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Mon, 06/28/2021
I love when people ask me how I learned about farming. I like to say that I’m a “Youtube Farmer”.
Growing up in the suburbs of Akron, Ohio I knew nothing about farming. Food came from a grocery store, and the only animals I knew lived in the house. I grew up eating food out of the box and drinking diet Pepsi. It wasn’t until I joined the Army in 1990 and left home that I experienced life outside of the suburbs. I loved the fresh food markets and vineyards of Germany, and the food 
preservation and fermenting in South Korea. I loved seeing various farms and festivals as we drove through and lived all over the United States – garlic farms in California, pecan farms in Arizona, and meeting friends that raised goats! Although I got out of the military after one enlistment, I followed my husband’s Army career around the globe for 22 years until he retired. This was when we decided to find some land we could enjoy in the country – that was in Modoc, South Carolina! We bought our 35 acres of paradise in 2015. My husband, Shawn, affectionately named the farm “Happy Wife Farm”. I am a lucky girl!
Knowing nothing about farming and livestock, I immersed myself in research. I reached out to other farms in the area and volunteered so that I could learn first-hand. I joined local groups on social media, and I attended as many workshops as I could find. YouTube and Google were tremendously helpful in learning and solving problems around the farm. We started with chickens, and at one point had over 150 birds. I sold eggs and chicks but ultimately decided we just wanted a small flock to feed our family. We spent the first year installing pasture fences and building barns. Shawn spent many hours after working a day job getting everything built. He does all the heavy lifting around here, including building, tractor work, cutting down trees, and entertaining all my “good ideas”.
Next came the goats. We started with dairy goats, but after being introduced to Angora (fiber) goats I decided that I really wanted to raise fiber animals. We eventually sold off all of the dairy goats and added more angora goats and sheep to the farm. Currently, we have 6 angora goats and 13 sheep. I process their fiber from start to finish. I shear them each year, wash the fiber, spin it into yarn, and use some of it to weave fabric. I’ve always been a creative person, so it’s not surprising that I fell in love with this aspect of farming. I enjoy sharing this creative process and teaching others who are interested. We are members of the Livestock Conservancy and most of our sheep are heritage breeds. Heritage breeds are pure breeds that have not been modified for mass commercial production and are in danger of extinction. 
While fiber is my main focus on the farm, my husband and I also manage many other things here. We have a pecan orchard of 100 mature trees. Harvest takes a good portion of our time each Fall. In the past few years, we’ve opened the farm for you-pick pecan events. We love teaching the kids about pecans and meeting people in our community. My husband manages our honeybees and we harvest the honey and sell it. My gardening skills continue to improve each year as I learn what best grows in our soil. We use sustainable methods and refrain from chemical use on our food. We do a lot of canning every year – pear relish is a favorite as we get a large harvest of pears each year. All of our food and fiber is Certified SC Grown.
This year we became members of the South Carolina Agritourism Association so that we could meet more people and share our experiences with them. One of our favorite parts of farming is sharing it with others. Over the next year we plan to expand our farm tours and workshops, and add a small farm store. We currently are open by appointment – if you would like to learn more or visit, please give us a call.
