“I really truly believe I grow the best food in the world.”
As part of an exciting video partnership with Food & Wine Magazine, I am happy to introduce you to Nevia No, the spiritual gardener and owner of Bodhi Tree Farm, a one-of-a-kind, specialty vegetable farm based in Pemberton, New Jersey. Nevia is a black sheep of the farming community. At the farm, you won’t find charts or watering schedules; but, instead you might find Nevia in a field happily singing and dancing to her crops. She abandons traditional protocol for something more spiritual, letting her farm practices be guided by an instinct or a feeling. To her, a vegetable’s spirit must be nurtured, and along with that, provided with room for suffering.
“Most farmers laugh at me,” she’ll readily admit with a confident smile. But, laugh as you may, for her vegetables and clientele speak for themselves. In just under 5 years of launching, Nevia landed over 65 top restaurant accounts in NYC, many with chefs of high regard. At the farmers market, her vegetables always look the happiest. It might seem far-fetched for me to say, but it’s true. Pull up to Nevia’s vegetable stand, and the vegetables look sturdier, healthier, more colorful, more inviting and more ready to eat. Come see for yourself, the secret is in the suffering.
For more info on Food & Wine’s picks for Best American Artisans, head to the F&W Artisan Hub.
Thanks for watching food. curated.! Happy eating your vegetables!