Operating since the 1980s, the Slim Buttes Agricultural Development (SBAG) program tills gardens, distributes seeds, and teaches food preservation techniques, serving over 650 people on Pine Ridge annually.
In 2025, we also continued our long-term support of the SBAG program, tilling community gardens, distributing outdoor seedlings and seeds that yield indoor nutrition by the day, helping to meet the healthy and fresh food needs of families on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
For more than 30 years, with Running Strong’s support, SBAG has been supporting family and community gardens on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation through educational gardening radio segments, growing organic seedlings at the SBAG greenhouse, helping families prepare their gardens, donating raised beds, and distributing seedlings.
In November, SBAG Field Director Milo Yellow Hair reported that the $9,847 grant from Running Strong was used to “ensure that Slim Buttes Agricultural Development Project’s objectives for good nutrition and wellness, both physically and spiritually, are met by families on the Pine Ridge reservation.
“The funding allows people the opportunity to plant and tend gardens at their homes, and installs planter boxes, raised beds, tills gardens, and educates gardeners on how to create and maintain healthy soil, compost, and food preservation.”
Milo reported in 2025 SBAG distributed 5,280 seedlings to families on Pine Ridge, built eight new planter boxes and ten new raised beds, refurbished 60 old planter boxes and raised beds, tractor tilled 42 and hand tilled 20 beds of 5′ x 10′ each.
In addition, SBAG distributed 800 pounds of produce grown in the SBAG garden to community members and to the Oglala meals program, serving an estimated 700 individuals.
“It has been a productive growing season and an abundant harvest here at Slim Buttes,” reported Milo. “The grasshoppers did eat some of the greenery, but it affected only about 10 percent of the produce grown here at SBAG.
And while on September 7, the region experienced an unexpected early frost on that killed many of the tomato plants that were in the ground outside.
However, the good news Milo reported was that “all the greenhouse tomatoes, and container tomatoes that were covered, survived and continued ripening on the vine.”
For 2026, Milo stated “We are looking forward to another successful match next spring to help us kick off the growing season.
“Federal budget cuts are impacting tribal food distribution programs, so support from Running Strong to our gardening program would be helpful.”
For 2026, “SBAG will impact more than 200 families by distributing 5,000 seedlings for home gardens,” says Sydney.
“These families will be given the tools to go out in their back yards and pick tomatoes right off the vine, dig in the soil for potatoes, carrots, and onions, and harvest peppers, beans, and more all summer long.”