I married into a small farm family which quickly showed me that farming is in a period of transition. While technology like synthetic fertilizer has improved productivity, it’s also harming the ecology that farming depends on. Modern, ecologically minded farming requires adaptability.

My husband’s family operates Double K Farms- owned and managed by 3 (and soon to be 4) generations of West Virginian women. These women are adapting to the shifting agricultural landscape- selling online, at farmer-owned co-ops like the Wild Ramp, and through local delivery. They’re responsive to feedback from customers (recently, they began raising rabbits to meet consumer requests), and while the work is at times unforgiving (imagine having 40 dozen extra eggs after a customer suddenly stops buying), the humor in their households overflows.

These women are part of a culture that learned to reuse everything and are happy to teach others how to do the same. I now know that old t-shirts and pantyhose make some of the best tomato ties because they’re flexible and don’t cut into the stalks of the plant. And they taught me when it’s time to plant peppers, that ducks are great garden helpers, and that canning to preserve summer vegetables isn’t that hard, though it is hot work so maybe do it outside. These are women who hunt, forage, chase goats, nurse premature calves, incubate eggs, and process 50 quarts of cherries in a weekend. They’re also women who paint their barns purple, knit hats for the chickens, string beans together and laugh.