In 1998 Candy Jr. seized the opportunity to uproot his life and move his family to 10 acres of open land in the Coachella Valley with a vision to grow dates. He knew it would be years before the small date palms would bear fruit, so upon moving, he also grew other vegetation, like green beans, to nourish the soil. He doesn’t use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides because he knew repeated use of harsh chemicals could irrevocably impact biodiversity.