People

Part One: Bitter Harvest

By Skip Connett Photography by Skip Connett If Joe Reider were ever desperate for work, his want ad would read: Seasoned Amish farmer seeks to pass on 50 years of knowledge to organic ...

The Gospel of Living Soil

By Dorsey Barger Photography by Dorsey Barger When I first saw the non-flag-making Betsy Ross on PBS’s Central Texas Gardener, I was transfixed by her strong face and ...

Tomato Tying Time

By Jo Dwyer Photography by Farmer John We all like to be needed in some way, don’t we? Being an especially attentive spouse, say, or an exemplary parent, a trusted friend or a pillar of the ...

Backyard Gardens

By Betsy Levy Photography by Carole Topalian It’s 8:00 a.m. on a summer Saturday and most Austinites are still in bed. But at Johnson’s Backyard Garden CSA, sleepy volunteers slam ...

Honoring the Animal

By Robin Chotzinoff Photography by Marla Camp In the morning, before the heat sets in, Hugh Fitzsimmons drives his truck down rutted wheel tracks, looking for signs of his bison ...

Purple Haze

By Andrea Abel Photography by Meg Griffiths Twenty miles east of Austin lies a bit of the Mediterranean in Central Texas—the two acres Randy Graybill calls Texas Lavender. A recent visit to ...

Summertime Greens

By Dorsey Barger Photography by Dorsey Barger As the owner of the Eastside Café, I’ve been on intimate terms with an organic garden for many years. So it may seem odd that ...

Wateroak Farms

By Helen Cordes Photography by Jesse Cordes Selbin Want to know the secret that sparks loyalty—and raving addiction—to Wateroak Farms’s creamy, delectable goat goods? You’ll see it as ...

Skin Jobs and Summer Tarts

By Carol Ann Sayle Yep, it’s summer. Without looking at a calendar, we know, as the season is dripping off our foreheads and running down the middles of our backs. These days, a washcloth is a ...