About High Water Homestead

High Water Homestead is a small, diversified working farm in West Virginia focused on producing real food through regenerative, seasonal systems. We operate our systems on nontraditional farm land, striving for sustainable success, building productive food systems on a hillside homestead that is actively shaped and improved over time.

Our primary goal is to feed our family first from everything we produce, and then share the abundance with our community, while teaching others how to incorporate these practices into their own homes and lifestyles.

We raise animals, grow crops, cultivate herbs, manage soil health, and build water systems with the goal of producing high-quality food while improving the land over time. Our farm follows the natural rhythm of the seasons, and everything we produce reflects that cycle.

At High Water Homestead, we emphasize:

Community building through local food and shared learning
Hands-on, on-farm education rooted in real-life systems
Seasonal living and land stewardship
Practical homesteading and self-sufficiency skills
Building resilient local food systems in West Virginia

We believe farms are not just places of production—they are places of connection, of community building.

As a working homestead and education farm, students and families engage directly with active farm systems, not simulations. Learning happens through meaningful work, real responsibility, and participation in the daily and seasonal rhythms of the farm.

Hands-on learning includes:

Animal care and livestock systems
Gardening in high tunnel and field systems
Seed starting and greenhouse management
Composting and soil building
Vermicomposting (worm systems)
Water catchment and conservation projects
Food harvesting and preservation
Cooking from scratch using farm-grown ingredients

ABOUT THE FARMERS

High Water Homestead is family-owned and operated by Austin Lucas and Shayla Lucas, alongside their children, in Milton, West Virginia.

As a family, we are committed to building a diversified homestead rooted in food production, education, stewardship, and community connection. What began as a desire to grow and raise more of our own food has continued to grow into a working farm, educational space, and community-centered project focused on sharing knowledge and seasonal abundance with others.

Together, we manage the daily operations of the farm, including:

Livestock care
Gardening and greenhouse production
Composting and soil systems
Water catchment projects
Food preservation and processing
Educational programming and farm school development

Our children are an active part of daily farm life and grow alongside the systems we are building. As a family, we believe that hands-on work, shared responsibility, and connection to the land create meaningful opportunities for learning and growth.

High Water Homestead reflects our belief that strong families, strong communities, and strong local food systems are deeply connected.

We are continually learning, building, and adapting our systems with the goal of creating a sustainable and productive homestead on nontraditional farm land while helping others gain confidence in growing food and living more connected to the land.

Learn More About the Farmers

HIGH WATER HOMESTEAD FARM SCHOOL

A core part of our work is our seasonal farm school program for homeschool families.

High Water Homestead Farm School offers small-group, hands-on learning for children ages 5–14 through direct participation in farm life.

Students learn by doing—working alongside real farm systems that produce food, build soil, and support a living homestead.

What Students Experience

Caring for animals such as goats, chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, and bees
Growing food in greenhouse and high tunnel systems
Working with compost and vermicompost systems
Learning water catchment and resource stewardship
Cooking from scratch using farm-harvested ingredients
Participating in seasonal farm rhythms and harvest cycles
Learning how food systems and small farm businesses operate

Students learn through age-appropriate responsibility, participation, and hands-on experience.

Learn more about Farm School

WHAT WE PRODUCE

Animal Products

Chicken eggs
Duck eggs
Goose eggs (limited)
Pasture-raised meat chickens (seasonal)
Rabbit meat (limited seasonal availability)
Goat milk (when in production)
Goat meat
Honey (seasonal harvests)

Crops & Field Production

Seasonal vegetables
High tunnel greens and crops
Greenhouse seedlings and starts
Perennial berries
Orchard fruits (as systems mature)
Cover crops for soil health

Herbs & Plant Products

Culinary herbs
Medicinal herbs
Dried herbal products
Pollinator-supporting plants
Farm-grown ingredients used in seasonal preparations

Mushrooms

Shiitake mushrooms (log cultivation systems)
Expanding mushroom production systems
Fungal integration into soil and compost systems

FARM SYSTEMS

Everything on the farm is part of a connected cycle:

Animal systems support soil fertility
Composting and vermicomposting build rich soil
Crops feed people and animals
Water catchment supports production systems
Waste is recycled into new fertility

Core principle:

Everything on the farm becomes either food, feed, or soil again.

Learn more about Farm Production

WHAT WE SELL

We prioritize feeding our family first from everything we produce on the farm. Once our household needs are met, we share the seasonal abundance with our community.

We sell our excess production seasonally, including:

Eggs (chicken, duck, goose)
Meat chickens
Rabbit meat (limited availability)
Goat milk (when in production)
Goat meat (limited availability)
Honey
Seasonal vegetables
High tunnel greens
Greenhouse starts and seedlings
Perennial berries
Orchard fruits (when in season)
Culinary and medicinal herbs
Dried herbal products
Mushrooms (including shiitake and seasonal varieties)

We sell through The Local Exchange Market in Milton, WV, alongside other local producers working to strengthen our regional food system.

Learn more about the Local Exchange Market