The Seed Whisperer of Blackberry Farm: John Coykendall Is Saving the Seeds of the Past, for the Future

The luxury country inn is the ultimate pastoral getaway. But in the gardens, there’s urgent work happening: a race against time to preserve heirloom seeds—and their stories—for generations to come.

John Coykendall, renowned master gardener, seed saver, and classically trained artist. Courtesy of Blackberry Farm

Many luxury resorts have a master chef in their restaurant kitchen, but how about an on-site master gardener and seed savior?

At Blackberry Farm in Walland, Tennessee, at the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, John Coykendall has filled that role since 1999. An internationally renowned horticulturalist—and a classically trained artist—Coykendall oversees four acres of gardens, which provides produce used in the inn’s trademark “Foothills Cuisine,” a refined spin on traditional southern cooking, alongside ingredients sourced from nearby Appalachian farmers and producers.