If you want some healthy eating tips for the holidays and a good laugh, see this video from Kayla. Dietitian how-to videos are not usually this hilarious.
Don’t worry, our baby did not really eat a bag of cat food. Kayla made that story up ad lib; pretty good comedic timing! All dance scenes (plus all other scenes) are unrehearsed. Thank you Hollie Mims for the best facial expressions ever. Please enjoy!
Kayla Harvesting Turnips (photo by http://www.racheldurrent.com)
Friends, Kayla and I were featured on the front page of the Caller-Times this week in a wonderful article by reporter Natalia Contreras. That article was picked up by the Associated Press and is now appearing in newspapers across the country.
Thanks to that article, we are excited to welcome new friends from all over to our site! This article is now showing in every major newspaper in Texas and in papers across America from Seattle to San Francisco and back again.
We hope you can visit us soon at one of our gardening or cooking classes. Or, join us in our Farm Share program for a weekly delivery of something good! We invite you to like our Facebook page or sign up here for updates about our farm.
We love to share our heritage farming techniques to help you grow your own healthy and delicious food without the use of chemicals. Four String Farm will be featured in a Smithsonian Exhibit coming soon, click here for details. This exhibit may come to your city, we hope you can see it!
Kayla and I write for The Bend Magazine. Look for the November issue—we just saw the proof, it is a beautiful edition! We also host a weekly radio program, “Your Wholesome Heritage Garden”, that airs on KEDT/KVRT every Tuesday.
For a closer look at our farm, check out the beautiful photography of Mae Burke and our dear friend Rachel Durrent.
Thank you for visiting us, we are so glad to have you!
Emma Feeding Cow
Friends, bring your children to Four String Farm for a combined gardening/cooking class on Saturday, November 12, from 9:00am to Noon! Children of all ages are welcome!
Your kids will learn how to plant a small starter garden and how to cook something delicious out of it! We want your little ones to go home with the skills to prepare their own meal from produce they grow themselves.
Kid’s Gardening/Cooking Class Agenda
The kids will begin the class by tending to the pigs and interacting with our goats and cows along the way. They will feed the laying hens and learn about egg production. These activities are designed to show kids where food really comes from.
Next, the children will plant their own starter garden. They will get their hands in the dirt, dig, plant seeds, and water their garden.
Then they will prepare a meal from their freshly-picked harvest. They will make their own homemade pizza from scratch and dress the pizza with ingredients from the garden.
Parent or Guardian is Required
Each child must be accompanied by a parent or guardian at all times. Your job as an adult in this class will be to keep your little ones safe and make sure they behave. There will be some walking and standing for you while the little ones plant their garden. For the safety of the children and our animals, farm rules must be obeyed at all times!
During the cooking portion of the class you can cook with your child or relax in a lawn chair in the shade and enjoy complementary water or a delightful refreshment from Groovie Smoothie (available for purchase).
How to Sign up for the Class
This will be a small class to make sure each participant gets the most out of this experience. You must register and pay for this class in advance. Registration closes November 11 or when the class is full.
Click to register one or more children for this class.
Once you complete your payment online, we will email you directions to the farm and additional details and information about this class.
We are so excited to have you and your little ones out at the farm! We look forward to a wonderful day of learning and fun!
Mud Pies optional but not on the menu in this class!
Friends, click this video for a sneak-peek of a Corpus Christi Caller-Times article about Four String Farm coming out on Monday.
Kayla and I had an in-depth interview this week with Natalia Contreras of the Caller-Times. Courtney Sacco took photographs of us moving chickens, planting seeds, and other routine chores. We are so thrilled that the Caller-Times took an interest in our farm!
We will forward the article when it comes out. Thank you Natalia and Courtney, we are so grateful for you guys!
Kayla Holding Cabbage with Bando
Fall and winter is the best time of the year to garden in South Texas. The weather is beautiful and cool, and you can grow the greatest amount of your favorite vegetables with minimal pest problems.
Kayla and I invite you to a fall/winter gardening class on Saturday, Oct 1, from 9:00am to 11:30am. The class will be held at Four String Farm.
The class will focus on: 1) preparing the garden, 2) companion planting to maximize yield and variety, 3) the best way to water the plants, and 4) and how to control pests naturally. You will learn about growing a wide range of vegetables, herbs, and flowers fit for the season without the use of any chemicals whatsoever.
There is a $20 registration fee for this class, advance registration required. Children age five and under are welcome at no charge, but must be accompanied by parent. Please do not bring pets.
Click here to pay $20 now to register for the class. You will receive more details upon registration. Registration closes the day before class. Thank you so much!
Gardeners of all ages and skill levels are welcome. Even if you have never planted a seed, you will go home with the knowledge to start your own successful garden!
