About Us
Our Mission
Piedmont Organics is dedicated to growing and providing herbs using organic, regenerative methods that build soil fertility and produce healthy plants. Our commitment to choosing environmentally sustainable agriculture allows our farm the opportunity to make a positive impact.
Our Methods
Our plants are irrigated by natural spring water we are fortunate enough to have on the farm. These springs are essentially the headwaters for the Goose Creek Watershed.
We have chosen to grow all our crops and gardens on a small scale without the use of plastics and intensive tilling or use of chemical fertilizers or herbicides or pesticides. When plants are healthy these inputs are not necessary.
Our Story
Piedmont Organic Farm was established in 1999 as a USDA certified organic CSA. In 2010 we transitioned from a CSA to focus on more perennial herbs and fruit such as blueberries, blackberries, elderberries, nettles, comfrey, and echinacea to name a few.
We began working with hemp on a small scale when Virginia opened the opportunity to grow it. Our hemp crop has been a great addition to our farm along with all our other annual vegetables and flowers.
The 220-acre farm located in Linden, VA, is mostly wooded with rolling fields full of milkweed for the monarchs. We farm for biodiversity, which ensures the land has abundant wildlife and pollinators.
Owner, Susan Leopold, PhD., is an ethnobotanist and passionate defender of biodiversity. Over the past 20 years, Susan has worked extensively with indigenous peoples in Peru and Costa Rica. She is the Executive Director of United Plant Savers [unitedplantsavers.org] and the Center for Medicinal Plant Conservation in Rutland, OH. Prior to working at United Plant Savers, she was a rare botanical book librarian at the Oak Spring Garden Library, specializing in digitizing rare herbals and botanical travel manuscripts. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for Botanical Dimensions [botanicaldimensions.org] and the Center for Sustainable Economy [sustainable-economy.org].