About
The Farm
Horton Road Organics is a five acre organic market garden founded in 1992 by partners Debra Seido Martin and Bill Booth. The farm is nestled in the coast range of Oregon in the Siulsaw National Forest outside Eugene and also serves as a retreat space for a Zen Buddhist community in Eugene. The farm’s rich friable earth was formed by thousands of years of forest decay and is suffuse with organic life after three decades of organic cultivation. The watershed ecology is full of life, still home to cougar, black bear, otter and spotted owl.
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Some two hundred raised beds rotate through a full array of organic vegetables during the season, including the most luscious greens and crisp sweet root crops. Horton Road is particularly loved for its flavorful salad blends, generous bunches, equitable prices and customer appreciation. The farm’s elevated mountain valley enjoys lower temperatures during the growing season allowing for cool season crops throughout the summer. A significant amount of farm surplus is donated to local agencies including the Eugene Mission, 86 Hunger, First Place, Village School and the Eugene Gleaners.
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Much of the day to day work is done by hand with careful attention to the needs of the plants, the soil and human bodies touching the earth. During the season, the farm hosts a training program (Twining Vines) in collaboration with Zen West for students interested in learning the art of growing organic food and exploring the connection between inner and outer ecologies. The program investigates the dynamic
interconnection between how we understand ourselves, our place in the world, and how we take care for the earth. Respect, reciprocity, responsibility and reverence are guiding principles. Each season brings together a lively cohort of participants – apprentices, interns, sangha members, and volunteers – for wholesome work and play, inner learning and service to the community.
Staff
Debra Seido Martin
Program Director
Seido has been an organic farmer for 35 years and continues to love the beauty and presence the comes from daily practice in the garden. She's a Zen teacher who serves the Zen West community in Eugene and has been practicing for 25 years. Seido is also a psychotherapist focusing on healing trauma and somatic awareness. She easily integrates these three lenses on life in a way that fosters insight and compassion.
Bill Booth
Farm Owner & Teacher
Bill began farming back in the Peace Corps serving Swaziland in the mid 70’s. Later, he co-founded “Sky High Farm” in Winters, CA, moved on to the UCSC Farm and Garden project in Santa Cruz and eventually partnered with UC Instructor Dennis Tamura of Blue Heron Farm in Correlitos, CA before meeting Seido and moving to establish Horton Road Organics in 1992. Bill loves mentoring new farmers, enjoys telling stories, and creating a vibrant field of vegetables for the community every season.
Jerry Feist
Farm Manager & Apprentice Coordinator
Jerry graduated from the Twining Vines program in 2025 having fallen in love with growing vegetables and the idea of doing this for the rest of his life. Jerry is a long time meditator with experience in compassion practice. He is also an experienced chef and has delighted the community with inspired simple meals right out of the farm fields.
Yuton Murrow
Market Manager & Practice Guide
Yuton manages our bustling farmer’s markets and helps support students in the practice of Zen on the
farm. For the past ten years, Yuton has spent time in residential training in Zen temples and monasteries. Before that, she was a chef managing kitchens, bakeries and cafe floors. Yuton is anchored in Soto Zen, but has deep roots in the Thich Nhat Han’s Plum Village tradition and is in the process of ordaining into their Order of Interbeing. She provides strong support for each student, listening deeply
and guiding what it means to practice wisdom and compassion in the busy marketplace.