What: “Winter Gardening Class” with Justin and Kayla Butts
When: Saturday, Oct 1, from 9:00am to 11:30pm.
Where: Four String Farm
Who: Gardeners of all ages!
Kayla in Chard
Kayla with Cabbage and Bando Checking In
Kayla with Toscano Kale and The Killer
Join Brittany Barnes and Kayla Butts at Four String Farm this Saturday, May 7, from 9:00am to noon, for a Whole30 Workshop!
Brittany is a Certified Natural Health Professional and Kayla is a registered and licensed dietitian (see more about the instructors below).
In this workshop, Brittany and Kayla will deconstruct this popular 30-day program to help you regain a healthy metabolism and decrease the amount of inflammation in your body.
The premise of the Whole30 program is “to change your life in 30 days”, and you can do it! This workshop will unlock the secrets and details of the Whole30 program and offer you insightful tips for a healthy diet.
Kayla Butts MS, RD, LD will begin the class by giving you an educational tour of the Four String Farm gardens and animal paddocks, explaining and illustrating how farming methods affect nutrition and health.
The second half of the class will take place indoors, where Brittany Barnes will lead a discussion of the Whole 30 program. She will prepare one of her favorite Whole30 dishes and answer all your questions in the process.
The class will include a meal plan as well as recipes for you to take home.
The cost for this class is $35. This will be a small class with personalized attention by Brittany and Kayla, and pre-registration and payment is required.
Please register for this class by clicking here: We are so sorry, this class is closed! Please sign up on this site to receive updates about future classes. Thank you so much!
What: Whole30 Workshop
Where: Four String Farm in Rockport, TX
When: May 7th, 9:00am to Noon
Cost: $35 (Pre-registration is required) We are so sorry, this class is closed! Please sign up on this site to receive updates about future classes. Thank you so much!
About the Instructors:
Brittany Barnes is a Level One Certified CrossFit Trainer who trains at Rockport Health & Fitness and for individuals. She completed her certification during her Senior year as a homeschool student. Whole body fitness is her passion, which led her to becoming a Certified Natural Health Professional in March 2016. She understands the balance between healthy eating and exercise which aid in a more productive lifestyle, and desires to help others achieve their goals also.
Kayla Butts is a registered, licensed dietitian, farmer, food writer, and home chef. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Nutrition from The University of Texas and her Master of Science in Nutrition from Texas Woman’s University. Her passion is making nutritious food accessible and practical. She loves teaching kids how to prepare their own meals, especially her three daughters.
Pattison Strie Melange
Friends, stop by Coastal Bend Health Foods in Rockport every day this week for beautiful heirloom produce freshly delivered from our farm.
This week, we are featuring rare heirloom squash that you won’t find anywhere else in South Texas. We have more than 100 varieties of vegetables and herbs now ripening in our gardens. These pictures show Kayla and Madeleine picking them for you!
We have some lovely French squash, called pattison. You can find strie mélange, panache blanc et vert, and marbre. You can also find the rare Italian ronde di nice. Look for striped green cushaw, which is a very old Native American variety, along with Caserta and other unique varieties.
You will also find butternut, yellow crookneck, striped zucchini, scallopini, and many other tasty squashes. There are freshly picked carrots, beets, collards, prima rosa chard, lettuce, Tuscan kale, nasturtium bouquets, and many other veggies.
We can’t wait for you to try these squash and let us know how you like flavor. The techniques we employ to grow the sweetest and most flavorful produce are really beginning to tell. Each squash has its own unique taste. We hope you love these wonderful squashes and other veggies as much as we do!
Stop by Kimmi’s store to try this produce. The prices are great and Kimmi will always greet you with a smile!
Caserta Squash
Patisson Panache Blanc et Vert and Lemon Squash
Ronde de Nice
Prima Rosa Chard
Super Sweet and Delicious Carrots
Patisson Golden Marbre
Nasturtium Bouquets
Luogo Blanco
This Saturday, we had a workday with students from Texas A&M University-Kingsville.
Dr. David Ruppert is assistant professor of environmental soil science in the department of agriculture, agribusiness, and environmental science at TAMUK. He brought his Soil Fertility students out for a day of work and learning. Dr. Ruppert has been studying and teaching about soil for more than 20 years. We are thrilled that Dr. Ruppert has taken an interest in our farm and the methods we employ to grow healthy soil.
Dr. Ruppert wanted his students to learn about small-scale farming through hands-on experience. The students put in a full day of good work. Among the many tasks the students performed, including companion planting and adding soil amendments, they put down a lot of mulch. To be specific, they placed about four tons of native leaf mulch on our gardens.
