What prepared you to be a farmer?  I have lived in Decatur all of my life. My dad sold vegetables from the family garden off the back of his pickup truck for years. As kids we always helped dad. By 16, I started taking gardening more seriously. I was pretty excited about the new rototiller. Ever since then I grew the size of that family garden until it got to be 1/4 acre, then 1/2 acre, then 1 acre….and in 2011 it’s almost 3 acres. In 2005, BesMaid Garden Essentials became my full-time career. The name came from an ice cream business where my father worked for almost 20 years.
What is a unique feature and how many acres do you farm? With a special piece of equipment on the back of my tractor,  I have been really happy with my raised beds which are now 285 to 300 foot long and is a benefit to the plant for water and to the soil.  Most of my soil is leaf compote but can’t give away all my secrets[wink].  In early 2000 I decided to go completely  organic and follow standard organic practices.. All the fertilizers used on the farm are Organic Materials Research Institute (OMRI) approved. I use certified organic fish emulsion and seaweed for fertilizer. In addition to the compost I make on the property, I also supplement with animal manure from local farms. I regularly use cover crops for “green manure” such as rye as a winter cover crop and Hairy Vetch, buckwheat, soy beans, and Sudan grass as summer cover crops.
Tell us about your main crops and how you chose the varieties.  Like most small farmers are now planting, we bring you heirloom varieties of vegetables that have never been seen in grocery stores. These varieties have not been genetically modified and were in common use in the southeast prior to War.Fall/Winter vegetables you can expect: Broccoli (Green Magic, Pac Man, Arcadia, Blue Wind), Cauliflower (Cheddar, Purple Graffitti, Romanesca, White Cloud, Green Panther), Brussel Sprouts (Bubbles), Collard, Turnip, and Mustard Greens,Pac Choi (Black Summer, Joy Choi, Red Choi),Red Koma Suna, Hon Tsai Tai (Japanese Spinach),Carrots (Nelson),Onions (Yellow Granix, White, Red, Shallots),Arugula, All-Star Mix Lettuce,Romaine Lettuce,Rainbow Chard,Herbs (Cilantro, Rosemary, Basil, Garlic)
How much of food goes to farmers markets and or restaurants? It use to be 50 to 50 but now I’m selling more to restaurants
What challenges do you have as a farmer?  Insects and weeds such kudzoo beetle.  This beetle was just introduced to Georgia 2 years ago and it sucks the water out of my bean plants. I use pyganic insect spray.
Where would be your ideal location for your last supper, what would be your meal & music and who would join you ? Scallops and grouper with a medley rock and roll bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, Green Day, Collective Soul and Lincoln park.

BesMaid Garden and Bobby Britt can be reached at www.BesMaidGarden.com or 404.288.6972

Q & A with Farmer

What prepared you to be a farmer?I basically grew up on the farm located across the street and spent a lot of time in the fields.  Some of my fondest memories from childhood are picking bushels of corn in the morning and grilling some of them for lunch in the afternoon.  Fresh is as important in the produce industry as it is in the seafood industry.

What is a unique feature and how many acres do you farm?We have 15 acres in Conyers.  The most interesting feature about the farm itself is that previously to our farming it for produce it was a dairy farm for well over 75 years.  The topsoil is over 18 inches deep and I’ve never used (or needed!) any fertilizer.

Tell us about your main crops and how you chose the varieties. Heirloom tomatoes and peppers are our cornerstone products, but we do it all from carrots, beets and radishes to beans and corn.  We only choose unique old world varietals because of the superior taste, quality, and lack of genetic tampering.

How much of food goes to farmers markets and or restaurants? 95% of our products go to restaurants.  but we do sell small portions to local markets.

What challenges do you have as a farmer? Small farmers have a much larger production cost per acre than the larger scale farmers do.  Niche farming allows us to compensate for that by growing a higher quality product and thereby increasing our gross income per acre.

Where do you see farming in the future?A larger and larger portion of restaurant menus is already being devoted to local farms.  I see this trend not only continuing but expanding in the future.

Where would be your ideal location for your last supper, what would be your meal & music and who would join you ? Anywhere in the south of France, in a wine vineyard, overlooking the Mediterranean.  Sitting at the table would a be a handpicked group of Atlanta chefs, local farmers, friends and family.  Whatever is local and fresh would be the appropriate meal, accompanied with local wine, and Paul McCartney would sing in between courses.  And there would be many courses.

Noring Specialty Produce was an idea formed out of a love for food. Andrew Norman, a native of Georgia, was raised on a farm and combined this experience with his 8 years in the wine business to create a unique farming business. “Foodie gone Farmer” as he likes to refer to it. Andrew grew up in the horse country of Conyers, GA and got farming in his blood by working the Rohrabaugh Farm in Rockdale County.  14 years in the restaurant and wine industry fostered an understanding of the restaurant industry, helping to foresee and meet their needs. Christina cut her teeth in the corporate marketing divisions of Pepsico, Countrywide, and Citysearch.  Since Noring Farms was created in March of 2006, she has worked diligently to get the name known and as of April 1st, 2010 now works for the farm full-time.  Noring  the name is a combination of Norman and Waring, Andrew and Christina’s last names.

We have 2 Acres of Land located in Conyers, Georgia. Our original niche product was heirloom tomatoes and we have quickly expanded to be able to provide more seasonal old world exotic varietals. Our original customers were local restaurants and then we expanded to serving area Farmer’s Markets and our next venture is a “Farm to Door” project that will deliver a fresh varietal basket weekly to local residents. We look forward to giving you fresh, local, unique produce .