Our Story

Figure Eight Forest Farm is a 15 acre agroforestry farm focused on cultivating trees, herbs, tea and vegetables to produce both raw produce and an assortment of value-added products. Zack and Shelley Koontz started the farm in 2023 with a vision to build a sustainable farm business that put ecology and a sound land ethic first. The result of this marriage of values is a lush biodiverse ecosystem possessing enough fertility to support the growth of many crops, native plants and wildlife species.

Like the South Yadkin River that runs by the property, the farm was formed by listening and adapting to local environmental conditions, finding the best path towards equilibrium. We select adapted, mostly native plant varieties, manage our floodplain with best conservation practices and plan for both food and community resilience. Utilizing regenerative farming methods such as alley cropping, no-till, crop rotation and rotational grazing, we are able to commit to organic practices and do our part to build a sustainable soil food web for our customers & community.

We firmly believe that reclaiming the power to grow your own food is one of the most impactful ways to make real change and repair what we see as a broken relationship with Nature. In this polarized political climate, seeing the world as it is and responding accordingly is sometimes regarded as a radical notion. If so, we fully embrace radical change and see it as our mission to bring about the vision we have for a more environmentally just, equitable agriculture.

Please join us in this ever-evolving learning experience and thank you for your continued support!