Full Name
Nicolas Donck
Title
Owner/Operator
Business or Org Name
Crystal Organic Farm
Speaker Bio
Crystal Organic Farm is a staple of small scale organic agriculture in Georgia. Ask Atlanta’s best chefs, growers and any of the 15+ year Crystal employees about Belgium native, Farmer Nicolas Donck, and they’ll sing his praises. His quartz crystal producing property in Newborn Georgia was one of the first in the state to receive organic certification over 30 years ago. This extensive tenure along with its atypical roots that span two continents have led Crystal to an influential role within Georgia’s food community. In addition to introducing new vegetable varieties to the Atlanta market and implementing unconventional growing techniques, the farm embraces a highly medicinal view of food.
During the late 1970’s the Donck family immigrated to the United States where Nicolas and his siblings went to high school and college. After completing his degree in International Business at the University of Georgia, Nicolas tried his hand at the import-export business but soon had to take another job waiting tables at Eat Your Vegetables (now The Vortex) in Little Five Points. It was around this time when a friend asked him what he wanted to do. “I didn’t know, and out of nowhere I said, ‘Eventually, I’d like to have a farm’. It truly came out of my subconscious and a little light bulb went off in my head.” recalls Nicolas. So in 1993 he started cleaning up his mother’s land that had fallen into disrepair and got to work building Crystal Organic Farm.
Crystal Organic Farm was started as a certified organic farm in 1993, making it one of the largest and oldest certified organic farms in the region. The farm is located on 175 acres of pristine creeks, pastures and hardwood forests in Newborn, GA where they specialize in vegetable, fruit, flower and medicinal herb production.
At Crystal Organic Farm, we use make a conscious effort to add essential trace minerals back into our soil using compost tea full of micro-organisms, vitamins and minerals. We recognize that growing healthy soil is the basis for growing nutrient dense food. In addition, instead of relying on organic approved pesticides and insecticides, we opt for nettle/comfrey tea to treat and prevent disease or flower essence blends to help transplanted seedlings adapt. For pest control we employ beneficial nematodes and use companion planting techniques. Other methods such as crop rotation and solarizing the soil are used to control weeds and disease while slow shallow tilling helps preserve precious top soil and the beneficial insects living within those layers. The farm strives to create zero food waste, so excess food (that cannot be donated) is fed to the chickens or composted.
Nicolas was a founding member of Morningside Farmers Market in Atlanta, GA in 1995. After 25 years, they left the market to create The Online Farm Store, the first of its kind in the area, to better serve their local community with organic vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs plus products from surrounding farmers and artisans. In addition, Crystal Organic Farm is one of the top producers for wildly successful companies like Fresh Harvest and local meal kit service, Garnish and Gather.
The farm is a participant in the Natural Resources Conservation Service and is involved with numerous university crop studies around the Southeast as well as growing heirloom seeds for saving with companies such as Anson Mills.
Crystal Organic Farm continues to be on the forefront of the organic farming movement, and they are proud to be active members of The Real Organic Project and Georgia Organics. In addition, the farm was recently accepted into the United Plant Savers Botanical Sanctuary Network.
Nicolas Donck is the Owner/Operator of Crystal Organic Farm for 31 years, teaches at yearly farming conferences, has traveled the world to volunteer and teach farmers organic techniques in underserved countries and consults with new or existing farm businesses around the country.
During the late 1970’s the Donck family immigrated to the United States where Nicolas and his siblings went to high school and college. After completing his degree in International Business at the University of Georgia, Nicolas tried his hand at the import-export business but soon had to take another job waiting tables at Eat Your Vegetables (now The Vortex) in Little Five Points. It was around this time when a friend asked him what he wanted to do. “I didn’t know, and out of nowhere I said, ‘Eventually, I’d like to have a farm’. It truly came out of my subconscious and a little light bulb went off in my head.” recalls Nicolas. So in 1993 he started cleaning up his mother’s land that had fallen into disrepair and got to work building Crystal Organic Farm.
Crystal Organic Farm was started as a certified organic farm in 1993, making it one of the largest and oldest certified organic farms in the region. The farm is located on 175 acres of pristine creeks, pastures and hardwood forests in Newborn, GA where they specialize in vegetable, fruit, flower and medicinal herb production.
At Crystal Organic Farm, we use make a conscious effort to add essential trace minerals back into our soil using compost tea full of micro-organisms, vitamins and minerals. We recognize that growing healthy soil is the basis for growing nutrient dense food. In addition, instead of relying on organic approved pesticides and insecticides, we opt for nettle/comfrey tea to treat and prevent disease or flower essence blends to help transplanted seedlings adapt. For pest control we employ beneficial nematodes and use companion planting techniques. Other methods such as crop rotation and solarizing the soil are used to control weeds and disease while slow shallow tilling helps preserve precious top soil and the beneficial insects living within those layers. The farm strives to create zero food waste, so excess food (that cannot be donated) is fed to the chickens or composted.
Nicolas was a founding member of Morningside Farmers Market in Atlanta, GA in 1995. After 25 years, they left the market to create The Online Farm Store, the first of its kind in the area, to better serve their local community with organic vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs plus products from surrounding farmers and artisans. In addition, Crystal Organic Farm is one of the top producers for wildly successful companies like Fresh Harvest and local meal kit service, Garnish and Gather.
The farm is a participant in the Natural Resources Conservation Service and is involved with numerous university crop studies around the Southeast as well as growing heirloom seeds for saving with companies such as Anson Mills.
Crystal Organic Farm continues to be on the forefront of the organic farming movement, and they are proud to be active members of The Real Organic Project and Georgia Organics. In addition, the farm was recently accepted into the United Plant Savers Botanical Sanctuary Network.
Nicolas Donck is the Owner/Operator of Crystal Organic Farm for 31 years, teaches at yearly farming conferences, has traveled the world to volunteer and teach farmers organic techniques in underserved countries and consults with new or existing farm businesses around the country.
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