:16:44:12 - 00:16:47:19
when I saw him the following month,


00:16:48:10 - 00:16:50:22
he just had story after story after story.


00:16:50:22 - 00:16:55:15
He got his mom involved in gardening,
his mom has an ailment,


00:16:55:21 - 00:17:00:10
a condition, health condition
that they started researching and Googling


00:17:00:13 - 00:17:03:13
what they could grow
to help her naturally.


00:17:03:15 - 00:17:06:15
And it was literally like
like a proud mom moment kinda,


00:17:06:23 - 00:17:10:18
you know,
because reaching to the adults


00:17:10:18 - 00:17:15:14
is one thing, but reaching to the youth is a
completely different dynamic. I have


00:17:16:05 - 00:17:19:05
you know, young adults as kids,
young adults,


00:17:19:06 - 00:17:22:12
but they, you know,
getting them to connect and understand


00:17:22:12 - 00:17:23:16
the importance of gardening,


00:17:23:16 - 00:17:27:16
and it's not just, you know, planting some seeds, 
and playing in dirt, it’s way bigger than that.


00:17:27:16 - 00:17:30:23
So once you get the youth to connect,


00:17:30:23 - 00:17:34:06
it just kind of changes,
you know, it shifts things for you.


00:17:34:06 - 00:17:38:06
So that was probably one of the proudest moments


00:17:38:06 - 00:17:39:17
Oh, I love that.


00:17:39:17 - 00:17:41:03
I love that.


00:17:41:03 - 00:17:44:17
Well what role do you think urban farming


00:17:44:17 - 00:17:49:05
and gardening plays
in combating food deserts in particular.


00:17:49:05 - 00:17:52:04
But ensuring food security. So


00:17:53:07 - 00:17:58:11
like what do you think
is the most important part about farming


00:17:58:11 - 00:18:02:00
and gardening in terms of combating


00:18:02:00 - 00:18:03:05
these food deserts?


00:18:03:05 - 00:18:05:00
I would say education.


00:18:05:02 - 00:18:07:03
Education would probably be


00:18:07:03 - 00:18:10:08
the most important,
because you want to understand


00:18:10:08 - 00:18:13:05
why, you know, why we’re doing it,


00:18:13:05 - 00:18:14:22
what we're doing, the outcome.


00:18:14:22 - 00:18:16:06
And again the maintenance of it.


00:18:16:06 - 00:18:18:08
There's a
there's a lot of different components.


00:18:18:08 - 00:18:22:04
And when we teach, we teach on the
the history of black farmers.


00:18:23:06 - 00:18:26:06
We make sure that we tap into our culture and our roots


00:18:26:20 - 00:18:27:17
in our teachings.


00:18:27:17 - 00:18:33:11
But the, the education part of it
is probably going to be the most dynamic because


00:18:33:15 - 00:18:35:13
again, it's a life skill.


00:18:35:13 - 00:18:36:10
That theme,


00:18:36:10 - 00:18:39:03
you, you give a man a fish,
you feed him for a day,


00:18:39:03 - 00:18:41:14
you teach a man to fish, you feed him for life.


00:18:41:14 - 00:18:45:00
It’s literally the same thing with gardening, we


00:18:45:00 - 00:18:49:06
we’ve had a couple of situations
now where we couldn't


00:18:49:06 - 00:18:52:23
100% rely upon the food
that's provided, you know,


00:18:53:02 - 00:18:56:20
in the grocery stores,
tissue was, you know, flying off the shelf.


00:18:56:20 - 00:18:58:22
You can find food in it.


00:18:58:22 - 00:19:01:13
It kind of, it should,


00:19:01:13 - 00:19:04:09
It definitely should shift our view


00:19:04:09 - 00:19:07:17
on things and understanding
even if we're starting small,


00:19:07:18 - 00:19:10:08
like I said, a couple of herbs, 
a couple of vegetables.


00:19:10:08 - 00:19:12:06
You don't need a lot of space.


00:19:12:06 - 00:19:13:06
The education.


00:19:13:06 - 00:19:16:06
Education, educating the community,


00:19:16:20 - 00:19:18:22
with that dynamic that,


00:19:18:22 - 00:19:20:01
this is life skill that


00:19:20:01 - 00:19:25:11
is absolutely needed from 8 to 80,
you know, I think it's


00:19:25:11 - 00:19:26:20
the biggest factor.


00:19:26:20 - 00:19:29:16
Absolutely. So educate me.


00:19:29:16 - 00:19:30:20
You know what I'm growing.


00:19:30:20 - 00:19:33:17
What else can you grow?


00:19:33:17 - 00:19:36:17
What would you suggest for
somebody who just has


00:19:36:20 - 00:19:40:11
an indoor space or a patio or both?


00:19:40:21 - 00:19:43:00
But it's not a large space.


00:19:43:00 - 00:19:47:13
What can they grow in a smaller space


00:19:48:01 - 00:19:50:11
that yields enough?


00:19:50:23 - 00:19:54:16
Lettuce is always a good one. 
Lettuce, there’s so many different varieties.


00:19:54:16 - 00:19:55:19
But lettuce is always a good one.


00:19:55:19 - 00:19:57:06
Tomatoes.


00:19:57:06 - 00:20:00:05
And it can be any variety. 
They don’t have space, they can do cherry tomatoes.


00:20:00:12 - 00:20:02:22
Heirloom tomatoes, steak tomatoes.


00:20:02:22 - 00:20:05:00
There’s so many different varieties
of different vegetables.


00:20:05:00 - 00:20:06:15
Onions are always good.


00:20:07:16 - 00:20:10:01
Garlic is a good one.


