It’s an interesting time here at Terra Cultura. We’re on the cusp of being able to share some very exciting news, but (knock on wood) we don’t want to count our chickens before they’re hatched. (Why do people say ‘knock on wood’ anyway? It apparently dates back to German folklore when people would tap wood to let the tree spirits know they were there, and to invoke their protection. We’ll take it.) So tap some trees for us, and we promise to get you caught up and in the loop as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, as we gear up to amend some soil, plant some pioneers, build some infrastructure, amp up our arts offerings, and expand our educational programming, we’ve been doing a ton of behind-the-scenes planning. Mapping, researching, calculating, and budgeting may not sound too thrilling, but it’s part of what makes Terra Cultura’s internal business infrastructure so strong. Thanks to the help of some dedicated and business-savvy board members and staff, we’re a community farm that runs like a tech-startup. Now we just need the farm. In addition to finessing our internal systems, we’ve also had years to lay the groundwork for our plan for the land. So when we’re on it, we’ll be ready.

We know from our farming experience to date that things are always changing in unexpected ways. We’ve researched and accounted for everything we could possibly imagine, and we’re sure there will be plenty of surprises, in the form of both barriers and bounty. And we welcome those. We’ll navigate with adaptability, humor, and resilience, around, over, or through any inevitable roadblocks. And we’ll celebrate the successes, and the solidarity that can come with swimming against the grain. Inevitably, we find ourselves shifting and re-scaling our vision as it manifests into reality. Luckily, the San Benito 2035 General Plan lays out a vision very much aligned with Terra Cultura’s. We will serve our community, and trust that the community will help us thrive as well.

With a community like you behind it, Terra Cultura’s big dreams can become big realities. Thank you for your continued support and encouragement through this start-up phase. You’ve helped us lay a strong foundation, and now we can transition towards planting the first seeds. Soon, we’ll have a thriving (food) forest!