Country Lifestyles
When lavender came to Texas- Lavender Ridge Farms gives new life to a family legacy
By contributing writer Martin Aldridge
When Jerry Ware and his sister Jane decided to open a new type of business just east of Gainesville, they turned to a piece of property that had been in the family for over 150 years.
During that time the land had seen many uses. In the 1920s and 30s it had been a melon and strawberry farm, run by their great-grandfather, but oil was discovered shortly after so the family took the money and moved to Fort Worth.
But the land was still theirs. As the oil petered out the family leased it for cattle grazing, and that’s how things stood until Ware decided to make a major career change.
After getting a degree in horticulture and landscape design from Tarleton State, Ware worked for a number of years as a private horticulturalist for a wealthy family, taking care of gardens at homes in such upscale places as Martha’s Vineyard, Palm Springs, Vail, and the Bahamas. But the job became more “all the time” than full-time and kept him constantly on the move, and he’d always dreamed of opening a business of his own.
Luckily his sister was at a similar place in her life.
“We both loved coming up here when we were kids,” he said, even though “there was nothing but barbed wire and cows.”
After talking it over, he and Jane decided to focus on lavender; which begs the question: why lavender? To read more pick up the September 2014 issue of North Texas Farm & Ranch.
By Dal Houston
I am terribly saddened by all the argumentative discourse that seems to be going on in today’s world. It seems as though it is no longer enough just to disagree on certain issues. We are expected to classify someone as an enemy if they do not always agree with us on all issues, lest we be considered weak.
To make things even worse, because those who disagree with you are now considered enemies, the sentiment seems to be that it is only fair and proper to destroy them, because they are the enemy, again with the fear of ridicule for being weak if we do not fight.
With all that said, and seemingly unrelated, I am a big John Wayne fan. From watching him dive into his role as a cowboy, to marveling at his time portraying a soldier or appreciating his acting gig as a sailor, there is seldom a week that goes by without me watching at least one
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Martha Crump
That old adage, “What you don’t know won’t hurt you.,” may have some basis in truth when applied to minor situations. However, when what you don’t know is presented in the form of a “Trojan Horse” and is what amounts to an incredible attempt to fleece American property rights, it becomes a different story altogether.
To put this unbelievable tale together, we need to step back to Joe Biden’s 2021 Executive Order which pledged commitment to help restore balance on public lands and waters, to create jobs, and to provide a path to align the management of America’s public lands and waters with our nation’s climate, conservation, and clean energy goals.
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Lacey Vilhauer
Ingredients:
1 whole lemon, seeded and roughly chopped
2 cups sugar
2 pounds strawberries, hulled
Juice of 1 to 2 lemons
¼ cup water
Directions:
Place the chopped lemon and sugar in a food processor and pulse until combined. Transfer to a large bowl. Puree the strawberries in a food processor and add to the lemon mixture along with juice of one lemon and water. Taste and add more juice as desired.
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
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