The ISU Extension Service is helping minorities grow better crops through a new outreach program. The Diversity Gardens was started in Storm Lake this winter with the help of Eldon Everhart, commercial horticulture field specialist in the ISU Extension Office in Harlan. Everhart said the program was started as an initiative for food recovery for the Hispanics and Laotians who have moved into the Storm Lake area. “The gardens are not a big impact and are directed at ethnic minorities who cannot get the quality and quantity of their usual fare,” Everhart said. “It will expand to other ethnic groups in the area even though there is not as much of a demand for their crops. It is possible for anyone to grow these crops to help supplement their diet and live off the land.” The usual crops of corn and soybeans are still being grown in northwestern Iowa. However, there are now hot peppers, chilies and other varieties of garden vegetables. The crops in Storm Lake were grown on a small acreage. These vegetables could be used as a replacement but not a substitute for the regular crops grown in Iowa, said Rex Wittrock, county executive director of the Farm Service Agency, a division of the United States Department of Agriculture. “The project has meant a lot to the families who’ve had an opportunity to garden and grow crops they’re familiar with for their diets,” Wittrock said. “The crops they don’t use [in the Diversity Gardens] are taken to the farmer’s market or the food pantry.” The Diversity Garden crops were planted late in the year and responded differently to the heat and spring rains, Everhart said. The peppers responded well to the heat while some herbs like cilantro did not, he said. The project involves several groups including the ISU Extension Service, USDA and AgConnect. “There were all different ideas, and what people want is the most important thing,” Everhart said. Everhart said the project was a “roaring success,” and he hopes pattern projects can be started across the state.