![\"farmer-jones-family\"](\"http:\/\/www.raisingjane.org\/journal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/farmer-jones-family.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThirty years ago, Bob Sr. and his two sons grew soybeans and corn, like many of their Midwest neighbors. They also had a market garden, selling their produce from a farm stand at their home and at Cleveland-area farmers\u2019 markets. But in 1983, a severe hailstorm resulted in a crop failure that forced them to rethink their futures. Enter a chef interested in buying squash blossoms for his restaurant, and a new definition of their family farm was born. They decided to tailor their crops to the budding artisanal farm-to-table restaurant movement. A world of micro greens, micro herbs, heirloom vegetables, specialty lettuces, and edible flowers blossomed\u2014grown without chemicals, using sustainable farming practices\u2014at The Chef’s Garden (Chefs-Garden.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n \u201cWhile farming at The Chef\u2019s Garden has evolved \u2018back in time,\u2019 using methods employed by our great-grandfathers, innovation and new product development help us remain the leading grower of artisanal produce in the nation,\u201d says patriarch Bob.<\/p>\n They now offer 600 varieties of specialty and heirloom vegetables, herbs, micro greens, and edible flowers to thousands of chefs around the world. “We can’t compete on the commodity market,” says farm spokesman\u00a0Lee, who\u00a0sports his signature red bow tie,\u00a0“But we offer eight stages of bok choy, from micro greens to flowers to petite and baby varieties. Every stage of a plant’s life offers something unique to the plate.\u201d<\/p>\n The farm also now proudly includes a culinary retreat, research, and team-building facility, The Culinary Vegetable Institute, and Veggie U, a nationwide not-for-profit children’s program.<\/p>\n But you don\u2019t have to be a chef to get these unique specialty veggies. They also offer CSA selections through their\u00a0FarmerJonesFarm <\/a>website, shipped direct to your door three days a week (a 6-month subscription gets you 8-10 lbs of their unique vegetables for just $27\/month). You don\u2019t even have to have a subscription\u2014you can order just one box at a time, or even specialty\u00a0\u201cadd-ons\u201d like golden pea tendrils and popcorn shoots.<\/p>\n The next time you see a “typical” farmer, don’t judge that book by its cover\u2014the contents might surprise you.<\/p>\n \t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Farmers Bob, Lee, and Bobby Jones (clockwise, below) might fit your image of\u00a0a Midwest farmer, but there\u2019s nothing typical about their Huron, Ohio, farm, just a few miles outside Cleveland. Thirty years ago, Bob Sr. and his two sons grew … Continue reading <\/p>\n<\/p>\n