My Dad, Doug Harford, was a farmer. He was also an adventurer, pioneer, innovator, entrepreneur, mentor, family man… the list goes on. But when he met new people and introduced himself, he would simply say, “Hi I’m Doug, I’m a farmer.” Such a simple introduction, but there is nothing simple about being a “farmer” or about being my Dad.

Dad passed away a few weeks ago leaving us with a legacy too big to capture with words. As the 5th generation on our family farm, my Dad inspired Jamie & I to start Spring Grove Nursery 21 years ago. Along with my siblings and my Mom guiding the way, our generation is now shaping and nurturing the legacy that we will pass to our kids someday, our 7th generation of farmers. The simple act of “farming” is more than just planting & harvesting a crop. Farmers need faith to plant a seed, resilience to weather a storm, passion to care for the land, and vision to create a legacy. My Dad not only practiced “farming” in his career, but he lived his life by those guiding characteristics. The legacy my Dad cultivated grew far beyond our beautiful Illinois farm. From the farmers across the globe he visited and swapped knowledge with to the countless young adults he mentored on his farm, he planted seeds in every area of his life.

In the farming community near and far, my Dad was a bit of a “rock star”.  After school, Dad enlisted in the Air Force and was a airplane mechanic stationed in Michigan. I was born on the base, and after his time was up in the service my folks moved back to Illinois to take over the family farm from my grandparents. Early on in his farming career, he recognized the importance of drainage to a crop. With no drainage contractors around to tile his fields, he decided to do it himself. He found a tile plow for sale in Iowa and took off to check it out with a few friends. He bought it, hired the crew (Leon & Greg) to go with it, and traveled back home to tell my mom, “Hey I bought the machine and a few guys to run it. They need to stay upstairs tonight!” After tiling all of his fields word got out in the neighborhood, and other farmers started asking him to come drain their fields too. Agri-Tile Systems was born in 1981.

One of his first jobs was for a farmer near Bloomington who had been experimenting with this crazy new concept, no-till farming. Farming history for centuries and especially after the Industrial Revolution, is structured around plowing the soil. No-till farming takes a different approach. The soil is not worked up after the harvest, and in the spring the new crop is planted into the residue of the last year’s crop. This method reduces soil erosion, improves soil structure, increases fertility… and it changed farming in America. When Dad dug into this experimental field and saw the bountiful soil structure undisturbed by equipment and rich in organic matter, he was on board. He went home and converted our entire farm operation to no-till and helped lead this new revolution of soil conservation. As a captivating speaker and passionate innovator, Dad traveled the country talking about his conversion to no-till and sharing his knowledge with other farmers.  He was always consistent though in referencing the vision and the bigger picture. Here is a fascinating article written about my Dad and his early conversion to no-till. I especially like his quote, “If I’m going to be a successful farmer down the road, I need a way to differentiate myself. That is a rule of business. If you are going to be normal, you are going to get normal results.” My Dad was anything but normal. Our family farm now has been in no-till since the early ’80s. When we started the nursery in 1999, we accepted the responsibility of caring for our soil on our piece of the farm. Here are a few great videos of my Dad talking about soil to me and my son, Joey, and the No-Till Farmer article from way back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shortly after Dad’s foray into no-till, he was innovating on the farm again. He was an early adopter of precision farming technology, something that revolutionized agriculture across the globe. Ag tech companies would come to Dad to test out their new products. He traveled the country sharing his expertise and experiences using this new innovation. Dad embraced the new technology, but not just for the gadgets (although he was a lover of gadgets). He consistently questioned and challenged farmers to ask the question, “Why?” Dad is quoted in one magazine as saying, “We have to ask ourselves whether we’re doing the right thing or doing the thing right. This technology helps us do things right. Technology is going to change the way we farm. But technology doesn’t write a business plan and we need to write a new business plan for agriculture, knowing what this technology can do. We have to separate the romance of agriculture from the economics of agriculture.” Dad persisted in thinking outside the box and laying the framework for a bigger picture in agriculture. Dad was asked once in regards to precision ag, “What holds some farmers back?” His reply, “Everybody wants to perceive themselves as pioneers, but they don’t really understand what that means. To be a pioneer you have to think a lot. You have to have a vision. And you have to be willing to risk.” Dad taught me the value in risk.

In the early years of precision farming, I happened to come back into the family farm operation. As Jamie and I started our own family after college, I worked on the farm helping Dad manage the new technology and learn the farm operation. I quickly came to realize I wanted to create my own place in this family farm legacy. Through much guidance, vision, inspiration, and support from my folks – Spring Grove Nursery took our family farm in a new direction when we planted our first crop of trees in 1999. It was a risk, a huge one. And every year we farm, we encounter countless risks. My Dad loved passing on to us the ability to embrace risk, have vision, adapt, and innovate. Here is a bit more about how we got started and Dad’s part in our story:

 

Through the years there have been countless articles written about my Dad. I pulled out a few to highlight ones which I thought really showed his vision. They are well worth the read, trust me. CLICK IMAGE FOR MORE

Besides innovating on the farm with soil conservation and new technologies, Dad let his passions flow through in flying and adventures. He became a private pilot in the early ’80s and quickly embraced his role as a “flying farmer from Mazon.” His desire to explore new places, see a bird’s eye view of things, and inspire others to fly led him on countless adventures. As kids we all grew up flying all over with my Dad. My folks took may adventures together in his Cessna – places like Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Bajamas, Belize, Cuba, Mexico… the list goes on. My Dad loved to fly over the nursery and take pictures for us. Here are a few of my favorite shots:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

His experience in agriculture and desire to share knowledge and travel the world led him on one of his favorite journeys, his years exploring and leading Foods Resource Bank, now called Growing Hope Globally: https://www.growinghopeglobally.org/growing-projects/   Take a little time to read about the work this program is doing. It has evolved a lot over the years and even since Dad was involved, but they are really doing some amazing work in our world.

This unique blend of agriculture, travel, new ideas, sharing, and theology brought together so many of his passions. FRB sought to provide food security to developing rural communities abroad and it brought together farmers in the US with farmers oversees. Dad was most at home when he was talking to farmers – whether in his field here, or in a field in Africa. The relationships and adventures my Dad had through FRB are too much to post here as they span many miles, languages, cultures, and ideas. Through all of those experiences, something always rang true for him though. No matter what country he was in, what language was being spoken, what field he was standing in – he always started the conversation with, “Hi I’m Doug, I’m a farmer.”

My Dad, the flying farmer from Mazon, passed on this amazing legacy to me and my whole family. We cannot fill his shoes or do things like he did. But Dad taught us that isn’t what legacy is all about. As we wake up very morning on our beautiful farm, we are living, working, and raising our families on the same land my Dad tended. The same land generations before him farmed, and generations to come will care for. But legacy is so much more than a piece of land. Legacy embodies the faith, resilience, passion, and vision it takes to a farmer. Whether you are a flying farmer from Mazon,  an innovator, an adventurer, or a tree grower – we all have our part in the legacy my Dad cultivated for us. I hope this story about a farmer, my Dad, will inspire you to plant new ideas, take risks, and look at life from a bird’s eye view.

Peace,

Becky Thomas, August 2020