by Martha Rose Woodward
There is a slice of heaven located a few miles outside the city limits of Maryville, Tennessee known as Butler Farm. From the plowed fields of red, Tennessee soil to the Colonial-style white farm house, Butler Farm is the kind of place starry-eyed boys and girls dream about when they are hoping to grow up to be farmers.
The acres of rolling fields nestled in sight of the Great Smoky Mountains contain bountiful crops of corn, cantaloupe, watermelon, squash, zucchini, tomato, cucumber, green beans, okra, and more. The fresh food is available for purchase at the produce stand the Butler’s began over eighteen years ago. Business is brisk as people stop by on their way traveling home from work or while they are doing errands.
Donna Butler says she didn’t know anything about farming when she married her husband, James. “I have learned as I went along,“ she said as she sorted a basket of tomatoes.
Farming is a difficult life, but a life she loves. “There is always something to do,” she said, as she stops to tell her husband that an order just came in for a carton of watermelon.
“He’s going to have to pick 60 melons before 3 p.m. today,“ she said. “We are never caught up. It is a dawn to dusk kind of life, but we love it,” she said.
Donna Butler is always available to give suggestions on how to cook the various fruits and vegetables or to talk to neighbors. She has written a cookbook that contains her favorite recipes and cooking tips. She has also raised a daughter who is in college.
Call 865 984 8435 or visit at 2732 Taylor Road
