Local farmers subject of historical society presentation

Published 3:44 pm Wednesday, March 4, 2015

The Redmond Historical Society will present “Flower Farmers: The Story of the Hmong in Puget Sound,” with speaker Seng Vue, president of the Hmong Association of Washington, 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 14, at the Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center.

The Hmong, an ethnic group from the mountainous area shared by China, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, don’t have a long history of farming flowers. Their ancestors farmed rice and other food, but when thousands of Hmong families who helped the CIA during the Vietnam War were resettled in the U.S. they had to find a niche, and for many that became flowers.

“In addition to highlighting a few Redmond area farm families, we’ll discuss in some detail the secret war in Laos and the involvement of the Hmong,” said Vue. During the buildup to the Vietnam War, Hmong were recruited by the CIA to fight Communist transportation of goods he said.

More than 130,000 Hmong refugees came to the U.S. between the 1970s and 1990s. A local support group started a project to teach the Hmong how to capitalize on their skill in farming.  Hmong farmers were shown how to best handle the soil, weather and pests of the Snoqualmie and Snohomish Valleys.

Today, the Hmong receive some support from Washington State University’s farm extension program.

WSU Small Farm Immigrant Program Coordinator, Bee Cha, will also speak. Cha’s own family farms in the Snoqualmie Valley near Carnation, one of many families who lease land along the river. Their dahlias, tulips, dried bouquets and vegetables are sold across the region, from Redmond’s Saturday Market to Seattle’s Pike Place Market, where 40 percent of the farm vendors are Hmong.