Story and photos compiled by:  Rebecca Gresham, Public Affairs Specialist, Lubbock, TX

What began as way to provide good, healthy food for a family has since grown into an operation that’s helping to nourish a community. Landowners Lindsey and Ben Danner are proud of their “little piece of land” just outside of Amarillo, Texas, where their family of seven has grown while learning how to navigate the ins and outs of urban farming on Danner Land Farms in Randall County.

“Mainly, we started because we wanted to be close to our food and I wanted our kids to know how it is to eat a carrot right out of the ground,” says Lindsey.

Today, the family grows everything from heirloom tomatoes to cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, garlic, lettuce greens, edible flowers, and strawberries.

A Family’s Farming Journey 

Over 17 years ago, in their early twenties, Lindsey and Ben spent some time working at a Christian school in New Zealand. When they weren’t in the classroom, they were out backpacking. 

“We have done a lot of world travel and New Zealand was like a hub for backpackers,” Lindsey says. She shares that Ben went first, and she joined him while they were still dating. They eventually married, traveled a bit more, and finally returned to the States to start their family. After initially living at her grandparents’ farm, they moved to Amarillo 10 years ago, where Ben opened a construction company with his brother.  

The Danners’ started growing produce for their family about nine years ago. Ben describes Lindsey as “the farmer” while he oversees the infrastructure. “I’m not really good at plants,” he admits, “but I am really good at building. So that’s what I do.”

Lindsey, meanwhile, describes her agricultural background and influence that started at a very young age. “My grandpa farmed alfalfa in the panhandle of Oklahoma and my dad was part of that,” Lindsey offers. Her parents have since taken over the farming operation there. 

While Lindsey wasn’t what she refers to as “the ag kid in school,” she was exposed to it through her grandparents and parents. “We always had big gardens, but if you ever told me I would be this scale or have five kids, I would say ‘that’s crazy,’” she laughs.

And while Ben balances his construction business and the farm, Lindsey says she’s a mom first. “I do this, and I homeschool our kids.” Together, the couple is building a life centered around family, hard work, and a deep connection to the land.

Collaboration and Conservation through an NRCS Partnership

During a trip to Israel, Lindsey was inspired by how farmers used high tunnels to adapt to desert climates. If approved, hers would be the first high tunnel to go into Randall County.

USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Urban Conservationist Terra Fannin recalls when the Danners came into the office, they had lots of questions: Can we do this? Will it work? What does it look like in our setting?

“We did a field visit and looked around to see what we could do,” Fannin says. “Lindsey had goals and objectives for vegetable production and floral production, and we addressed the resource concern of extending the growing season.” 
 

Fannin explains they brought Wilma Tichelaar, NRCS’s State Urban Conservationist out to ensure everything they were planning aligned with NRCS requirements. “We did another field visit to make sure the products they were choosing met standards and specs.” 

In addition to that first high tunnel, with the help of NRCS District Conservationist, Jeff Lewter, they’ve installed three more seasonal high tunnels and about 20 low tunnels through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). 

“Our main projects have been the tunnels, drip irrigation, mulching, and a windbreak,” Lewter says.

Lewter added how they brought in Keith Sides, NRCS’s State Water Management Engineer into the project to design the drip irrigation system. The drip irrigation system provides water directly to the root zone of the plants, removing any chances of losing applied water to evaporation. 
 

The Danners have put the high tunnels to work for extended vegetable production, low tunnels for early planting, and use drip irrigation for efficient water use. Landscape fabric and mulching is used to control weeds and improve their soil health.

Of some of the vegetables they’re growing, Lindsey says, “It’s stuff people grow everywhere, but here it’s hard to grow with the wind. The high tunnels make it possible.”

As for the flowers they grow, especially the eucalyptus, Lindsey is happy with the setup. “I’ve never been able to grow them before, so it’s worked out.” Typically, poppies grow to about 3 feet in height, but in the Danners’ high tunnels, they are growing closer to 7 feet. 

Sustainable Farming Practices for a Thriving Farm

Danner Land Farms is well manicured and organized with 30 rows of crops, each 100 feet long. You’ll find a variety of flowers and vegetables grown here.

“I grow sunflowers every year, and dahlias and zinnias,” says Lindsey. “My kids have always taken buckets of zinnias to the market and sold them for themselves to make a little money.” 

Just like their produce, the flowers do so much better in the high tunnels where they’re protected from the weather, including high winds.
 

Something else the Danners are taking advantage of is finding and using water when and where they can.
“I’m setting up tanks to catch rainwater between the tunnels. In the meantime, I have deep mulch and wine cap mushrooms planted in there,” Lindsey says. “So, the wettest place on the property stays mulched and also grows mushrooms.” They use wine cap mushrooms to help to ensure healthier soil for garden plants.

The benefits of implementing NRCS practices on Danner Land Farms are evident both in efficiency and productivity. Taking an urban conservationist approach to creating a sustainable and efficient farming system is paying off.

“The high tunnel helped them address the resource concern of plant health and vigor so they can extend the growing season and plant their floral and vegetable plants earlier in the season so they can product a cash crop earlier to the market,” Fannin says.

Lewter adds, “It’s fun for me to work with a family that’s so passionate about what they’re doing.”

From Farm to Market 

The Danners are advocates of agricultural cooperation among local producers in the Panhandle, especially considering recent fires when people need more help than ever. And ten years into their backyard garden, it’s likely you will run into the family at the Canyon Farmers’ Market in the historic courthouse square where they bring their products to sell.

The Danners’ decision to join the market is the result of having a surplus of produce. 

“We’ve got tomatoes, head lettuce, azaleas, eucalyptus, peppers, eggplant, cucumbers,” Lindsey says, adding they carry 39 varieties of tomatoes and plant around 750 tomato plants each year.

They were producing up to three or four hundred pounds of produce a week, according to Ben. He acknowledges the surplus is a direct result of having put in a high tunnel with the NRCS.

“I like the NRCS a lot. I like all the guys and all the ladies that work in the office. We really like Jeff,” Ben says. “He’s a great agent to be working with.” He credits Jeff for suggesting their first high tunnel and that it’s been a great partnership ever since.  

Now they’re using several conservation practices to make their system more efficient and effective, enabling them to produce longer in a more contained environment.

Just as they’ve enjoyed being able to feed their own family fresh fruits and vegetables straight off the vine, they are excited about the impact of market participation on their farm and community.