00:20:10:01 - 00:20:11:16
And ginger


00:20:11:16 - 00:20:13:22
is also a good one, these are small


00:20:13:22 - 00:20:16:01
you don’t need a lot of room for these.


00:20:16:01 - 00:20:19:03
How would you grow the the onions
and the garlic?


00:20:19:13 - 00:20:22:15
What would you
what what what would you recommend?


00:20:23:13 - 00:20:26:09
Like pots out on the patio?


00:20:26:09 - 00:20:29:18
It depends. So
every like we kind of 


00:20:31:01 - 00:20:32:11
we kind vet every situation.


00:20:32:11 - 00:20:34:03
So everyone's situation is different.


00:20:34:03 - 00:20:36:18
If you're in like an apartment, condo or a small patio, 


00:20:36:18 - 00:20:41:06
you can do for like the herbs, if you have a window, 
like a nice sized window sill


00:20:41:06 - 00:20:43:10
If you have a patio,
I would just say small plants.


00:20:44:02 - 00:20:46:06
If you have enough room,
I would say do like


00:20:46:06 - 00:20:51:23
A 5 to 5, five pound tub. Excuse me, a 5 foot tub.


00:20:52:02 - 00:20:56:13
And then for like the deeper vegetables,
like if you want to do something that


00:20:56:13 - 00:20:58:10
grows rooted, like potatoes,


00:20:58:10 - 00:20:59:17
you can do small potatoes, 
I would do 


00:20:59:17 - 00:21:02:18
that in like a five gallon tub, outside of that,


00:21:03:11 - 00:21:06:12
get you some four inch rounds on the, patio


00:21:06:22 - 00:21:10:16
on your windowsill
and give it some little water.


00:21:11:02 - 00:21:14:02
A little sunlight. A little love.


00:21:14:17 - 00:21:15:12
You’re thivin’.


00:21:15:12 - 00:21:18:14
So herbs, to answer your questions, I’m sorry, herbs. Lettuce.


00:21:18:16 - 00:21:20:08
Tomatoes, onions.


00:21:21:22 - 00:21:23:00
Ginger.


00:21:24:16 - 00:21:27:16
Depending on the space,
you can kind of move into cucumbers.


00:21:27:18 - 00:21:30:11
Those vine, so you would need a little room.


00:21:30:21 - 00:21:32:16
But, again it depends on what you're working with.


00:21:32:16 - 00:21:35:10
Yeah. I realized about the vining. Yeah.


00:21:35:10 - 00:21:38:23
I was like,
oh, we're really going places.


00:21:38:23 - 00:21:40:12
They’re gonna, they’re gonna vine


00:21:40:13 - 00:21:41:15
Oh, it was amazing.


00:21:41:15 - 00:21:42:11
And I love


00:21:42:11 - 00:21:46:06
it's like a little creature, seriously,
because they've got these little tendrils


00:21:46:15 - 00:21:50:00
and then they, like, grasp on to things
and then they're, they're just, they're


00:21:50:14 - 00:21:53:18
it's it's got its own life, I tell you.


00:21:54:07 - 00:21:56:01
They literally do. And talk to your plants. They will talk back to you.


00:21:56:01 - 00:22:01:01
I do, I tell you, I kneel at the
altar of my plants and I talk to them.


00:22:01:01 - 00:22:04:21
And actually, they've actually done
research that plants will recognize


00:22:04:21 - 00:22:08:10
the person's voice
and even move towards them.


00:22:08:10 - 00:22:11:21
They know their mommies. It is so amazing


00:22:11:21 - 00:22:14:07
they are living, breathing.


00:22:15:05 - 00:22:18:05
Yes. Creatures. Yes. 


00:22:18:05 - 00:22:19:23
We could go on and on and on,


00:22:19:23 - 00:22:23:02
but we're out of time for this
half of this podcast episode.


00:22:23:02 - 00:22:24:10
But we are coming back


00:22:24:10 - 00:22:28:13
because I am picking her brain some more
and she knows all things gardening.


00:22:28:13 - 00:22:31:11
And I think really
it is a form of social justice,


00:22:31:11 - 00:22:36:03
and we should be thinking about
how we can make ourselves independent.


00:22:36:03 - 00:22:41:10
If you look back to, you know, 
World War Two, they had Victory Gardens


00:22:41:17 - 00:22:46:23
and that was, you know,
another form of independence and a way


00:22:46:23 - 00:22:52:02
that you can make yourself sustain
through something as difficult as a war.


00:22:52:10 - 00:22:56:11
So I highly recommend everybody come back
for the second episode.


00:22:56:19 - 00:22:59:03
And thank you so much for joining us.


00:22:59:03 - 00:23:03:03
And we will be back
for the second half with founder,


00:23:03:08 - 00:23:09:02
and CEO of Soulful
Soil Farms, Tina Davis.


00:23:10:10 - 00:23:13:15
Thanks for tuning into 
the ANEW Insight Podcast.


00:23:13:15 - 00:23:16:07
Please remember, the contents shared on this podcast


00:23:16:07 - 00:23:21:03
is for entertainment purposes only, 
and does not constitute medical advice.


00:23:21:03 - 00:23:23:23
You can find us anywhere podcasts are streaming.


00:23:23:23 - 00:23:26:12
On Youtube: @my.anew.insight


00:23:26:12 - 00:23:31:09
And at anew-insight.com under the
 ANEW Insight Podcast tab.


00:23:31:09 - 00:23:39:08
And follow us on our socials @my.anew.insight on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Threads for more updates.


00:23:39:08 - 00:23:42:10
Tune in next time and evolve with us.



People on this episode