BUCKLE UP
WanttotalktoCathy?
Reachher at
J.
. .
“
”
fieldofsquashplants,theirtinygreenshoots
peeking out from the dry soil. It’s been a
toughyear forTexas farmers likeJ.T.,what
with themegadrought, months of triple-
digit temperatures andhungrydeeron the
roam.Hisfivetractorsareidle.Hispondsare
nearlydry. Thedrought shortened the sea-
son forhisvine-ripenedtomatoes.Eventhe
icecreamchurnedwithhisfamedpeachesis
gone, lickedupbeforeLaborDay, thanks to
thehotweather.
Sowhy is the64-year-old farmer grin-
ning as he guns hismule— aKubotaATV
—alongsidearowoftatty-lookingtomatoes?
HeanswersbyreachingacrosstheATVand
snatching small orbs of organic SunGold
tomatoes off the vine.Hepops a coupleof
’em, unwashed, intohismouth. “This is the
way I like toeat,”he says, sharingacouple.
They taste likesunshine. Igraba fewmore,
andsodoeshe. “You’vebeenservedout the
mulewindow,”he says,withagentle smile.
Here’samanwho loveswhathedoes.
LastChristmas,Iwroteaboutfarmersin
SouthDakotawhogrow the soybeans that
fattenupyour turkey.Oh, how theorganic
produceguysoutWesthowled!(Mechanized
farming—boohiss!) Itwas abit unfair—
youcan’tgrowheirloom tomatoeswhen it’s
40below inSouthDakota—but it felt right
topayhomage this holiday to the farmers
who grow locally and try to groworganic.
LikeJ.T., they’reout tomakea tomato that
tastesbetterandput local producebackon
ourplates.Butbeingafarmertodayrequires
tricky choices: organicornot?Genetically
engineeredornot?
JustbecauseJ.T. lookslikesomeone’sim-
age of a 1950s farmer (down to the denim
overalls)doesn’tmeanhe’sstuckinoldways.
“Dowewanta lantern toreadourbooksby,
or a lightbulb?” he asks fromhis soapbox
seat in theATV. He grows someheirloom
tomatoesorganically,mostlyfortrendyres-
taurants innearbyDallas, buthegrumbles
thatold-fashioned tomatoescatchdiseases
andoftenlookterrible.Forhisfarmersmar-
ketcustomers,hegrowsCelebritytomatoes,
oneof thefirsthybrids.
“I try tobeuser-friendly. I’mnot com-
pletelyorganicbecause I can’t stand to see
my stuff die,” he says. “Whowants to eat
anold tomato that’s all shriveled anddis-
easedup?Wouldyouwant toput itonyour
plate?”No,wewantprettyandgoodtasting,
of course. J.T. sayshe’s learnedbyavoiding
themistakes of giant growers. “It’s what
youfeed ’em,”heconfides.Which is?“Ahh…
that’sasecret.Iusea lotoforganicmaterial,
cottonseedmeal, seedmulch, seaweed, fish
emulsion. Itallhelpstheflavor.”
Farmingwasn’t inJ.T.’s family. “A friend
ofminewanted toput ina littleol’ patchof
termatersandpotatoes,”hesays,fallinginto
hisTexasdrawl.Thatwas1976.Todayhehas
60acresnearCanton, butheusuallyworks
justa fewata time.He’smademistakes:He
went to theRioGrandeValley for tomato
plants years ago and brought back every
disease theyhad.He’s always experiment-
ing, buthe’s stillnot sureabout engineered
seeds.He staysupnights reading farm lit-
eratureonpest control. “I am readingcon-
stantly, and I’mnot smart enough tomake
anopinionyet,”hesays.
We’re passing the greenhouses, where
he’llgrowhisChristmastomatoes.Thenwe
drivehalfamile, followingalineofbluetub-
ing that carrieswater tohis farthestfields,
wherehehopesthefallsquashwilltakeroot.
“2011istheworstyearever,”hesays.Though
heworkshard—from5:30or6 inthemorn-
inguntil dark—heworries about thewin-
termonthswhenhehasno cash crop. “It’s
hard,”headmits. “Youdon’tknowany lazy
farmers, do ya?Theydonewent anddone
somethingelse.”
He hopes familywill inherit the farm.
“GotagranddaughterwhoIhavehighhopes
for,”hesays. “She’s5. I’vegotherplanting. I
gothera littlebucket anda little spade, the
wholenineyards.Shecomeshereeveryday
afterday care.”Aboutnow, as you’re read-
ing this, he’splantinghis “not-yet-famous”
Lemleyonions. (They taste sweet, likeVi-
daliaonions.) InJanuary, he’ll startplants
fromseed—tomatoesandpeppers—tosell
tootherfarmers.ByMarch,he’llhave3,000
to 4,000 hanging baskets for sale. Then
there’s the spring and summer crops. His
little“sugarbullet”peachesstartinlateMay.
“I’vebeendoing it for35years, and I’ve
nevergottenrich,”hesays.
Butyou love it,yes?
“Ido,”hesays, simply.
InSearchofa
BetterTermater
GENTLEMANFARMER:
J.T. Lemley
hopes that oneday, his 5-year-old
granddaughter, Jayden, can inherit
his farm.
90
DECEMBER 01, 2011
AA.COM/AMERICANWAY
