Quail Cove Farms (a): One Night and a Big Decision

Abstract

Nearly every dollar Bill and Elaine Jardine had earned over the previous decade had been invested in their farm and warehouse. They had spent more than $150,000 in land and equipment. And they had sunk into their business, Quail Cove Farms, immeasurable amounts of what Bill Jardine considered to be their biggest asset: their labor. They had lost nearly everything. Now, the couple had some soul-searching to do. The Jardines gave hard thought to which direction they wanted to go—if, for that matter, they even had a choice. What was the value, now, of the sweat equity they had gained from pursuing a dream of organic farming? Excerpt UVA-ENT-0168 Rev. May 1, 2019 Quail Cove Farms (A): One Night and a Big Decision Introduction Bill Jardine and his wife, Elaine, looked at one another across the kitchen table in their Machipongo, Virginia, farmhouse. It was late and they had been talking for most of the night. Soon, the sun would rise. Bill and Elaine would put on their work boots and start the daily chores. A farm needed maintenance no matter what frame of mind you were in. But at that moment, neither felt up to the tasks ahead. That was ironic because Bill had always joked, “When I retire, I want to farm; and when I get to the point where I can't farm, I want to garden.” . . .