DevaSprouts Farms

10/24/2026

🌱 Arkansas Funding Opportunity!

The Arkansas Community Foundation has announced the $10 million Arkansas Full Table Fund to support efforts to address food insecurity across the state.

Food insecurity is about more than just growing food. It’s also about:

🥬 Helping families access fresh, affordable food
🍎 Connecting families with food resources
🌱 Creating partnerships with local farmers
🤝 Finding ways to make food programs sustainable

If you’re a nonprofit or community organization doing this work, this is an opportunity worth exploring!

And don’t overlook the role local farmers can play in these efforts. Beyond growing food, we can help with education, program planning, and developing partnerships that support long-term food access.

As both an urban farmer and public health professional, this is the kind of work I’m excited to see more of in our communities.

📅 Applications close December 7, 2026.

ATTENTION NONPROFITS!

We are now accepting applications for the Arkansas Full Table Fund Grant Cycle!

The Arkansas Full Table Fund supports solutions that help every Arkansan get the food they need. Deadline to apply is December 7.

Learn more and start your application online today by visiting: arcf.org/fulltable

10/23/2026

We spent our morning at the pumpkin patch today! 🎃

Let’s talk a little about agritourism!

Agritourism is another way farmers can generate income by inviting people onto their farms for different experiences.

🎃 Pumpkin patches and corn mazes
🍓 U-pick fruits and vegetables
🌱 Farm tours and educational activities
🐓 Animal encounters and other farm experiences

Not only does this create additional income opportunities for farmers, but it also gives families a chance to connect with agriculture in a fun way.

Just a little farm education from our morning adventure! 🎃

10/23/2026

One thing about Vani, she’s going to find her way into my garden! 😂

We finally got our new raised bed planted, and of course she had to come check everything out.

One of the things I love most about gardening with her is watching her curiosity grow. She’s always asking questions, wanting to help, and trying to figure out what’s going on.

For me, teaching children to garden goes far beyond showing them where their food comes from. It’s also about giving them space to explore, try new things, be patient, and learn through their own experiences.

And sometimes that means just letting them be kids and enjoy the garden. ❤️

10/22/2026

🌱 Don't forget to join the Farm to CACFP Social Media Challenge! There’s still time to get involved. 🥕

Share how you’re celebrating local foods, incorporating fresh ingredients into meals or bringing Farm to CACFP activities to life. Don’t forget to tag the National CACFP Association so we can see how you’re rooting for local foods!

Get inspired and join the fun at farmtocacfpweek.org.

10/22/2026

Apparently my pepper plants didn’t get the memo that we’re in fall! 😂

It’s almost November here in Arkansas, and they’re still producing!

I’m going to let them keep doing their thing for as long as the weather allows.

Anybody else still getting peppers out of their garden?

10/20/2026

🍠 What Happened to Our Sweet Potatoes?! 👀

This was definitely NOT the harvest I was expecting!

If your sweet potatoes are growing long, skinny, or oddly shaped, here are 3 possible reasons and what you can do differently!

💧 1. Inconsistent Watering
Grow bags dry out quickly, especially during our hot Arkansas summers.

✅ Try this: Check your soil regularly and keep it consistently moist, but not soaking wet.

🌱 2. Overcrowding
Planting too many sweet potato slips in one grow bag means they’re competing for space, water, and nutrients.

✅ Try this: Use a larger grow bag or plant fewer slips so the sweet potatoes have room to grow.

🪴 3. Packed-Down Soil
Sweet potatoes need loose soil to grow and expand.

✅ Try this: Use loose, well-draining soil and avoid packing it down too tightly.

So, what happened with mine? I’m pretty sure it was a combination of inconsistent watering and putting too many plants in one grow bag. Lesson learned!

And the good news? The harvest didn’t go to waste. My chickens enjoyed the vines and a few of these little sweet potatoes! 🐓

Have you ever had a sweet potato harvest turn out like this?

We Teach. We Grow. We Farm. 🫶🏽

10/18/2026

10/16/2026

I am a farmer. 🧑🏾‍🌾

And for me, farming has always been about more than growing food. It’s about what we can teach, who we can reach, and the impact we can make in our communities.

That’s why Arkansas’s first Farm to Early Care and Education Week means so much to me. We have an opportunity to introduce our youngest learners to agriculture, help them understand where their food comes from, and show them just how important farmers are.

A huge shoutout to Arkansas Farm-to-Early Care and Education and Curricula Concepts, Inc. for bringing attention to this work and for everything they’re doing to connect farming with early childhood education!

And to my fellow Arkansas farmers, I’m calling on y’all! Whether you grow in your backyard or farm hundreds of acres, you have something valuable to share with the next generation.

If you’re interested in getting involved and making an impact on our little ones, reach out! I’d love to help get you connected.

This work is bigger than one week, and I want to see it continue growing across Arkansas!

We Teach. We Grow. We Farm. 🫶🏽

10/16/2026

One thing I’ve been thinking about this week as we talk about connecting our little ones to farming and healthy foods is the role we play as parents.

When I go into classrooms and teach children about growing food and trying different vegetables, I often wonder how much of that carries over at home.

Here’s a perfect example. Vani eats broccoli. Why? Because I eat broccoli! 🥦

Now, I’m not saying children are going to like everything we eat. But sometimes we say, “Oh, my child doesn’t eat that,” when we haven’t really given them a chance to try it.

And that brings me to a bigger question. We can teach children about healthy foods all day long, but how do we get the whole family involved?

Are we trying new foods with our children? Are we letting them see us eat different things?

I’m curious to hear from other parents. What’s one food your child started eating because they saw YOU eating it?

We Teach. We Grow. We Farm. 🫶🏽

10/16/2026

One thing about gardening, it’s ALWAYS something! 😂🌱

Just because your raised bed is filled doesn’t mean it’s ready for planting!

A few things to keep in mind when preparing raised beds:

🌱 Organic matter generates heat as it decomposes. Materials like leaves and compost can create heat as microorganisms break them down.

🌱 Check your soil temperature. Active composting can reach 130–160°F, which is too hot for young plant roots.

🌱 Be mindful of what you’re adding. Use finished compost and make sure you have enough growing soil for your vegetables.

🌱 Don’t rush to plant. If your bed is heating up, figure out what’s causing it and let temperatures stabilize before planting.

As for us, we’re holding off on planting while we monitor the temperature and get this bed ready for our fall veggies!

Even experienced gardeners are still learning! 😂

Have y’all ever experienced this before?

We Teach. We Grow. We Farm. 🫶🏽