“I would feel like a fish out of water if I couldn’t farm in Jamaica,” Guyanese-born Carleen Williamson told the Freedom Come Rain newspaper. “I started gardening and caring for animals from I was 12 years old, while growing up with my three sisters and parents in rural Guyana.
“We always had a vegetable garden, so one could say farming is in our blood. It was never a chore but a way of life for me, one of my favourite hobbies.
“When I reflect on those early times and how much growing some of what we eat is now helping me and my husband’s pockets, I have to thank my parents for planting that love for the earth in me and nurturing many of the skills I have developed over the years.
Carleen described how her father taught her and her three sisters to make fishing rods from bamboo, twine, and rubber slippers and use them to catch fish. “Whenever I travel to Guyana, that’s one of the first things Daddy has to do with me!” she laughed. “Take me fishing.”
She further explained that, similar to Jamaica, once students reach fourth form in Guyana, they are streamed into different subject areas, one of which is agriculture; if chosen, the student also has to sit the exam at the CSEC level (Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate examinations).
“What I like about this is that for students who study agriculture, they immediately acquire a skill that can help them secure their own food supply. When high school ends, they are more marketable, and because they can earn their own money, it makes them more independent, too.”
FROM THE HILLS TO THE PLAINS
Carleen, who originally lived in the cool, moist environment of Coopers Hill in St. Andrew, relocated to a warmer parish less than a year ago and, after “getting acclimatised,” decided that she may as well pick up her garden shovel and start tilling the soil again. “Our garden thrived tremendously in Coopers Hill! We reaped strawberries, beets, lettuce, herbs, and many other crops. However, in Portmore, St. Catherine, it’s a different ball game entirely. The elements are not as forgiving, but to be honest, I do welcome farming challenges because they enable me to expand my knowledge.
“Plus, I am always excited about growing whatever I can because then I know for sure what is in it. Sometimes, you are eating produce that you purchased, and you don’t even think about the additives, like chemical fertilisers, herbicides, and pesticides that were sprayed on it or introduced into the soil and are now part of what you’re consuming.”
The nursing practitioner confessed how much she enjoyed growing food from seed to plant. “Gardening is really my way of relaxing and releasing stress, and as soon as the children and my husband leave in the morning, I clear up the house and head outdoors.
“Once the children return, they spend some time with me outdoors so that I can teach them where their food comes from and show them their direct connection to the earth.”
When asked about the role that her husband plays, Carleen quickly responded, “My beloved Craig is my manager. He loves to research organic methods to treat the plants, take pictures of them, and eat everything I prepare!”
