KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) – The USDA has awarded more than $6.4 million to Cultivate KC for conservation efforts and climate-friendly agricultural practices. The funding will help its urban farmers implement environmentally friendly practices, like improving soil health with compost and row covers.

“Once they graduate from that farm, having a cost share essentially on some of the expenses of using those practices will really help them continue to thrive and develop their own farm site on that land.” , said Ami Freeberg, Cultivate KC strategic partner.

Cultivate KC’s Juniper Gardens Training Farm in KCK is home to its New Roots program where growers from different countries plant seeds and watch them bloom in Kansas City. It is a collaboration with Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas which helps immigrants and refugees from agricultural backgrounds transition into American agriculture and start businesses.

“I plant something from my country and then we teach Americans how to cook it, how to eat it,” said farmer Mediator Niyonkuru.

This East African native is a former refugee from Tanzania. She has been farming for 14 years. Cultivate KC’s New Roots program has helped fuel this passion in Kansas City, Kansas.

“It’s different because in my country if you say I have to grow only beans and corn, that’s how it is, and one crop, but here they grow different things,” Niyonkuru said.

She grows a variety of crops, including kale, green beans, beets and radishes. The organization created a space for her to become a business owner.

“They teach us how, if you finish your four years, how you’re going to do it on your own,” Niyonkuru said.

From extreme heat to extreme cold, farmers are on the front lines of Mother Nature’s wrath. The funding will help them afford tools like growing covers and other planting systems they need to meet harsh weather head-on.

“We are always looking to prioritize those who have not had access to these programs in the past. Whether it’s because of language barriers or other forms of discrimination that the USDA has a history of,” Freeberg said.

Freeberg says the funding will also help landowners protect their farmland from redevelopment pressures. This will be done with the help of land trust partners who will work to establish agricultural easements on their land. The way it works is that landowners receive the difference in the value of their land, whether it is agricultural or developable.

“The easement is a tool that allows them to get that financing that makes up the difference and that they could sell at a lower rate to the next generation of farmers, which would also make access to farmland much more affordable” , Freeberg said.

Cultivate KC works with the Natural Resources Conservation Service to create a partnership agreement.

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