Meet Sprout
Grow Good
We do more than grow gardens. We grow good.
Sprout is a Benefit Corporation, which means that beyond Profitability, we measure our success by the positive impact we have with People and Planet. We believe it’s our responsibility to use our business and farming acumen to make a significant and sustainable social impact, and so we’ve built our business accordingly.
Our founder’s higher purpose is to ensure that every child has a family – a passion that was ignited when she and her husband began traveling around the world, getting to know the most vulnerable children among us. This awareness led them to the path of adoption, and six years ago they began their adoption journey with their son, who is from Ecuador. Since then, they’ve devoted their time, energy and resources to supporting children who are waiting for their families to find them. Fifteen percent of Sprout’s profits go directly to these children, via For His Children, and The Better Together Project:
1. For His Children. FHC is a children’s home in Ecuador that provides outstanding care to the most vulnerable children.
2. The Better Together Project. Launched last year by our founder and her husband, Better Together amplifies the impacts of people and organizations who work on behalf of kids who need families.
Thank you for joining us in supporting the children. If you’re interested in learning more about either of these organizations, we’ll be happy to talk with you about them, or we encourage you to be in touch with them directly.
Our Story
Sprout grew organically (no pun intended) from a hobby to a business, to a rapidly-expanding company. It began years ago when our founder, Rebecca, dreamed of having her own kitchen garden. She started by growing tomatoes in a tiny corner of her patio, and with just a little success that first year, she was encouraged to expand bit by bit over the next few years. She researched, practiced, and pursued her burgeoning interest in organic food and urban farming, and earned her Master Gardener certification along the way. And each year she added more space to her garden patch – this season she’s growing more than 40 varieties of veggies, herbs & fruit in that same tiny patio where she first grew tomatoes.
As Rebecca’s garden grew, so did Sprout. Recognizing the strong demand for Sprout’s services, Rebecca shifted into growth-mode, and began building the Sprout team. Sprout expanded its reach beyond Arlington, and now grows gardens across Northern Virginia and DC.
Sprout is currently developing new services to expand its capacity, and will soon be offering products both online and off.
Philosophy
Garden to Kitchen: There’s nothing more satisfying than a freshly-harvested tomato or pepper that you planted, grew and prepared yourself. We love that the pendulum is swinging back to our agrarian roots, so we can all re-learn where food comes from (hint: it’s not the grocery store!). We fully encourage preparing fresh food in our own kitchens — it can be a fun and meaningful family activity, and it’s so much better for us than factory-produced food.
Organic: We believe deeply in the benefits of whole, natural foods. More and more people are coming to understand the value of nutrient-rich whole foods, and desiring to eat fresh, organic produce. Everything we do with our Sprout gardens is organic — from the compost we use in our soil, to the seeds and seedlings we choose, to the all-natural pest remedies we employ.
You don’t have to be an expert: Anyone — yes, anyone — can grow their own veggies. We believe in starting small — choose the one herb or veggie that you love the most, and just plant that. Once you’ve had a little success with that first plant, you’ll likely feel more confident and inspired to grow more, and season after season you can expand your veggie patch.
Local/sustainable: Conventional farming uses tremendous amounts of fossil fuel to raise, process, refrigerate, and transport food to us. So the more we can source our food from local farms and gardens, the better — for the environment, for our health, and for our tastebuds. In-season produce — picked and eaten within a matter of days (or hours!) — is the healthiest and tastiest way to eat. And it doesn’t get any more local than your own backyard!