Denton County Magazine • Sept_Oct 23 • Heather & Greg Marsh

Despite the recordbreaking heat in North Texas this summer, rows of brightly colored greens are blooming inside Boterna’s Denton warehouse. Heather and Greg Marsh, who run the startup’s operations, have experience growing crops in much harsher conditions. Living in the Middle East for nearly a decade, the couple began experimenting with aeroponics to supplement the region’s sparse growing season.

“They had a very short season and they could grow watermelon and tomatoes and that was about it,” Heather said. “So they’d have a few truckloads when harvest time came, but you would have nothing fresh at the grocery store.”

About two years ago, Boterna founder Bill Job, who is headquartered in Tennessee, brought the Marshes on board with the goal of putting their experience with indoor farming to use on a commercial scale. The Marshes, who live in Argyle, brought the equipment here from Tennessee, setting up a 6,000-squarefoot growing space in Denton. Focused mostly on leafy greens like lettuce, spinach and herbs, Boterna’s aeroponic system allows them to grow produce in any weather without soil or pesticides.

With aeroponics, the plants’ roots are suspended in the air and are misted with a nutrient-dense water solution, allowing for greater uptake of oxygen which makes the plants more robust.

“We’re able to cut down the amount of growing time needed and get a harvest every 10 days per unit instead of every 30 days, which means fresher produce to supply to grocery stores, to restaurants or direct to consumer. That’s the uniqueness of how our system works,” Heather said.

That means more eco-friendly produce, drastically reducing the length of the supply chain. Research also has shown that local food has more nutrients, since the longer it takes to get to your table, the more vitamins and minerals are depleted.

The Marshes have put their time abroad to use in other ways, too. They employ refugees from South America and the Middle East, helping them navigate life in the U.S. The company also partners with The Cross Timbers Hope Center to donate crops that would otherwise go to waste. The center helps those facing a crisis.

Though leafy greens are the easiest to grow in an aeroponics system, Boterna hopes to eventually expand to include a range of produce.

“The sky’s the limit in a sense of what you can do, especially when you’re creating your own equipment because you can adjust and adapt things,” Heather said.

Heather: “I was born in Houston but when people ask where I’m from, I say Austin. I was there in the eighth to twelfth grade.”

Heather: bachelor of science from Louisiana State University. “Geaux Tigers!” she says.

Greg: bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering from Louisiana State University and an MBA from Duke University

11-year-old son Daniel, 10-yearold daughter Lydia Grace, and 8-year-old son Jonathan