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  • From: "Tradingpost" <tradingpost@lobo.net>
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Livingontheland] Down(Town) on the Farm
  • Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:34:56 -0600


forwarded from Ken Hargesheimer
Down(Town) on the Farm


Look toward the southeast from the front steps of the State Capitol and
you'll see the office towers, condos, shops, restaurants, hotels and high
rises that make up the landscape of Austin's modern, bustling downtown. Get
in your car and drive for a mere two-and-a-half miles in the same direction,
however, and you'll pass through a time warp into a landscape so unlike its
skyscrapered counterpart as to be from another place and time. Deep in the
heart of Austin's east side, Boggy Creek Farm nestles incongruously on five
acres surrounded by a barrio. As you turn into the long driveway, the harsh,
metallic sounds of the city melt away, replaced by birdsong and clucking
chickens. In stark contrast to the asphalt, concrete and billboards just
blocks away, neat rows of every kind of green imaginable corrugate the
ground. Flowers are everywhere, crowded with bees and butterflies. Take a
deep breath and exhale as the traffic-induced stress leaves your body. Pinch
yourself: are you really still smack-dab in the middle of Austin? On a farm,
no less?

Yes, actually. Boggy Creek Farm, one of the few authentically urban market
farms in the entire United States, has been in operation since 1992. The
product of owners Carol Ann Sayle's and Larry Butler's vision and hard work,
the farm is an unexpected rural oasis in the midst of a bustling city. How
it got that way is a story marked by the ability to spot a
diamond-in-the-rough, serendipity, creative financing and a whole lot of
heart.

After the economic bust hit Austin in the 1980s and Larry's real estate
brokerage slowed to a crawl, he began a second business in home remodeling.
In the early '90s, when one of his construction workers asked Larry to help
find a house to buy in east Austin, the first bit of providence occurred.
Larry got out the Multiple Listing Service directory to begin the search and
the book fell open to a page showing three acres with an old house for sale.
A drive to the site revealed a totally overgrown property with what turned
out to be one of the oldest surviving homesteads in Austin (circa 1840) in a
terrible state of disrepair - the roof falling in, two collapsed chimneys
and stolen doors. An adjacent two acres, complete with junked cars and
graffiti-sprayed signs, were in foreclosure, the bottomed-out real estate
market having crushed a developer's dream of cutting down the huge pecan
trees to build 26 duplexes.

Larry found his construction worker a different property, but he and Carol
Ann had their interest piqued by the two derelict chunks of land. They were
already in the organic vegetable business on a part-time basis, having
purchased 15 acres in 1981 near Gause in Milam County, 75 miles northeast of
Austin, where Larry had spent his youth and learned about farming. Although
still living in Austin while raising their three children, Larry and Carol
Ann started growing vegetables at the Gause farm and began selling their
produce from a card-table outside Wiggy's Liquor Store on West 6th Street,
not far from their home. The success of this early venture had led them to
believe they could make a living as full-time farmers, but they needed more
land, closer to Austin.

"Are you *crazy*? Why would you even want to look at this?" asked the real
estate agent when Larry and Carol Ann inquired about the east Austin
properties. Undeterred by the agent's somewhat less than stellar opinion of
his own merchandise, they forged ahead to purchase both tracts, kissing
their life savings goodbye and maxing out their credit cards in the process.
They moved into the farmhouse on the day of closing in the winter of 1992.
That night, the temperature fell to 34 degrees outside and inside, courtesy
of the partial roof and no back door. A gas leak prevented them from
obtaining any heat. But the soil was deep and fertile and there was a good
well - true gardeners are nothing if not optimistic.

And so began the journey that has consumed the last 16 years of their lives.
Carol Ann describes the next bit of destiny associated with their purchase:
"We named the farm Boggy Creek Farm, in honor of the no-longer meandering
creek that lies, forever encased in cement, behind the houses across Lyons
Road. As a confirmation of the name choice, when we took the concrete lid
off of the 150-year old hand-dug well, we discovered, etched in script on
the lid: 'Boggy Creek'."

