Meet The Family Growing 6,000 Pounds Of Food A Year In Their L.A. Backyard

From the street, the Dervaes family home in Pasadena, Calif., about a 30-minute drive from Los Angeles, resembles most others on its suburban block. But a quick peek around the corner reveals a backyard brimming with plots of fruits, veggies, and a rogue chicken or two.

Patriarch Jules began developing the farm 30 years ago in an effort to take back ownership over his food and develop a deeper environmental consciousness.

During peak years, the backyard farm can house up to 400 plant varieties, but factors like drought, urban wildlife, and shadows from neighboring trees and homes make this number fluctuate.

The family has taken the challenges of suburban farming in stride and leaned on nature to correct what they cannot.

"It’s a challenge to grow things organically," Jules told mindbodygreen in an email. "Sometimes we just have to let nature be, and if the crops are too infested, we’ll just pull out the crop and plant another batch."

In inviting the community to take part in their journey, they hope to show others that connecting to nature doesn't have to be hard. Heck, you don't even have to leave your home to do it.

The knowledge that they're pioneering a new agricultural movement that nixes the bigger is better mentality, along with the anticipation of biting into that first peach or tomato of the season, keeps them going through long harvest hours.