María Catalán sees the farm as a circle that includes animals as part of the farm. Whatever they can’t sell or donate, they feed to the animals. In addition to Viento, they have cows, chickens, and goats. Juan says, “My mom has a lot of plans.”

This is cilantro in bloom. After the harvest is done, they let it flower instead of plowing it under because it attracts beneficial insects that eat pests. This strategy of using "insectary plants" is an excellent alternative to pesticides for organic farms like Catalán.

The farm uses three different irrigation methods. This is drip tape, which conserves the most water. The Cataláns add compost juice to the drip irrigation to fertilize the plants. The drawback to this system, though, is that there's a lot of sand in the water and it plugs the tape. The other two irrigation methods are sprinklers and flooding. They do the latter only as a last resort--if the vegetables need a lot of water quickly. It’s the most wasteful of the three.

These are tomatillos. When roasted, they are the main ingredient in salsa verde. Catalán Farm has recently developed a new product: salsa (both green and red), which they make in the commercial kitchen of a nearby restaurant (Tres Pinos).

When Juan told us they didn't use plastic mulch on the strawberries, a member of our group asked, “You don’t worry about weeds, then?” To which Juan replied, “We worry all the time. We have to work a lot.”

This is purslane, an edible weed that contains high levels of Omega-3 fatty acids.

The family keeps these prickly pear cacti ("nopales" in Spanish) for their own use. Nopales are a traditional vegetable in Mexico; the name is an Aztec word. Their flavor is similar to green beens, and they have a soft but crisp and mucilaginous texture. María likes to can them.

That's a young pomegranate tree behind Juan.

The family shared their organic produce, salsa, and strawberry agua fresca with our group.