why

quarter acre and a mule

Named in reference to the broken promise of "40 acres and a mule" once offered to freed Black Americans during Reconstruction, this farm is a modern-day response rooted in resilience. With just a quarter acre and a wheelbarrow painted “Mule,” Perdita Butler is building something powerful, a community-based farm that challenges food inequity and shows what's possible, even on a small scale.

Perdita

butler

Perdita Butler is an experienced urban agriculturalist and farmer whose journey in agriculture dates back to 1995. She holds multiple degrees that have shaped her career, including a B.A. in Geology from Carleton College and degrees in Biology and Secondary Education from Metropolitan State University. She also earned a certification in Agroecology Systems from the University of California.

In addition, Perdita completed secondary Montessori certification, which incorporates the farm as a nature-based learning environment. Her agricultural knowledge has continued to grow beyond her first internship at The Land Institute, including intensive training in biointensive farming with John Jeavons, a Permaculture Design Certification, and studies in regenerative agriculture.

Perdita is the owner and operator of Quarter Acre and a Mule, a small farm business dedicated to providing nutritionally dense food to the local community. Her career has spanned work on large-scale for-profit farms as well as nonprofit and community-based farming projects. Her diverse roles have included:

  • Education Coordinator for New Farmers (helping Ethiopian immigrant farmers transition to organic farming in King County)

  • Director of the Sustainable Lands Community Garden Program

  • Program Director of the Powderhorn Youth Farm

  • CSA Farmer and Community Outreach Coordinator for AfroEco in St. Paul

In Colorado, she farmed with Frontline Farms in Denver, a nonprofit focused on food justice and advocacy, and has volunteered with the Pueblo Food Project. Today, Perdita is one of the anchor farmers for the Pueblo Eastside Farmers Market.