North Texas Farm to Table Symposium | Howard Garrett

February 22nd, 2022

On a very frigid Tuesday night, over a hundred farmers, ranchers, educators, artisans, and local food advocates gathered in the Grand Ballroom to catch up, share a meal, and listen to a presentation from Howard Garrett, the Dirt Doctor. The crowd was full of excitement as old friends greeted each other and caught up over over cocktails as the night began.

Dinner was procured from as many local sources as possible, featuring a crisp green salad from Profound Microfarms and jambalaya prepared with Windy Meadows chicken thighs, Driftwood Meadows andouille sausage, and rice from Barton Springs Mill. The bartenders poured McKinney’s own TUPPS IPA, infused cocktails from Harvest, and Texas wines from Pedernales and nearby Eden Hill Vineyard.

Howard Garrett gave a rousing endorsement of organic gardening and landscape techniques developed over his long career. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in park administration and landscape architecture from Texas Tech University in 1969, but it wasn’t until when his daughter was born in 1985 that Howard became fully committed to using only safe, organic techniques on his lawn and garden. By 1988, his entire career had pivoted to the research, education, and promotion of organic products and practices, eventually writing fifteen books in the process. Through a lengthy slideshow of pictures, Howard illustrated the many successes he has discovered such as brewing cornmeal to apply as a broad-spectrum fungicide and deeply exposing the root flares of trees to heal a variety of diseases. It was a highly educational and inspiring demonstration on the power and value of using all organic techniques.

You can tune into The Dirt Doctor’s nationally syndicated radio show every Sunday on KSKY 660AM from 8-11am (or listen here!). Stay tuned to hear who our next Symposium speaker will be this fall.