Agriculture has been an integral part of Minnesota’s land and water for a thousand years. While crops have changed, the spirit of farming has remained constant. MPR Archive presents a selection of stories that reflect the diversity of what has been harvested, such as corn, soybeans, wild rice, and even tree fiber. This collection is also about the many hands that toil in, and care for, the soil and water…from the migrant farm worker in Red River Valley’s sugar beet fields, the Hmong immigrant planting near Homer, the Chanarambie Township farmer amidst the 1980s farm crisis, and Ojibwe members following ancient harvesting traditions.
October 16, 1991 - MPR’s Liz Hannon talks with David Bedford, member of University of Minnesota’s Horticultural Research Center, about creating new crosses of apples, which can take 30 years to develop. Bedford highlights Haralson, Regent, and the newest variety from the Minnesota Arboretum, the Honeycrisp.
June 9, 1992 - MPR’s Mark Zdechlik reports on influx of Hispanic migrant farm workers looking for work and housing in Crookston area of Minnesota. Segment includes interviews with migrant workers and local officials on the issues and struggles migrants and area face.
September 23, 1992 - A discussion on MPR’s All Things Considered about a study on cancer among farmers. Potential culprits mentioned are ultraviolet rays from the sun and pesticide usage on the farmland.
February 5, 1993 - On this segment of First Friday, MPR’s Maja Beckstrom profiles barn poetry. An inspiration of New York poet Mark Mendel back in 1982, the poetry resides on the side of Goodhue County Road 6, outside of Red Wing, Minnesota.
March 4, 1993 - MPR’s Mary Losure visits an “urban” farm on the outskirts of Cottage Grove as it and other farms try to figure out how to survive as development sprawl and assessments loom.
April 7, 1993 - Mainstreet Radio’s Mark Steil looks at the Granger Creamery, which is one of the only ones left for local farmers to utilize for business in southern Minnesota. The creamery is one of only two in state that still excepts milk in cans. This is important to Amish farmers, who will not use bulk tanks.
June 25, 1993 - MPR’s Kate Smith reports on Hmong farming in Minnesota, where a more traditional approach returns to a land where modern agriculture now dominates.
July 26, 1993 - Mainstreet Radio’s Catherine Winter reports on the challenging year of rice harvesting, due to a season of flooding. The impact on the wild rice crops greatly affect some in the northern Minnesota communities, such as those of the Leech Lake Band of Chippewa, that use harvesting as a source of income and food.
September 24, 1993 - Mainstreet Radio presents broadcast from the Meadowland Farmer's Co Op in Lamberton, Minnesota. The program focuses on how local area is dealing with the effects of flooding from the previous spring and summer, and the impact it is having on farms and the economy.
September 24, 1993 - Mainstreet Radio presents broadcast from the Meadowland Farmer's Co Op in Lamberton, Minnesota. The program focuses on how local area is dealing with the effects of flooding from the previous spring and summer, and the impact it is having on farms and the economy.