Green Thumb - 20
Green Thumb - 20
Transcript
00:00 Green Thumb Tuesdays is brought to you courtesy the Agricultural Development Bank.
00:04 Growing stronger together.
00:13 Farming carrots and sorrel year round is not exactly the norm here in TNT.
00:17 But this rookie farmer is going against the grade in showing us that we can indeed cultivate
00:21 these crops organically and enjoy them no matter the time of year.
00:26 Dylan Sahabdul only started farming a little under a year ago.
00:30 This year I really, I said you know what, New Year's resolution, I'm going to get in
00:34 some gardening, I'm going to see if I'll be able to do this thing.
00:37 And it was addiction from the beginning.
00:39 Despite his inexperience, the rookie farmer is utilizing his passion for research and
00:43 learning in order to undertake tasks that some farmers in TNT may consider too difficult.
00:49 For example, Dylan thrives in the cultivation of carrots.
00:53 When I started it, I didn't realize it wasn't common.
00:55 It was only afterwards when I started to do research on it and I saw that every single
00:59 seed site tells you don't grow carrots in a place like Trinidad.
01:03 They say the minimum, the maximum temperature for carrots in terms of degrees Celsius is
01:07 like 25 degrees Celsius.
01:08 That's like the coldest night we'll ever get.
01:11 He also believes that Trinbake Onions should utilize sorrel more frequently.
01:15 He says it doesn't have to just be a Christmas drink.
01:19 I want people to know that they can grow sorrel year round and they can have it as a product
01:23 year round.
01:24 Right?
01:25 Because a lot of people, they wait on Christmas and they wait on the farmers to put sorrel
01:28 in the market and then they can have access to sorrel.
01:31 Dylan strongly believes that in order to take on these challenges, farmers must educate
01:36 themselves.
01:37 Research, he says, seems to be the key.
01:40 My main thing is education.
01:41 I think that a lot of people, if they have the knowledge of how to grow, they would be
01:46 able to have their home gardens, know how to do it, have the knowledge how to do it.
01:51 Being a beginner himself, Dylan understands the hesitancy of some people when it comes
01:55 to making the decision to get into farming.
01:58 But he has some solid advice for anyone considering growing their own food.
02:02 My first thing would be to do your own research.
02:04 All right?
02:05 And I would say, don't get caught up with the chemical race and don't get caught up
02:09 with being successful from the very beginning.
02:12 Know that it is a process, but it's a very rewarding process.
02:16 And of course, we can't leave without sharing Dylan's mantra as a farmer.
02:20 My three key words are organic, self-sustainable, and affordable.
02:24 I believe that if you grow organic, you're going to have a lot better quality food.
02:28 And not just the food, you're going to be able to protect the planet in the long run.
02:33 Because when we get into chemicals, most chemicals, 80% of what you put on a plant is going to
02:39 wash out from that plant.
02:40 The plant cannot absorb it.
02:41 It's too strong.
02:42 It goes into the rivers, it goes into the streams, and it makes the waters toxic.
02:46 Rajiv Surat Singh, CNC3 News.
02:48 Green Thumb Tuesdays was brought to you courtesy of the Agricultural Development Bank.
02:57 Growing stronger together.