For Monica Carroll, growing produce is just about the perfect job–not an easy job, but one that’s rewarding financially and in other ways she can’t put a price on.She and her husband, Chris, are best known for producing of some of the finest beef cattle around. The Dale County couple also owns and operates a successful poultry farm. So when Monica wanted to start a produce business last year, Chris was supportive, but a little skeptical.”It made perfect sense to me,” Monica said. “We had the land, we had the equipment, and who doesn’t like fresh produce? I knew we could do it, but I also knew we had a lot to learn.”And they have, but their success story hasn’t been without its trials. It took some innovative thinking on the Carrolls’ part to make it work.”We wanted to diversify our farm,” Monica said of their decision to grow produce. “We needed to try to find a way to make more income from the farm and do something that would still allow us to be together as a family.”So in January of last year and again this year, they planted thousands of tiny seeds in a greenhouse near their home. “Quality plants begin with quality seeds,” said Monica, who takes special care of the tiny plants that will grow to feed hundreds of families this summer. About every two weeks, she plants more and different seeds that will provide their farm with the variety that shoppers love and a longer harvest season that keeps them coming back.The Carrolls’ most popular crops are peas, tomatoes and corn, but they also grow yellow squash, zucchini, eggplant, peppers and potatoes. They increased their produce acreage from 15 acres last year to 22 acres this year.Most of the marketing for the produce is left up to Monica. Chris still prefers cows to produce, but he helps out just the same.”When we first started last year, I didn’t really know much about marketing what we grew,” Monica recalled. “With produce, a little (amount of acreage) goes a long way. We had to find what was right for us.”On Tuesdays and Fridays, Monica can often be found at the Coffee County Farmers Market in nearby Enterprise where shoppers brag about how beautiful the Carrolls’ vegetables are. But customers get more than just fresh vegetables, they can also get free recipes when they buy Carrolls’ Farm Fresh Produce.”Especially early in the year, there isn’t as much variety available, so you try to make the most of what you have,” Monica said. “So, I make recipe cards with new and different recipes for what we have to offer. Maybe someone who has never baked a squash casserole or zucchini bread would give it a try if they had fresh ingredients and an easy recipe.”In addition to selling at farmers markets, the Carrolls have their own produce stand near their home, only a few feet from where a bounty of vegetables is growing.”People love to come to the farm and buy produce,” Monica said. “Lots of times they’ll see us picking, and it seems to make them want even more. We try to offer a variety of items plus honey that was produced on the farm.”Monica rents several hives from a local beekeeper, Elizabeth Whitaker, to help pollinate her crops. She then purchases the honey from Whitaker and sells it at their produce stand.”I believe in the bees,” Monica said. “It’s recommended that you have one hive per acre, and last year I stretched it sort of thin by using one hive for every three acres. This year, we used more bees, and we’ve doubled our yields on the early crops. It was amazing the difference it makes.”The third market Monica has developed is a local cafe that prefers the Carrolls’ vegetables over those purchased from a wholesale warehouse.”Mine cost just a little more for the restaurant to buy, but they know they are getting fresher, better-tasting ingredients, and our produce has a longer shelf life,” Monica said.The Carrolls also have 10 acres of watermelons, which should be harvested in July, that will be sold to wholesale distributors.One of the easiest mistakes that newcomers to the produce business can make is planting too much. Monica said it’s especially easy for some traditional row crop farmers to plant more than they can look after.”This is an intensive operation that requires a lot of attention on a small amount of space,” she said. “It’s hard for some farmers to think big on a small tract of land.”Perhaps the largest challenge the Carrolls faced with their produce farm was finding reliable labor to help tend and harvest the crops.”With produce, you have to harvest it when it’s ready,” Monica said. “If you don’t, you’ll lose quality, and if you don’t have quality, you’re losing money.”The Carrolls’ children, Brittany, 4, and Blake, 3, love to help on the farm where they can. Blake likes being outside and enjoys pulling beans from the stalks. Brittany, a curly-haired bundle of energy, drags a basket down the row behind her mother as they gather squash and peas. They’re smiling and talking all the while.”I think it’s a great way for us to raise our family,” Monica said with a grin that shows her thoughts are genuine. “It’s tough sometimes when it’s hot, but we manage, and we’re working together. So long as we’re together, that’s the important thing.”I’d like to see us plant more acres of produce in the next few years,” she said. “I’d like to grow enough food to feed everybody in Dale County.”The recently launched “Buy Fresh, Buy Local” campaign should only help farmers like the Carrolls, according to Monica.”That message really tells it all,” she said. “If you want fresh, then you need to buy it from a local farmer.”