They spent that first year making the house livable, but they also planted
the salad greens for which they have become locally famous. From their
earlier experience with their Gause farm produce, they had already developed
a relationship with Whole Foods Market and other local grocers. As time
passed and more crops went in, they became fixtures at the nascent farmers'
markets in the city. The thriving farmers' market scene of today's Austin
belies its early days. In those times, growers were few and far between, a
solid customer base had yet to be established; and the term "organic" did
not have its current cachet. (Organic before organic was cool; both Boggy
Creek and the Gause farm have been USDA-certified from the beginning.) A
local chef discovered their produce and began featuring it on his menu.
Others did the same. Virginia Wood, a food writer for a popular weekly
newspaper, the *Austin Chronicle*, raved about their vegetables in print.
More publications followed suit. The word was out: Boggy Creek Farm had *
arrived*.

When the drudgery of packing and hauling produce to farmers markets became
too much, Carol Ann and Larry decided to open their own on-site "market day"
farm stand. Now every Wednesday and Saturday morning, a steady stream of
urbanites arrives at Boggy Creek Farm to purchase fresh produce. From
November through April, cool season offerings include head lettuce, spinach,
various salad and spring greens mixes, escarole, radicchio, endive, frisee,
arugula, cilantro, celery, celeriac, chervil, French sorrel, carrots, beets,
broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, turnips, kohlrabi, hard
squash, garlic, green onions, spring onions, daikon radish, parsnips,
dandelion greens, parsley, bunched greens (brussels sprouts, mustard,
collards, chard, turnip, kale, beet, etc.), greenhouse potatoes, mache,
leeks, fennel, and strawberries (April to mid-May). Hot season offerings,
available from May to the end of October, include slicing tomatoes (May to
mid-August), cherry tomatoes, garlic, potatoes. onions, green beans, long
beans, squash, eggplant, melons (July to August), sweet and hot peppers,
sweet corn (mid-June), cucumbers, basil, French sorrel, crimson lamb's
quarters, figs (June to July), okra, pears (August to September), and
Larry's special smoke-dried tomatoes (July, until the supply is gone).

There is more going on at Boggy Creek Farm than just vegetables, of course.
Prior to becoming a full-time vegetable grower, Carol Ann had a flourishing
career as a painter, among the top American artists in terms of gallery
representation, sales, and shows. The painting she was working on at the
time she and Larry purchased Boggy Creek Farm remains unfinished to this
day. She no longer has time to paint, and in fact, the farm itself has
become her canvas and creative outlet. Her beloved flowers, interspersed
throughout the fields, display a profusion of color, her artful arrangement
of the produce on the market stand tables is a feast for the eyes, and her
writings about the farm and particularly the goings-on of her favorite
chickens are enjoyed by devoted readers of her books and Web site. Not
afraid to speak out on matters that concern them, Carol Ann and Larry
encourage those readers to participate in a letter-writing campaign to
government officials to make the National Animal Identification Plan
"voluntary," so that small farmers won't have to register their properties
and their animals with the USDA.

Education and community service are big parts of Boggy Creek Farm. For years
Carol Ann and Larry have sponsored fundraisers for non-profit organizations,
in particular a supper benefiting AIDS Services of Austin and an annual fall
event for the Green Corn Project, a group dedicated to helping citizens in
need learn to grow their own organic produce. An official tour guide,
MeriJayd O'Connor, conducts farm tours for school children, home schooling
groups, garden clubs and other interested parties. The farm is also the site
of a variety of seminars, including those led by the Texas Organic Farmers
and Gardeners Association aimed at those who want to start a farm or garden
and a popular Chicken Seminar intended to educate people interested in
keeping backyard poultry.

At Boggy Creek Farm, a discernable sense of nurturing both plants and people
permeates the place. Carol Ann and Larry have helped one of their eight
employees purchase a home nearby. Both are fluent in Spanish, and neighbors
come to "Don Leon," as they refer to Larry, to translate documents. Workers
are encouraged to help themselves to all the free produce they want.
Children and young mothers are especially welcomed to enjoy the fresh air,
sunlight and open space of a real farm on market days. Both Larry and Carol
Ann take enormous satisfaction from providing "good, clean food for people."
Clearly, Boggy Creek Farm feeds not only the stomach, but the soul and
spirit as well, right in the heart of Austin.





  • [Livingontheland] Down(Town) on the Farm, Tradingpost, 08/19/2008

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