Alex Estwick

Alex Estwick, like many of his colleagues in the Youth Farm programme, grew up watching family members farm or grow food in kitchen gardens. His grandparents, who were farmers, cultivated a variety of crops and livestock and he is proud to follow in their footsteps.

On any given day at his farm, he follows a set routine of checking the plants for pests, giving them nutrients and water as needed, and pulling weeds. To keep weeds to a minimum, he incorporates seaweed in his management system - a technique he learned during his time at the Youth Farm Programme. He dries the seaweed and places it on the outskirts of the plant beds to kill weeds that would otherwise compete with his crops for food and water.

His farming strategy is to grow an eclectic mix of crops based on market trends and what his customers request. He prefers to have a blend that includes staples and local produce, as well as items that are more difficult for consumers to source or that are not always readily available. This also gives him a competitive advantage.

While he does not currently raise animals, watching them grow is his favourite part of farming. In addition to the yams, cassava, sweet potatoes, cabbage, okras and cucumbers that he currently grows, Alex hopes to begin raising pigs. He currently has a pigpen, which he plans to refurbish soon so that he can accommodate the livestock. He also wants to try his hand at growing beets and rearing sheep in the future.