Hill Country Farms is one man's dream to create his own job doing something he loves.
I have always loved gardening ever since I was a kid. Once, my grandparents let me have a small patch in their garden, though unfortunately heavy rains ended up flooding it out! After college, and while I still lived with my parents, I had two small gardens there - combined they were only about 1.5 times the space of my car! But that got me hooked!
I began looking for a home several years ago. My main two requirements (other than a price I could afford!) was privacy and space for a large garden. I moved in in the fall, and the following spring I got to work on the largest garden I'd ever had - probably about 20' x 80'.
The next year the garden expanded, and I learned how to improve the soil through adding organic material. Over the past three years the garden has kept expanding, and through the constant addition of organic material, I've ended up with a very fertile garden. This past year alone I canned over 100 pints of green beans, with many, many more going to waste on the plants as I still worked a full time job. And tomatoes? I've picked crates and crates of them!
One spring day in 2011 I went into my local Tractor Supply Company to checkout their seeds. They had a few metal tubs full of baby chicks. I had never considered having chickens before. But before I knew what was happening, I had bought 9 of the little guys.
I had never considered selling my eggs. There was a lady at church who would save me her newspapers, as I used them in the garden. When the chickens were starting to lay I brought her a dozen as a way to say thanks. She told me to bring her a dozen every week and she'd pay me. And then another lady saw it, and she wanted me to bring her some, too. And that was the birth of Hill Country Farms!
Now, nearly three years later, I have around 30 chickens, along with a few ducks and guineas!
In December of 2013 I lost my job. I had worked in an office, but I have no desire to go back to another office job. So I decided that it's time for me to try my hand at doing something I love - farming and poultry!
