Like many people, James Andersch’s life was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, unlike most, the epidemic led him to start a hemp farm, Destiny Botanicals, in Mancos.
“I moved out here from Salt Lake City,” he said. “I ran a courier company out there for 17 years, and it got wrecked by COVID, so I was free to do whatever I wanted. So I was like, ‘Well, what do I really want to do? I want to be a farmer.’”
Andersch said he found a place in the mountains near Mancos after looking at about 50 places around the Durango area, and began growing hemp in 2022.
“I grow organically and sustainably with ducks as my helpers out in the field,” he said.
According to Destiny Botanical’s website, the ducks are a natural form of pest control and they prune the hemp plants.
Since 2022, Andersch has diversified the range of what he grows on the farm, he said. He began growing indoor gourmet mushrooms year-round about a year and a half ago, and has added flowers, fruits, vegetables, honey and medicinal mushrooms to the mix.
His mushrooms, CBD tinctures and cosmetics, tomatoes, peppers and honey are available at the Durango Farmers Market, he said. The mushrooms – including lion’s mane, shiitake and pink and blue oysters – can also be found at the P & D Grocery and Zuma Natural Foods in Mancos and Dolores Food Market. Andersch also sells the CBD products on his website, destinybotanicalgardens.com.
His newest product, he said, is a lion’s mane mushroom-infused with honey.
ngonzales@durangoherald.com
