Small Farm Spotlight: digging in with Anthony's Roots

Diedre and Justin Anthony with their children Julian, Daphne and Melody

Small Farm Spotlight: digging in with Anthony’s Roots

by LeeAnna Tatum

Tara Ruby, photographer

Statesboro native Justin Anthony of Anthony’sRoots made farming his full-time business aboutthree years ago. Justin currently grows annualvegetables seasonally, keeps chickens for eggproduction, is in the early stages of growing treesfor fruit (including bananas) and cultivates and sellslive plants as well.

Justin’s ultimate goal is a whole-systems farmutilizing livestock to meet different needs of thefarm and to help boost the overall productivity. Hecurrently has cows, ducks and chickens with theintention of adding pigs in the near future.

“I try to incorporate the farm as a whole system. I think diversity is a healthy ecosystem,” Justin explained. “So, I try to do that with the plants and the animals.”

“We have cows because cow manure is great fertilizer. They’re also lawnmowers. I don’t have to pay somebody or get on a tractor to cut the grass … Certain animals, I’ll utilize for their unique abilities. I’m going to have pigs because they can clear a garden area or if you want to plant an orchard, they can clear that out for you.”

“You can spend money and fuel and have time and energy involved in plowing something up, or you can let a pig do it,” he explained. “Utilize the animals, let them be the animals they’re designed to be and then you’ll get a quality meat out of that. We’re not just feeding them stuff to fatten them up.”

Justin has no plans at the moment to go into commercial meat production, but he is in the process of ramping up his egg business. A building that is currently under construction on the farm will allow him to have a Georgia Department of Agriculture approved site for marketing his eggs on a wholesale level to stores and restaurants.

Justin’s wife Diedre is a middle school counselor. They have three small children who enjoy spending time on the farm collecting eggs and working in the garden. They especially enjoy harvesting (and eating) fresh carrots.

“I don’t force it on them. I try to allow it to be fun,” Justin said of chores on the farm. “I want them to see it as fun, but I also want them to see it as something they can make money doing. I don’t want to force them into it, but I want them to be so used to having that as a part of their lives that they want it. Ultimately, I think a lot of people want that connection to the earth.”

Diedre sees the farm experience as a positive one for her family. Her parents are Jamaican and her mom grew up in a farm environment, something that was foreign to Diedre herself.

“I can remember my mom telling me stories about getting a chicken, putting a pot over it’s head, chopping the neck, plucking the feathers … it being an all day event … this is what I grew up listening to,” Diedre recalled. “I grew up on an Air Force base, so I didn’t grow up this way, but it’s nice the way it’s all connecting and coming full circle.”

She believes her children are learning valuable lessons that go beyond knowing where their food comes from.

Our Advertisers make it possible for us to bring you the stories of our local sustainable food systems.

“Having my kids experience it and know where their food comes from. We can say it all day long, what he does, but they can see it from start to finish. And when we’re at the market, they can tell the customers what breeds of chickens we have, how often they lay. I just think it’s really fascinating and all children should know about it. So, I’m just glad they have the opportunity and they can share with their friends.

“It’s funny,” Diedre continued, “my daughter that was in pre-k last year told her teacher, ‘we need some more pigs because we ran out of bacon’. So, they’re so not squeamish. And it really helps with life and death because they understand the cycles and that certain animals are used for meat. It doesn’t weird them out or gross them out. I think they’re able to handle death easier.”

An avid gardener himself, Justin’s a firm believer that gardening is a skill everyone should take some time to learn themselves and teach their children.

“Gardening can be frustrating,” he admitted, “but you’re not losing a lot of money and you’re gaining knowledge … you gain your ability to grow food for yourself. Something in our basic needs, that’s something everyone should know.”

“We should be teaching our children basic survival skills,” he continued. Plant a garden in your backyard. You share the work and you share the reward. At a time when people want to disconnect their kids from technology - turn it off and go outside. And it’s good exercise too,” he added.

Anthony’s Roots is a regular vendor at the Statesboro Main Street Farmers Market and the Statesboro Market To-Go program (which allows customers to order online between Friday and Tuesday and pick up at the Statesboro Welcome Center on Thursdays). Justin sells free-range chicken and duck eggs, seasonal produce and live plants. Follow them on !