FAQs

About Us

  • A 20-acre regenerative farm in Farmersville, Texas — the first commercial snail farm in North Texas. We raise heritage poultry, geese, quail, and a colony of Cornu aspersum snails. We grow Rabbiteye blueberries, medicinal herbs, and specialty vegetables. We host farm-to-table dinners, yoga retreats, and heliciculture workshops.

  • Our partner nonprofit. HHH is a 501(c)(3) educational organization that runs the public-facing programs at the farm. HHH was nominated for the 2026 EarthShot Prize.

  • MKH is the working demonstration site. HHH is the educational and research partner. MKH handles networking and farm operations. HHH designs and operates the programs that bring people onto the land. They are separate, collaborating organizations.

  • Farmersville, Collin County, Texas. 45 miles northeast of Dallas. 25 minutes east of McKinney. The address is shared with applicants ahead of their site visit.

  • Snail farming. We raise edible snails (Cornu aspersum) for three products: escargot, snail caviar, and snail mucin used in skincare.

  • Snails are dense clean protein with a microscopic environmental footprint. They eat pre-consumer food waste. Their frass and leachate are a microbially active fertilizer that restores soil without toxic inputs. They live at ambient temperature, require no grain, and weigh almost nothing to move. Food, fuel, fertilizer (the triad of modern agricultural vulnerability) answered by a creature most people overlook.

  • Texas. Cornu aspersum has been naturalized in Texas soil for more than 150 years. Our founding colony was sourced locally. We recognized the value in what was already here and built a system worthy of it.

  • Community-Supported Agriculture.

About the Program

  • Our umbrella name for the three program tiers run by HHH. Every participant (Volunteer, Apprentice, or Zone Partner) joins the same community and accesses the same educational programs, with different levels of commitment, contribution, and exchange.

    • Volunteer (day-based, two-week minimum, no fee, meals provided).

    • Apprentice (skilled-trade craft, one-month minimum, no fee, meals provided, project scoped together).

    • Zone Partner $650/month (tax-refundable, three-month minimum, dedicated zone within our regenerative system, keep 100% of your revenue, products featured on HHH's online store, joint grant eligibility, blog features).

    • Volunteer if you want to learn farming by doing it and you can commute.

    • Apprentice if you have a craft (welding, woodworking, natural building, ceramics, fiber arts, electrical, plumbing, blacksmithing, masonry, leatherwork) you want to contribute in exchange for rare agricultural knowledge.

    • Zone Partner if you have an agricultural or wellness business plan and you want to launch on working farmland without buying land.

  • No. All participants commute to the farm and arrange their own lodging. We are clear about this upfront because we want you to plan accordingly.

    If you live in or near Farmersville, Dallas, McKinney, Plano, Frisco, Allen, Princeton, commuting is workable.

  • No. None of the three tiers is employment. No wages are paid in any tier. Volunteers and Apprentices exchange time or craft for meals and educational programming. Zone Partners pay a program participation fee in exchange for zone access and full participation in HHH's programs.

  • Typically two to four weeks. Volunteers move fastest. Apprentices and Zone Partners require deeper conversation. A site visit is required before any tier begins.

Zone Partner Tier

  • Yes. The $600/month program participation fee is deductible as a business expense for Zone Partners operating as a business — recorded against business income on your Schedule C or business tax return.

    HHH issues written documentation identifying the payment as a program participation fee for your records. As with anything tax-related, consult your accountant about your specific situation.

  • An entrepreneurial participant who stewards a dedicated zone within our regenerative system in exchange for a monthly program participation fee. Zone Partners launch their own agricultural or wellness businesses on the farm (keeping 100% of their revenue) without having to buy land, pay property tax, or build infrastructure from scratch.

  • No. It is a program participation arrangement with Helical Healing Habitat (501(c)(3)). You are partnering with our nonprofit's educational regenerative agriculture program. You are not renting land. You are not a tenant. You do not acquire property rights.

  • Zone access within our regenerative system.

    • On-farm mulch (we produce it, you use it).

    • Access to our composting system.

    • Access to two of our three ponds for irrigation.

    • Full participation in HHH's educational programs and community events.

    • Product placement on HHH's online store.

    • Eligibility for joint grant applications.

    • Blog and newsletter features.

    • Operational and educational support from MKH and HHH.

    • The fee is paid to HHH as program participation.

  • Three months minimum. Regenerative agriculture practices require commitment — soil preparation, cover crop establishment, and harvest cycles do not fit shorter windows. Many partners stay for a full growing season; renewal is straightforward when both sides are aligned.

  • Yes. Every Zone Partner gets product placement on HHH's online store as part of the partnership. Your products appear alongside MKH's own escargot, snail caviar, mucin skincare, eggs, and blueberries.

    HHH provides the e-commerce infrastructure. You keep 100% of your product revenue after standard payment processor fees.

  • Yes. Zone Partners are eligible for joint grant applications with HHH.

    As a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit, HHH can access funding sources that are unavailable to for-profit individuals — USDA specialty crop block grants, regenerative agriculture foundations, sustainable agriculture research and education programs, EarthShot-affiliated funders, regional Texas agriculture initiatives.

