IS THERE A DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE?
There is now!
The South Plains Food Bank has a new staff member on board.
Ashley Basinger, a self-professed fifth generation cotton farmer, is now SPFB’s new horticulturist. The 31, well really 32 year-old (as of her Birthday on March 14th), says she is excited to be building on the foundation laid by Roy and his crew, and is glad to be back home in West Texas.
“I love the people here,” said Dr. Basinger, who earned a Ph.D in Horticulture with a specialization in Higher Education from Texas Tech University. “There are so many caring people in this community; it is evident in the work that has been done here at the [SPFB] farm and orchard.”
Spend very much time with Basinger and you can immediately tell she has a passion for both horticulture and education – a perfect fit for the Farm, Orchard, and GRUB, or FOG as we call it. She spent her first Saturday out at the farm with the GRUB kids and said she felt right at home working with them.
“I am really more of a people person,” said Basinger, who will share her birthday with her fraternal twin sister – who also went the Ag Science route at Texas Tech. “Even though I am not in charge of the GRUB program, I’m excited that I get to work with those kids and other volunteers at the farm. I feel like I’m going to get to deal with both of the things I am passionate about, not just the horticultural area.”
Basinger, who has recently discovered long distance biking as a hobby, is no stranger to this area or to the food bank. She lists Southland, Texas, a small farming community 20 miles South of Lubbock, as her hometown on her Facebook profile. She is a Red Raider through and through, having received her bachelor’s degree in horticulture from Texas Tech University. She also earned her Master’s in Viticulture from Tech, as well as her Ph.D. While at Tech, Basinger was a lecturer for Introduction to Horticulture. She offered the students extra help, worth one exam grade, if they would volunteer at least three hours at the South Plains Food Bank farm. It was a win-win situation according to Basinger.
“At least 65 to 70 percent of the students needed the extra help,” said the hot green tea drinker. “Most of the students would receive greenhouse experience in the lab portion of their class, but this was a way for them to get farm experience and help a worthy cause.”
Basinger, who is an avid sports fan and enjoys shooting a few hoops, said she would love to teach the horticulture at some point in the future if she got the chance because she loves the challenge of getting students interested in horticulture.
Although Basinger has not been on the job long, she is already studying the irrigation schedules at the farm and orchard. She is quick to show me her charts and tells me with excitement that her one of her goals is to improve fruit quality and production while not using as much water. Basinger brings with her lots of enthusiasm, knowledge of new trends and technology, and a love of the land and education.
“This is a perfect fit for me,” said Basinger, who credits her Master Gardener mother and farming family with her enthusiasm for horticulture. “I plan to put roots down here at the South Plains Food Bank farm and orchard.”
The South Plains Food Bank, Inc. is committed to alleviating hunger 
and giving hope to the hungry. We are a humanitarian resource responsible for securing, growing, processing, and distributing food to charitable organizations and persons in need.
