CHARLOTTE, N.C. — According to NASA, July measured to be the hottest month on record since the 1880s with reports predicting that 2024 could be hotter than this year. The change in climate leaves many industries finding new ways to stay ahead, this includes one farm in Charlotte that has changed practices to keep up with the changing temperatures. 

Hodges Family Farm is one of the oldest farms in Charlotte, working against time to keep business going.

“This farm is a century farm. In fact, the main farmhouse was built in 1908 or finished in 1908. My great-grandfather built that,” Farm Manager Connor Newman said.

The farm thrived in the dairy business until the 1990s and eventually switched into agri-tourism, growing pumpkins for the annual pumpkin patch.

“Now the next evolution that we’re at now is regenerative farming with pastured proteins and, you know, eggs, pork, beef, chicken, that kind of thing,” Newman said.

Newman took over the farm in 2015 and said the secret to longevity has always been diversity, especially in the challenges they face.

“We don’t just put all our eggs in one basket, so to speak,” Newman said. “You know, we’re doing beef, pork, chicken, eggs, weddings. We have obstacle course races out here. We do corporate events. We do a little bit of everything, and that kind of keeps us from impacting any one spot on the farm too much.”

The diversity is also seen in the way they grow their crops, with rising temperatures and changing climates affecting the cost and need for irrigation. Instead, the farm has switched to regenerative soil practices in the fields, a technique that minimizes soil disturbance.

“The idea there is nature does not have mono-crops. So we have lots of diversity and this does many things, including conserving water,” Newman said. “For every 1% increase in organic matter, just in the top 6 inches of this soil, we will save 18,000 gallons of water per acre. Our soil in this field is sitting at about five 5% organic matter, which is close to ideal.”

These practices have also been changing the way their cattle graze in a more cost-effective manner.

“Since we’ve kind of gotten on to the regenerative path, things that would normally be considered weeds, my grandfather would have sprayed for those, but the cows will eat them. This gives them a much more diverse diet, and it cuts out spraying in the fields and things like that. So we manage our pastures differently,” Newman said.

With each challenge the century farm comes across, Newman says it’s all about keeping the legacy going.

“Sometimes it’s a lot of pressure, and some days I wake up going, ‘Why am I doing this?’ But by the end of every day, it’s very rewarding. It’s a great honor that the family trusts me enough with such a valuable piece of land and such a valuable position,” Newman said.