For Bradley Peters, some of the best things growing on his Gaines County farm aren’t crops.

They’re kids with muddy boots, learning about soil and plants, riding through fields with their dad and discovering what it means to care for the land around them. “I find it really rewarding that the family can grow up on a farm,” Bradley said. “It’s a great place where you can teach the kids work ethic.”

Bradley operates a diversified farm producing primarily cotton along with Bermuda grass hay, winter wheat and, in some years, peanuts. But when he talks about what he enjoys most about the life he’s built there, he keeps coming back to the opportunity to share it with his family.

“It’s a whole different lifestyle when you can farm with your family and your kids close by,” he said.

On Bradley’s farm, even a trip across the field can become a lesson.

As his children have gotten older, they’ve been able to take a more active role in the operation. Bradley remembers his daughter reaching the age when she could drive the Jeep through the fields with him, helping spot weeds and clean up the circles.

But the lessons aren’t limited to work. There are conversations about roots, soil and the nutrients a plant needs. His children get to see firsthand where crops come from and what it takes to care for the land that produces them.

For Bradley, that’s part of the fun.

Farming in Gaines County comes with its own set of challenges, and the area’s sandy soil is one of them. Keeping the ground covered is important, and Bradley has learned to work within those limitations rather than simply fight against them.

“I love being able to farm in a way that the limitations become a strength,” he said.

That mindset has influenced other parts of the operation, too. The Peters family has worked to capture more rainwater on the farm, creating ponds that can supplement irrigation when rainfall allows. It’s practical for the operation, but it has also changed the landscape his children get to call home. “Whenever the Lord sends rain,” Bradley said, “the ponds fill and the kids get another place to explore.”

Bradley’s connection with AgTexas also began when he was a kid. His father worked with AgTexas for as long as Bradley can remember, which meant trips to the office were simply another part of growing up around agriculture.

As a child, Bradley and his family had their own name for it: Soda Town.

“We always came to the office and called it Soda Town,” Bradley said. “It was a really fun, family-friendly place to go.” Years later, when it was time for Bradley to begin building an operation of his own, that familiar relationship took on a new purpose.

“My first banker was Paul Elam here,” Bradley said. “As I started in my operation, he’s helped me finance a tractor and all kinds of stuff.” The kid who once came along to his dad’s visits to AgTexas eventually became the producer sitting across the table.

And now Bradley has children of his own growing up alongside the farm.

Agriculture is ultimately a business. There are yields to watch, equipment to finance, soil limitations to manage, and decisions that determine whether an operation will remain productive for years to come.

Bradley’s story is also a reminder that a farm can produce things that never show up on a balance sheet. Work ethic, curiosity, an understanding of where things grow and what they need, respect for the land, and memories of riding through the fields with Dad, watching ducks on a pond or coming home with mud caked on a pair of boots.

Bradley is working to leave his land better than he found it and along the way, he’s giving his children a pretty special place to grow up, too.