- Farming, to me personally, I think my grandfather felt the same way my dad did, it's a gamble.

(upbeat music) One wonders sometimes, why did one put up with it?

But I guess it's in your blood.

You just enjoy it.

(upbeat theme music) - Our grandparents, Salvatore and Vittoria, immigrated from Sicily in 1907.

They heard there were good jobs in the cigar factories in Ybor City, paid in gold coins.

After 17 years of hard work, they built their home, and that's the beginning of the Giunta Homestead and Farm.

- [Vicki] This whole area was settled by Sicilian immigrants.

They were not educated.

They had no marketable skills, but they did have this natural talent, the agrarian talent.

(upbeat music) - Here's Dad.

- [Vicki] They would help pick vegetables after their jobs, so that dad would have it to teach at the market the following morning.

And he would do that before he went to teach school.

Remember?

- [Tessie] Right.

- Hardworking.

The land itself was very rich (indistinct), and that's the main reason that Ybor did not develop eastward.

This farming community, there were a lot of little farms, and they were able to grow so much in such a small area.

They were often referred to as the breadbasket of Ybor.

We are the last farm that remains today thanks to their efforts.

- [Tessie] It just so happens that Vicki and I remained single, and it was our choice to remain here at the farm.

We live a life close to nature, like we we all have here in this home, and we continue to do that today.

(gentle music) Here, chick-chicks, come on!

- [Vicki] Our days start in the morning, like everyone.

Tessie has the responsibility of taking care of the chickens, so first thing in the morning, she'll open them up.

- [Tessie] Sparkers, you want some?

- Otherwise, it's preparing the rows, planting the seeds, and then from there maintaining them, like with fertilizer and what we call "scratching" the rows.

In 1950, Dad purchased a tractor.

We loved riding the tractor.

That's one of the family pastimes was to have Dad drive the tractor.

We would hang on like monkeys on the handlebar, and he'd ride slowly around the field.

That's been our best friend all these years to farm.

We're not in the garden eight hours a day, that's for sure.

You can get to where it becomes so cumbersome, it's not enjoyable anymore.

And that's the thing, farming has to be enjoyed, because not only do we grow things, but then we have to make time during the day to bring in a bunch of vegetables, because we want to eat them too.

(upbeat music) - [Tessie] You know, we cook the lasagnas, the ziti, pasta, sauces, but because our grandparents worked in cigar factories, they learned recipes that were Cuban and Spanish.

So our repertoire is very diverse.

- [Vicki] We're trying to put together a soup that is a recipe from our grandmother.

We use fennel.

That's one of the main ingredients.

- [Tessie] We do enjoy eating the vegetables from the garden and in a very, very simple way.

(gentle rain falling) - Today, I'd say we're more conscientious about the weather than ever before.

We never used to have the heavy, heavy rains that actually cause flooding.

Now I looked to certain varieties that have a shorter growing season.

Call it global warming or whatever you want.

There definitely is a difference.

- Vicki and I talk about that almost daily, from the way bees behave to the way birds behave and crops, et cetera.

(gentle music) What keeps us going?

It's the love we have for farming, and there's a piece that you get when you work close to the earth.

You're one with nature, one with God, and the harvest is worth it.

- For me, it's being fortunate enough to be part of a legacy and to try to continue that legacy for as long as I can.

The farm will not be here forever, nor will I.

But the reality is, it's not just about one family.

It's about these immigrants and what they contributed.

- [Tessie] I see it in the neighborhood.

There's getting to be more of a sense of community.

It's almost like the Ybor City of old, where the Spaniards, the Italians, everyone came together.

It's coming back.

(gentle music) (gentle music)