Nouvo Tè Farm / Eden Farm Agricultural School - Les Cayes, Haiti
A sustainable educational garden, farm and training center.
Located near Les Cayes in the South West of Haiti. "Nouvo Tè Farm", which is Creole for "New Earth Farm", is situated on a parcel of land near the local market. The land is owned by our very own 2013 Farmer Exchange participant Guypson Catalis. In 2014 Guypson completed his agronomy studies. He has since visited us several times at New Earth Farm in Virginia and has become full-time farm manager and project coordinator for this endeavor. Guypson, his wife Bernithe and their little sons Walter and Kristofer live in the farmhouse on the property. You can click through the galleries below for some images of the work being done including land cultivation, seed starter bed preparation and the start of sowing with a variety of heirloom seeds. In 2014 the project had its first transplants of varieties of okra, cucumber and other species hit the field, and initial education programs have taken place, including a composting workshop for community members and regional farmers. January 2015: The land and its newly purchased expansion have been cultivated, Moringa trees * have been planted around its perimeter, drip irrigation has been installed (thanks to Chapin Living Waters for the hookup!), and a satellite project with a community near Jacmel has begun under the leadership of Guypson. He also started training young Haitian agronomists. * Moringa Oleifera not only provides root support for the soil, its leaves and pods also contain 4 time the Potassium of a banana, 6 times the Vitamin A of a carrot, 4 times the Iron of a beefsteak, 4 times the Vitamin C of an orange and twice the Calcium of a glass of milk. |
Fall 2016: Hurricane Matthew made landfall in Haiti destroying communities infrastructure and harvests. The South-West of Haiti including the area around Les Cayes has been hardest hit. Our farm and the farmhouse sustained massive impact. We were able to send emergency funds to Guypson so he could restore the roof and water well on his property. As this storm has once again shown, massive deforestation in Haiti dramatically increases vulnerability to severe weather events like this one.
Since September 2017 Nouvo Tè Farm is home to the Eden Agricultural School. Guypson's dream has always been to provide structured learning opportunities for his community in sustainable farming techniques. He launched the project out of pocket with 30 students ages 24 through 35 and 8 teachers. He purchased a variety of tools, seeds, seed trays and construction supplies. Using parts of the existing land, he has constructed a small school house.
2019: Nouvo Tè Farm launched its expanded chicken raising program. Raising chicks to maturity, the farm produces eggs and meat for the local community. Investments in chicken coops, solar electrification, storage and animal health have been made.
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