    When your work fits a funder's criteria, we invite you into the application.

  • Yes. Every Zone Partner receives at least one dedicated feature on the MKH blog — typically a profile of you, your business, and how your zone integrates into the farm. We also feature partner products and stories in our newsletter, on social media, and in our farm-to-table event communications. Marketing amplification is part of what your $650/month buys.

  • Cultivation zones (cut flowers, medicinal herbs, microgreens, specialty vegetables, mushrooms) and animal husbandry zones (heritage poultry expansion, beekeeping, aquaculture in our ponds).

    We work with each partner to identify the right fit based on your business plan and what complements the existing operation.

  • Read the 'Who We're Looking For' section on the community farm page. If your work fits one of those descriptions, that's your starting point. If it doesn't, apply anyway and we'll have a conversation.

  • Yes, with prior coordination. Anyone working in your zone must respect our regenerative practices, biosecurity protocols, and farm-wide standards. We may ask helpers to complete the same NVC orientation our other participants do.

  • In some cases, yes — particularly for retreat leaders, herbalists running workshops, and chefs hosting tastings. All visitor activity must be coordinated with HHH Community Manager in advance. We handle scheduling jointly to avoid bottlenecks.

  • You give us notice and complete your three-month minimum.

    We do not retain claim on your equipment, your stock, or your work.

    You leave with what you brought. We part as colleagues.

  • If both parties want to continue, renewal is straightforward. If one party doesn't, you wind down the zone, harvest what's ready, and exit cleanly. Many partners will want to extend through a full growing season.

  • Yes. Zone Partners are required to carry general liability insurance covering their business activities before they begin.

    A basic policy typically costs around $300/year. We can provide guidance on getting it. HHH carries its own program-participant insurance covering educational activity.

Volunteer Tier

  • No. We will teach you. What we ask for is curiosity, willingness, and the ability to follow instructions on a working farm.

    A bias toward action (the willingness to actually do the work) matters more than credentials.

  • Five hours per day, on the days you choose. Two-week minimum. Many volunteers stay longer.

  • No. Volunteering is free. You receive meals on every day you work.

  • Snailery care, poultry and waterfowl handling, blueberry cultivation, composting, harvesting, event preparation, workshop support. You learn by participating in the daily rhythm of the farm.

  • Yes. Every volunteer rotates through the EscarGrow system during their time here. Heliciculture is what makes this farm distinct, and we want every participant to leave with a working knowledge of it.

  • Yes, but each partner must apply separately and be vetted individually. Both of you must fit the program.

  • Children under 16 are not part of the volunteer program and must be accompanied by an adult.

Apprentice Tier

  • Welders, woodworkers, carpenters, natural builders (cob, earthen plaster, earthbag), electricians, plumbers, blacksmiths, ceramicists, fiber and textile artists, stone masons, leatherworkers. If your trade is not on this list and your work is serious, apply anyway.

  • It depends on your trade and what the farm needs. A welder might build a permanent run for the goose flock. A woodworker might construct an outdoor dining table for our farm-to-table events. A natural builder might construct earthen seating around the events area. A ceramicist might produce serving ware for our food programming. We define the project together before you arrive.

  • No. The apprenticeship is a craft-for-knowledge exchange. You bring your trade. You leave the work behind. You take with you full educational immersion in heliciculture and regenerative agriculture, and meals on every workday.

  • Project work stays at the farm (that is the exchange). Personal practice work (a small ceramic piece you make in your downtime, sketches, etc.) stays with you.

    The line is whether the work was scoped as a project deliverable or made on your own time.

  • One week minimum. Some projects extend longer by mutual agreement.

Applying

  • Children, animals, food production, and shared spaces. We are responsible for the people on the land and we take it seriously.

    The background check is standard and consent to it is part of every tier's application.

  • Yes. We host open farm days monthly and you are welcome to attend before deciding. Check our website or social channels for upcoming dates.

  • Apply to the tier that best fits where you are right now. We'll have a conversation about whether another tier might fit you better.

  • Two to four weeks. Volunteers move faster; Apprentices and Zone Partners require deeper conversation.

Practical Matters

  • Daily operations run from morning through late afternoon. Specific schedules are set with each cohort and communicated in advance.

  • North Texas summers are hot. We start early and avoid the heat of the day during summer months. We do not work in lightning storms or other dangerous conditions. We will text you the night before if conditions require a schedule change.

  • Yes for Volunteers and Apprentices, on every day you work. Zone Partners are welcome at communal meals during workshops, events, and shared celebrations. Day-to-day, Zone Partners bring their own food.

  • Tell us on the application. We accommodate common dietary needs (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, common allergies). Less common restrictions may require bringing your own food.

  • No. We have livestock and biosecurity protocols. Visitor pets are not allowed on the farm.

  • Sturdy work boots or hiking shoes. Long pants are recommended (snake awareness, sun protection, scrapes). Sun protection — hat, long sleeves if you burn. Bring a refillable water bottle.

  • Cell service is reliable. Wifi is available in the main farm building.