Andy (they/them)
Andy was the main driving force behind starting this project, and is our production coordinator. They can answer most questions about production or niche plant facts, and if they don’t know they’ll make something up.
Being out on the farm amongst all the many plants and other beings and really feeling like they are a part of the ecosystem and serve a productive, positive role is what gets them up in the morning. For them, this work is as much about the joy of the moment as it is about prepping for the existential fear of global food-system collapse.
When they’re not on the farm, Andy enjoys cooking, making pickles and wine, tinkering with electronics, playing the drums, and watching math videos on the internet.
Andy studied Materials Science and Engineering at Lehigh University, which is where they met the rest of The Nuts. Their sophomore year they moved into the “Eco-House”, a sustainability themed community on the outskirts of campus. There, they began a project that grew into the Southside Permaculture Park, an interdisciplinary project focused on climate change and pollution mitigation, urban farming, food access, and community building. By the time Andy graduated, the project had over a dozen students involved getting class credit or a paid summer internship for working on the project.
After graduating, Andy got a traditional engineering job working for Lockheed making bombs. Just kidding! They went to go live in a tent at Hawk Meadow Mushroom Farm in Trumansburg, NY. Hawk Meadow is a magical place that makes really high-quality medicinal mushroom tinctures and maple syrup. Steve and Ann are lovely people and so kind. You can visit Hawk Meadow for a guided tour or spend a night at one of there woodland campsites surrounded by mushrooms!
While living and working at Hawk Meadow, Andy also started helping out Sean and Sasha at Edible Acres. Two more absolutely incredible people, and another great nursery to check out if we don’t have what you’re looking for. A solid chunk of what Andy knows about permaculture and running a nursery came in one way or another from Sean, either by working with him directly or from his awesome YouTube channel.
Once fall started to set in and before it got too cold, Andy moved from Hawk Meadow to Interbrook Farm, where they planted trees to help implement silvopasture systems for the pastured animals. While living there, Andy also worked at the Finger Lakes Cider House as a farmhand, tending to their organic orchards, pick and pressing apples for cider, and helping with greenhouse maintenance.
After a hell of a year in the beautiful Finger Lakes region, due to some unforeseen circumstances, Andy packed up and moved to Providence, Rhode Island, where they now live now with their friends from the EcoHouse. Reunited in a new location, Andy got to work putting their newfound skills into practice, and with the connection made at Revive the Roots, and a little help from their friends, Nuts & Bolts Nursery Co-op was born!