is a family-owned and family-operated farm with a community focus. It is run by Megan and Lalo Allen-Lazaro, along with their three children (who like to be involved). Megan began farming in 2003, while studying sociology and economics at Vassar College. Lalo grew up on a diverse dairy farm that also raised corn and vegetable crops. His interest in farming was renewed when he met Megan in 2005 in Poughkeepsie, NY – at a bakery, of all places. Megan and Lalo started Care of the Earth Community Farm in 2009. Megan was born born and raised in Knoxville.

At Care of the Earth Community Farm, we seek to cherish and renew the earth by adhering to and going beyond national organic standards (we are certified organic by Oregon Tilth Organic Certifiers and Certified Real Organic). Our mission is to provide both fresh, healthy, seasonal, nutritious vegetables and Certified Organic, regionally-adapted, local seed to members of our community as well as a relationship with the people and place that grow those seeds and vegetables. We also hope to teach others who have a sincere and active interest in learning about our farm through workshops, field days, and long-term education projects.

From 2009-2022, we operated a 42-week CSA for 80-100 families in the Knoxville-area and grew seed on contract before turning our focus to producing locally-adapted seed in 2022. We are some of the only independent farmers in the Southeast adapting Certified Organic, open-pollinated, heirloom, and open-source seed to our uniquely difficult climate and breeding disease-resistant, open-pollinated varieties selected specifically for this region. By focusing on local seed production, we hope to help turn the tide against corporate, patented seed that ignores our region’s (changing) climate, reduces the viability of regional farms, and takes away the right of ordinary people to save their own seed.

At Care of the Earth, we do three important things for the local food system, in addition to providing healthy food: (1) we conduct both funded and unfunded trials to identify varieties that do well in our climatic conditions; (2) we adapt existing varieties to our region by growing and selecting these varieties at our farm season after season, without irrigation, adapting them to our conditions and our changing climate; and (3) we breed new varieties on our farm using traditional breeding methods that are insect and disease resistant and that thrive here using Certified Organic, low-input, regenerative methods. That means that the varieties we offer through our seed company, 3 Pajaritos Seed, will thrive here in East TN and other areas of Southern Appalachia!