Know your farmers: Gentle Harmony Farm
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Meet Charles and Pamela Leonard of Gentle Harmony Farm, an organic medicinal herb farm located in the Yadkin River valley. When they purchased the property in 2008, they didn't intend for it to become a working farm as they had retired. Pamela had an increasing interest in herbal medicine that, coupled with their desire to have a productive second career, led them to a world of sustainable, organic agriculture.
Prior to purchasing the land, Charles had taught graphic design in Atlanta for 35 years. Pamela worked as an executive director of a restorative justice project housed at Georgia State U. Additionally, she had completed two years of courses in herbal medicine. With her interest in herbalism, the couple chose medicinal herbs as a niche crop. “We began by raising cover crops and test beds of herbs and became a USDA certified organic operation in 2012.”
They share their interest in herbalism with others by offering small organic herb workshops in their greenhouse. They are designed to introduce those interested to the entire process of growing herbs from seed propagation to the packaging of herbs for sale. Their workshop provides a concise introduction to the world of herbal medicines, including suggestions for possible markets for herbs.
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Through their website, explore a list of their organic medicinal herbs - Echinacea, Calendula, Lemon Balm, Bee Balm, Motherwort, Yarrow and Milky Oats. All herbs are 100 percent USDA certified organic. The Leonards are also nice enough to share a list of links through their site of a few of their favorite websites, such as the Davidson County Cooperative Extension, in which they indicate, “We just could not have done it without them,” Asheville Tea Company, Growing Small Farms and many others.
Along with their herbalism, they took on a conservation project with their home that dates back to the 1840s. The house was originally a single-pen, story-and-half log cabin. Sometime after the Civil War, the roof was raised two feet and a second floor was added. They continue to make use of a processing and storage building with a greenhouse, which is where the Leonards hold their Organic Herb Farm Workshops. The project incorporates a solar-assisted water stove that generates heat and hot water for the barn, greenhouse and home.
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The herb house was built with locally sourced building materials carefully handled by local craftspeople. They indicated the person who poured their concrete lives half a mile away and comes from a family that once lived in the Leonards’ home prior to World War II.
