You've found friends here on our Farm...

Living a Simple Life isn't for wimps!

Maybe you've found, like we did, that voluntarily simplifying your life has it's challenges. Here you will find personal stories of triumph, joy, humor, and sadness. Real life experiences, information, & resources about things we've learned, some of it the hard way. We had very little cash, but a true desire to change the direction our lives were headed. We had loads of creativity, only 24 hours in each day, and most importantly, tenacity & gumption. We're a scrappy bunch.

We're a home schooling family living a very simple life in the Appalachian Mountains of east Tennessee. This life has taught us so much, but we still have so much more to learn. Won't you visit with us often and let's share our simple lives, together.

From the beach to the mountains...

We moved here in 1999 from the coast of North Carolina, escaping job stress and a beach house that our family of 5 outgrew. With two small children and Ed's mother who suffered a debilitating illness and needed continual care, we were ready to try something different.

We'd always gardened, had a few domesticated pets like cats, dogs, rabbits, hermit crabs and fish. Our beach neighbors were just over the fence, the grocery store right down the street. The wild animals were limited to raccoons and possums, a few snakes, and of course, beach critters, like ghost crabs and an occasional alligator.

What would it be like to move to the wilderness of the Appalachian mountains where black bear appeared in your backyard and your nearest neighbor was 1/4 mile away?

With a true pioneer spirit and an occasional 25 mile trip to town for supplies, we renovated, invented, created, and transformed the Tennessee life into our home.

After a few years, we adopted children so we could share the blessings we'd been given, and more challenges appeared. Life has been tough but interesting and, oh so rewarding!

Are you looking for what we found?

Although our life is simple, it’s not easy, and it's very busy.

If you're looking for a way to slow down and gain more quality from the hours in your day, then visit our simple life at Blackberry Blossom. This was our goal too. What we'd like to offer you is a place to find all of the stuff we learned on this journey without having to research it for years, and through hundreds of resources, like we did.

As our site progresses, you'll find all of the information below:

Organic Farming

Native and Medicinal plants

Composting & Propagation

Healthy Living

Family Tent Camping

Tent Camping Tips

Camping, Farm & Canning Recipes

Handmade Quilt making

Nature & Twig Craft

Adoption and Parenting Challenging Children

Practical Homeschooling

Woodworking & Boat Building and more…

Our website is just beginning, come back often as we share our simple life and add new pages.

Stay tuned... this will be very interesting!

Blackberry Blossom Farm Blog There's always something new and exciting going on at Blackberry Blossom Farm. Seeds sprouting, compass garden construction, campground building and more!

contact Us Contact Us at Blackberry Blossom Farm & Campground

Farm at Blackberry Blossom Visit our farm to see how we grow organically, build soil through composting, pest managment practices for flowers, berries, vegetables and native plants.

Blackberry U-Pick Blackberry season starts around the last week of July and goes through August. Sweet, organic, perfect for eating fresh or freezing for later cobblers and pies. Come to Blackberry Blossom Farm soon!

Compass Garden Our Compass Garden is a unique series of circular raised bed gardens with pathways at the four compass points. We garden organically and plant with companion plants.

Planting Raspberries Planting Raspberries our way at Blackberry Blossom Farm and Campground. We'll share what techniques we've learned, farming organically in the mountains of Tennessee. Delicious, sweet and healthy.

Seed Starting Seed Starting at Blackberry Blossom Farm, See how we make custom organic seed starting medium and make soil blocks to start seeds in. Easy, simple, inexpensive. Visit our simple farm life.

plant propagation Plant Propagation can be done several ways. This is how we do it.

Composting Composting provides a key element in our Nursery Plant Mix. This is how we make it.

controlling weeds Controlling weeds is a constant challenge on a farm. We do it naturally, organically, and simply

pest control Pest Control on a farm can be a real booger. There are several ways to deal with them. We try to do it simply.

Our Irrigation System -Simply Gravity Our irrigation system is simplicity itself.

Farm Equipment We Use We don't use the same farm equipment as most folks. Toy Tractors and Homemade Gadgets

Homemade Farm Equipment Homemade farm equipment inventions and modifications for small organic farm use at Blackberry Blossom Farm.

Phenology Phenology - The study of physiological time or How all the Pieces Parts Fit

Native plants of east Tennessee Native plants of east Tennessee mountains, rare orchids on our campsite trails which lead to the Cherokee National Forest, environmental educational programs led by amateur naturalists. Simple life

Blackberry Blossom Campground Our Campground will be offering family tent sites focusing on fun for all ages

Crafts Crafts at Blackberry Blossom Farm, Handmade Quilts, Twig Crafts and Furniture, Willow Arbors and Trellises, Hand Dipped Candles, Farm Made Soap

Making Prayer Quilts Prayer Quilts are a beautiful, free ministry of making and giving a quilt to someone in need. The need may be any crisis that prayer is called for. Here is how our family makes them by hand.

beach art Arts and Crafts with a beachy theme, created while living simply in the TN. mts on our Blackberry Farm. Colorful, fun beach art, hand painted artware, floorcloths, furniture, and more!

Privacy Policy How we responsibly handle any personal information that arrives via our website