Hardscrabble farmers 

By Joseph Linder 
Submitted to Corner Post

On a recent trip through an area that had been under Communist rule as recently as 1990, we traveled through a region of hardscrabble farm ground. It was hilly and very rocky with poor-quality soil. For over 70 years, residents were required to grow tobacco there. Moreover, they had to purchase seeds from cronies of the regime, and to sell the produce to the government. Prices were not determined by the market but were set by the government. It was a “heads I win, tails you lose” proposition from the regime to the residents. 

Tobacco plants, especially in shallow soil, need to be watered often. In this poor area, that meant men, women and children spent part of every day hiking up hillsides from water sources with buckets or large pouches to water the plants. A young man whose parents and grandparents spoke of those days said that they felt more like beasts of burden than farmers.  

Soon after the collapse of communist leadership, however, residents switched from planting strictly tobacco to rotating crops that replenish soil nutrients. Vineyards of a grape variety suited to the local conditions began to spring up. We sampled glasses of the fruit of their vines and can attest that the growers now take pride in their efforts. No longer simply laborers, they are good stewards of the land.