This raked-up, bagged leaf mulch was donated to our farm by our good friends in Rockport. With the help of the TAMUK students, we were able to recycle these leaves and put them to good use.
The TAMUK students we met are the future farmers of South Texas. Several of them already work full-time in family farms, and most of them hope to soon find work farming. After spending a day with these students, I know that the future of agriculture is in good hands.
Thank you, Dr. Ruppert and students, for a wonderful day. You improved our farm with your presence. You are welcome back to our place anytime.
Kayla with Harvest in a Three Sisters Garden
Friends, please join us for a Three Sisters gardening class at Four String Farm this Saturday, March 19, from 9:00am to 11:00am.
The Three Sisters is the ancient Native American technique for companion planting corn, beans, and squash (plus pumpkins, melons, cucumbers, nasturtiums, and herbs). This method is an easy and efficient way to grow a tremendous amount of food with minimal work or expense.
The Three Sisters method is possibly the best-kept gardening secret in America. But on Saturday, we will share the secrets of this ancient technique to help you grow a variety of vegetables, herbs, and flowers right in your own garden. Our farm will be featured in a Smithsonian exhibit demonstrating this method.
In this workshop, we will teach you everything you need to know to plant a small or large Three Sisters garden. Whether you want to fill a little planter in your front yard, or grow enough produce to feed your family, this workshop will give you with the skills to do it.
We will begin with bare dirt and plant several variations of the technique. We will even show you how Squanto taught the Pilgrims to bury fish as fertilizer!
This workshop will be held out-of-doors on our farm. Please wear long pants, close-toed shoes, and bring a hat. This will be a small class with personalized instruction, and we will answer all your gardening questions as we go.
As part of the cost of this class, you will receive a starter seed packet prepared by me and Kayla, as well as seed packets of heirloom corn, beans, and squash.
The cost of this workshop is $35 per person, and a portion of the proceeds will go to a local charity. You must pay in advance for this class. Directions to our farm with more detailed information will be e-mailed to you once you complete the payment.
We are so sorry, this class is full. To find out about upcoming classes, please subscribe to this blog to get updates about classes and other information. Thank you, have a wonderful day!
Thank you, we look forward to seeing you on Saturday!
Friends, you have seen a lot of information on this site about the Three Sisters, the ancient Native American technique for inter-planting corn, beans, and squash. We have explored the benefits of this method, its sustainability, and its rich history. Here is something about the future of the Three Sisters.
Beginning this month, we will appear in a Smithsonian Institute Traveling Exhibit called “H2O Today”. “H2O Today” explores the beauty, the diversity, and the great challenges of global water resources in the 21st Century.
I am thrilled to announce that Four String Farm will be featured in this exhibit. We appear in the section devoted to agriculture, in a case study about the irrigation techniques of the Zapotec Indians a thousand years ago. An image from Four String Farm is used to illustrate the components of the Three Sisters technique. Our modern thriving farm in Rockport is contrasted with the Zapotec civilaztion at Monte Albán, in Oaxaca, Mexico.
The Smithsonian featured our farm because it is a working example of sustainable agriculture using traditional methods. Visitors to the interactive exhibit can click on our website to find a wealth of information about the Three Sisters freely available to the public. These water-saving techniques point to the future of agriculture in a water-dwindling world.
What’s more, the “H2O Today” exhibit will travel to more than thirty cites across America from 2016 all the way to 2020. The educational opportunities of this exhibit will reach tens of thousands of people in every corner of this great nation. (I will post more about the exhibit once it is completed and on display.)
I have visited farms all over the world, in jungles, mountains, deserts, and rich fertile plains, but I have never seen the Three Sisters used anywhere in agriculture. I discovered this method in history books, and taught myself the technique through trial and error while building a pioneer farm out of a wilderness. And now our modest gardens will appear in the Smithsonian.
I have long said that the Three Sisters is the best-kept gardening secret in America. But now, with the power and scope of the Smithsonian, I don’t think the Three Sisters will be a secret for long.
A Special Note for Shannon at the Smithsonian:
Shannon, you made our day/month/year when you contacted us. I never imagined that in this career, I would one day sign a contract with the Smithsonian!
I know it took work for you to find us, to wade through all the information out there and drill down to this site, not to mention the thousands of sites and materials you covered in your research. Then, to take all that information and bring it to life, is just remarkable. The Smithsonian is the best institution of its kind in the world because of people like you.
Please know how thrilled our family has been to be part of this process. Thank you for finding us and making us a part of this living history you are presenting to the world.
(The image in the Smithsonian is reserved for their exclusive use–here are other images from our Three Sisters gardens!)
Purple Bean Flowers on a Corn Stalk Trellis
Three Sisters Garden
Hopi Indian Corn on Left, Melons and Squash, Sunflower Hedgerow in Back