By Jessica Padron of The Urban Farmer, Pompano Beach

My name is Jessica Padron, and I have a small urban farm in Pompano Beach, Florida. I started this farm in 2010 because I wanted to know where my baby daughter's food came from. As a new farmer, I had so much to learn. In summer of 2010, the Glades to Coast chapter of Slow Food USA gave me a scholarship to attend the Small Farms Conference, and this was a great chance to get my feet wet. As a new farmer, this meant so much to me.

The conference introduced me to the farming community that I had no idea existed in Florida.