Five Farms: Stories from American Farm Families

Five Farms puts a personal face on the lives and livelihoods of farmers across the country. We get to know people who work hard and make considerable sacrifices, but who also flourish, and for whom the benefits, including a deep understanding of the land they work, are rich. Through their own voices and direct experiences, we learn details of farming life and get to know members of each family --- their personal struggles, triumphs, hopes, dreams, and challenges. We learn what it takes to farm and produce the food that we count on when we go to the market.

The locations for the Five Farms series were carefully chosen to reflect the agricultural, cultural, historic, and geographic diversity of farming in America. They are in western Massachusetts, North Carolina, Iowa, California's Capay Valley, and the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona. Beginning in March 2008, field producers and photographers in each of the locations recorded farmers' stories over the course of a yearlong cycle of seasons.

The five one-hour episodes move chronologically through the year and also through key themes in the lives of these farmers:

Hour One: Planting
Hour Two: Nurturing
Hour Three: Stewardship
Hour Four: Harvest
Hour Five: Succession

Five Farms is produced by Wesley Horner Productions and the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University in collaboration with WFCR Amherst, Massachusetts; Iowa Public Radio; Native Public Media/National Federation of Community Broadcasters; The Hopi Foundation; and Capital Public Radio, Sacramento.
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Five Farms puts a personal face on the lives and livelihoods of farmers across the country. We get to know people who work hard and make considerable sacrifices, but who also flourish, and for whom the benefits, including a deep understanding of the land they work, are rich. Through their own voices and direct experiences, we learn details of farming life and get to know members of each family --- their personal struggles, triumphs, hopes, dreams, and challenges. We learn what it takes to farm and produce the food that we count on when we go to the market. The locations for the Five Farms series were carefully chosen to reflect the agricultural, cultural, historic, and geographic diversity of farming in America. They are in western Massachusetts, North Carolina, Iowa, California's... Show full description