Our Sponsors, Vendors & Activities

Professional Magician Finds Magic in Nature
Celebrates 1st Hemp Harvest with Festival to Benefit Kids

PUBLISHED IN 2021 - Statesville, NC – October 10, 2021 –Greg Atkinson of Atkinson Acres Farms will be hosting Hemp-Stock, a Fall Festival on Saturday, October 23rd, from 10 AM to 6 PM. The event is free and open to the public and will be held at 399 Lookout Dam Road in Statesville. Proceeds from the event will benefit “The Magic of the Outdoors for Kids” which introduces children to the joys of sustainable farming and being in nature. (See TheMagicoftheOutdoorsforKids.org)

Greg, a professional magician, now a farmer in Iredell County, finds magic in every day living on a farm. It is through his experiences that created “The Magic of the Outdoors for Children,” a nonprofit, introducing children to the same wonders. “As a professional magician, I always loved seeing the surprise and excitement in the eyes of the audience. When I decided to create a self-sustaining hemp farm, I realized that many children who live in urban areas, and are so focused on screens, may not have had the chance to experience the joy of farm life. The magic I see every day is seeing a deer come into graze or watching a flower bud in the morning. It’s all about being active, learning, and experiencing what nature has to offer us. No screens, no TVs, laptops, or Xbox. Just enjoying the fresh smell of newly cut grass or a cookout fire. At “The Magic of the Outdoors for Kids”, we know that sometimes all it takes to change the world is a little encouragement.”

In addition to helping kids, Greg is also supporting the efforts of ElderCenter/Iredell Adult Day Services that serves seniors and adults who need supervision during the day due to dementias, traumatic brain injuries or illnesses. They will also be at Hemp-Stock selling crafts made by their members, to raise awareness and fundraising, for Alzheimer’s Awareness Month coming up in November. “At any age, you can see their eyes light up when a cardinal lands near a bird feeder, or simply admiring a beautiful garden,” explains Tammi Money, Executive Director of Iredell Adult Day Services. “You don’t have to be a kid to appreciate the joys of farm living."

The event will have several talks about how to pick your own hemp, how to dry it, how to make salves, edible gummies, and tinctures. There will be individuals sharing their own experiences with hemp. There will be plenty of food, activities for kids and adults alike, crafts and artists, local vendors, BBQ, a mobile bakery and “Libation Station” serving beer, wine, and other beverages. The Cosmic Hillybilly Experience band will be playing later in the afternoon, a drumming circle around the bonfire, open mic, and karaoke will round out our music for the day. Kids activities will include gem mining, face painting, pumpkin decorating and a rabbit petting zoo. 

Greg has been farming in Statesville for 4 years and growing hemp in Statesville for the last 3 years. As a hemp farmer, he must follow NC state regulations which means his crop has a THC content of <0.3% and is hemp derived and tested independently. Hemp products are legal to sell in North Carolina. Atkinson Farms is Greg’s passion. He tends to them by planting, fertilizing, and manicuring each by hand to assure the quality of the best hemp buds. 

“Atkinson Acres Hemp Farm is on 15 Acres of fertile NC soil. We planted 2000 plants on 2.07 acres totally organic without any pesticides, in 2019. These were harvested in October 2019,” explained Greg Atkinson. “The plants are dried and cured properly with tightly controlled humidity and temperature values. In 2020, 2400 plants were planted of Baox, Cherry Mom, and T1 (different hemp strains) harvested in late October 2020. This is our 3rd harvest and decided we should celebrate as farmers have for centuries.”

Greg continues to explain, “In 2021 we planted 5 strains of female clones to harvest in late October 2021 as our product line grows. The plants are harvested then dried and cured properly.”

Atkinson Acres Hemp Farm, otherwise known online as “HeavenlyHempNC.com”, also offers a broad array of products that are full spectrum, hemp-infused, D and all the other benefits of the whole plant. AlL the products are 100% legal. Certificate of Analysis is available on the website at Lab 

Analysis(atkinsonacreshemp.com). Unlike THC, HEMP is not psychoactive.

Hemp can be found on every corner, there has been a taboo around cannabis that has kept off the radar for decades. However hemp is a prominent naturally occurring and it has significant medical benefits. 

For more information about Hemp-Stock, Magic of the Outdoors for Kids and Atkinson Acres Farms, please contact Greg Atkinson at 803-603-6500 or email AtkinsonAcresNC@gmail.com. Please visit AtkinsonAcresHemp.com, HeavenlyHempNC.com, or TheMagicoftheOutdoorsforKids.org.

Previous article: In the weeds: Greg Atkinson navigates the changing markets for hemp products | Townnews | statesville.com