Daddy made his dream of being a business owner come to fruition when we moved to Georgia, but did you know that his other dream was to be a farmer?
Everything he knew about growing organically, he taught me from the time I was a child. We used to walk through his garden together, picking vegetables and herbs and the occasional Japanese beetle off the tomato plants.
As we walked, he would explain to me the importance of companion planting and feeding the soil. About how the good bugs took care of the bad ones, and how to use natural things to feed the plants and soil instead of chemicals.
He showed me the plants that most people call weeds and told me that they try to kill them with sprays. He taught me that these plants were actually nature’s medicine and food and that they should be glorified not shunned. He told me stories about dandelions and other wild herbs, and how his mother used all their parts.
When I grew up and started my own garden, I went to him constantly for advice. He would give me soil recipes for different plants and tell me what to add to the soil from the kitchen to help feed those plants.
He taught me how to make compost and to throw the spent straw from my chicken coop in it to make their manure useful for the garden. I paid him in jars of pickles and chow-chow which he devoured happily.
“Crop rotation and cover crops like clover are essential to keeping the soil healthy” he would tell me. He utilized old school methods of planting and in doing so was ahead of his time.
All of these ideals are being used in what is called Regenerative Farming, and it will help save the planet. There is a wonderful documentary on Netflix called Kiss the Ground that we just watched that talks in great detail about this. Of course the whole time we were watching I kept saying “ Daddy said all of this to me from the time I was a kid!”
Since Daddy died, I’ve felt an even stronger calling to the land. The legacy he left me was the love of the land. The best way we can honor him and continue that legacy is through working the land.
We are actively planning starting a farm in his name, armed with all the knowledge he passed down. We are focusing on native plants, regenerative farming and compost. Our goals are to grow things to sell at market, offer classes to those who want to learn and do what we can to help save the planet. We aren’t looking to make record breaking profits. In fact anything extra we make after paying bills will go back into the farm to make it better.
We are naming it Jaybird’s Farm.
We have the plan. We have the drive. We have the passion. What we don’t have yet is the land! If you would like to help see his dream become a reality and help us pay tribute to him with what he felt so passionately about, you can donate here, or click on the Jaybird’s Farm logo below. Everything donated will go towards the purchase of a small piece of land that we can grow the farm on.
In the meantime we will be starting this whole adventure in our backyard. This will help us work out the details of what we will take to the farm, and build the necessary skills.
We will be posting our progress of this journey here, in our blog so you can follow along on bringing his tribute to life and the beautiful things that will unfold.
We all feel like Daddy is smiling down from Heaven and guiding us in this project. Let’s give him something spectacular to watch!
Daddy, this one’s for you. Love Pooh
Click on the logo below to go to the fundraiser 👨🌾
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