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Jordan DeMars - Farmer / ProprietorFarming and gardening run deep in my family. From my grandmother, a master gardener with the University of Minnesota Extension who was raised on the farm next door to my current farm, to my mother who inherited her mother’s love of flowers and gardening. Some of my favorite memories as a child are of me walking through my grandmother’s flower garden at her home in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota and her numerous gardens at the farm in Zimmerman – some of which remain today.
As far back as I can remember I have always loved helping my mother tend to her gardens and plant her annual petunias under the crabapple trees. By the time I had turned 8 I had taken over a small plot in my parent’s back yard that was big enough for a few tomato plants and some pole green beans. Like any kid my age, I didn’t like vegetables at all (go figure… right?). For me, it wasn’t about eating what I grew, it was more about the thrill of nurturing seeds to maturity and growing something from the ground up. Those veggies didn’t go to waste though, my grandfather was always excited to receive fresh “dirt” grown tomatoes as he thought the store-bought variety were flavorless and referred to them as “red que balls.” My passion for gardening and farming only grew stronger with age. By the time I was 16 I had outgrown my parent’s backyard and was ready to take on more land. While most teenagers were begging their parents for a car, I was busy convincing my mother to co-sign a loan for my very first tractor – yes, I had a tractor before I had a car! Fast forward to today, I have grown from that tiny backyard plot to over 20 acres of land, more than 20 types of fresh produce and 60+ varieties, 300+ chickens, and 4 bee hives. |
