Ask the Expert: Tim Mountz of Happy Cat Farm on How to Grow Your Own Tacos From Seed
Like a micro season of summer, “the time of ripened heirloom tomatoes” is finally here. Tim Mountz of Happy Cat Farm in the Brandywine Valley sells heirloom seeds and teaches courses, with the farm’s philosophy “Grow, Cook, Eat, Educate” perfectly bound up in the form of a home-grown, hand-held taco.
Photography by Valery Rizzo.
Tim Mountz with a trio of his heirloom tomatoes.
“I started Happy Cat Farm School to show people how much fun it can be to grow your own awesome ingredients, and turn them into food.” If you really want to be blown away, you can go one step further and grow a heritage maize and make your own masa from that.
“Maize turned into masa becomes the stage on which all of the other ingredients preform.”
Called ‘three sisters farming’ by native peoples of the East Coast, the milpa uses maize as the backbone of the garden where beans, chilis, tomatillos, tomatoes, squash, and herbs all grow together in a system of fecund brilliance.
Heirloom tomatoes from Happy Cat Farm, in all their variety.
Happy Cat Farm tomatoes and peppers go to market. Another great part about growing your own tacos is you can grow such a great selection of chilis that you may not be able to find at local garden shops.
“You will also need to grow onions: some to roast with your other salsa ingredients and some to dice to top your tacos.”