Super interesting tour of a working farm that was recommended by a friend. I am amazed we had never heard of it before - honestly it was so fascinating how they help farmers around the world to learn farming techniques specific to their agricultural needs to combat global hunger. It is a very special place. You have to have a reservation for a tour - this is not a place you just pop into. Highly recommend for a thought provoking afternoon! read more

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What a great stop ! I had heard about this place from a local nursery so I decided to stop in. Wonderful tour and tour guide ( Jane). Easy, flat walking tour (or you can ride in their golf cart). Jane was great as a tour guide, with a wealth of knowledge and an easygoing style of sharing information. What an incredible amount of plants here ! While their focus is more on edible plants and plantings, there was more than enough for people interested in colorful or blooming plants and trees. Beautiful setting, like walking through a tropical arboretum, lush and tropical. We were given samples of probably a dozen leaves to eat or smell through our tour. It really opened my eyes to trying to plant a few things that I hadn't considered before. There's also a small gift shop with some unique items as well as a nursery/garden center with some of the many plants that we had seen on our tour. Nice variety and decent prices ! read more

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Such a neat place to visit and learn from, especially if ur into gardening or creating a food forest in SWFL. Christian organization who explains their mission, accepts volunteers and does homeschool tours as well. Great to c various items growing in r climate - quinoa, buckwheat, broccoli, etc. Really wanted to c the local spinach, but they didn't have it during r visit. Assumed SWFL was too hot for sheep, but they had some living comfortably on property so now we're motivated to look into getting some. Also liked how they had them elevated w/slatted floors so the waste dropped down and fertilized the ground below or could be collected to fertilize crops. Various examples of how to create water filtration with what u have on hand. R tour guide was a really lovely older gal - very personable, upbeat, excited to share what's happening at ECHO. Definitely an asset to the organization, especially as it seems many of these people r volunteers so there is a lot of volunteer opportunity for those interested. A couple things I didn't care for....some pushing of the climate change narrative, there was an example/demo of pond water put into a plastic disposable water bottle and how u could just put that bottle into the sun to kill off the bacteria (of course the plastic carcinogenic chemicals can leech into the water when u leave those bottles in the sun so maybe not a great thing to push) & they had an outhouse for people to use that includes a composting toilet where they use the diluted waste on crops. Ummmm.....human waste of lots of unknown visitors is going to have remnants of medications/drugs and then putting that onto crops would b antithetical to natural/chemical free gardening. Anyway, at the end of the tour they have a gift shop w/some cool items. Love the earthy, natural options. They have lots of seeds, some snacks, and even got some bamboo dental floss that was pretty nice. It's about $12 for the tour. It's a walking tour, but terrain is very flat and easy. Go check it out! read more

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Love this place! if you're looking to start an edible garden this is the spot! i've gotten great bamboos and moringa and exotic spinach basil and more from here. everyone who works here is also nice & onowledgable, have yet to do the tour but want to some time read more

I was really impressed with our visit here. We took two consecutive days to partake in two separate tours. The first day our tour consisted of the "Global Farm Tour", and the second day we participated in the The "Appropriate Technology Village Tour". Tour dates and times can be made through their website at: https://echonet.org/make-an-impact/get-involved/visit-echo/ The "Global Farm Tour" shows how different plants, farming techniques, and animals can be utilized to help farmers and urban gardeners in developing countries. This was very interesting and we were shown (among other things) the importance of how one could use different crops in accordance with others to benefit both. The "Appropriate Technology Village Tour" demonstrates how simple technologies can improve food, water, and shelter for millions of people. Examples are transforming sand into water filters, manure into energy, and bicycles into power tools. North Fort Myers is ECHO Florida - the hub of all operations demonstration and research farms. Three Regional Impact Centers, including West Africa, East Africa, and Southeast Asia provide training and resources to empower small-scale family farmers in these regions. Each tour was very educational, and after the second day we took advantage of the plants and trees they had for sale to purchase a few. Our guides were great and made for a very enjoyable and informative experience. The work by these dedicated volunteers and interns are most admirable and noble. In fact, this organization is the number 1 rated non-profit charity in Florida. It's a difficult thing to imagine, living here in our Country that has everything, that someone, somewhere in the world, is worried about their next meal or if they're going to have enough food and water for their family. ECHO's work has made a difference to millions of people. I highly recommend you check them out. read more

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Mrs.Flood lead our class tour guide and had an amazing point of view throughout the tour. She shared her experience from her own travels and cultivated an experience to remember. This farm is truly beneficial for more than just those located on the acreage. Their research shows farmers in other countries the most sustainable way of farming with limited access. read more

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Took the Goat Feeding Tour with Danielle this morning and it was great fun. Very informative, we got to see and learn a lot about their many plants and trees and took breaks feeding the critters. We will be back to use their nursery when we need plants for our garden. read more

ECHO is a Christian Organization helping the fight for world hunger through seed bank and teaching sustainable farming techniques for less developed countries. ECHO World Headquarter is located less than 2 miles from I-75 off exit 143. The facilities house staff, intern training and administrative function inside a 50 acres of land. ECHO conduct two Tours. Global Farm Tour Weekly on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday start at 9:30 AM and the Anderson Appropriate Technology Village Tour at 11:30 AM. Call or Check their web site for more detailed information and schedule. A book store is open to pick up documents and books from edible garden, tree, aquaponic garden, seeds and others. This review will focus only on the Global Farm Tour. A follow up update will be done on the Anderson Appropriate Technology Village Tour later. Love their moto, "Use what you have to make what you need" This farm is fascinating and you will walk away feeling inspired by the wonderful people and their compassion for helping the world to fight hunger. They are developing and refining farming methods and products that are specific to different regions of the world. Rather than just sending food, they are helping people grow their own. This not only help them to fight hunger but offer them a way to create job. There are interns who are college graduates with a desire to serve abroad after their completion of 14 months training then share their knowledge with developing countries. They have impact centers in Africa, South America and Thailand. They have created different areas on the 50-acre farm that replicate some of regions. The farm is relative complex due to the regional difference. During the tour, each docent will emphasize on different aspect of the farm. It may beneficial to take the tour multiple times. I learned a few things about the Moringa tree. Its leaves are edible and used in food preparation as well medicinal value. A mixture of Moringa seed can be used to clean dirty water. It is claimed that it has 25x more iron than spinach, 17 x more calcium than milk, 0.75 vitamin C oranges, 4 x more protein than eggs, 15 x more potassium than bananas and 10 x more vitamin a than carrots. It is truly a miracle tree. Neem tree, from India that is known as the medicine tree. Many herbalists stated that chewing leaves, capsule of dried leaf or drinking Neem tea will cleanse the blood, help gastrointestinal system, support the liver, and build the immune system. Neem products has been used in treatment of skin disorders in the area of antibacterial and fungal infection, inflammation, cold sores, etc. Katuk leaves are edible similar to garden peas with a slightly nutty flavor. You can eat it raw in salads or steamed. Or you can add them to stir-fry, rice and egg dishes, or soups. Of course, there are Papaya tree, mango, avocado, Jack Fruit, star fruit, banana and other tropical trees. You can see ducks, goats, rabbits, pigs, and Tilapia in the ponds and tanks. The production of methane gas from waste and composts were demonstrated. An urban planting without soil using carpet and mineral was amazing and remarkable! We were truly inspired by this wonderful and educational program! read more

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Echo has a great selection of edible plants in their nursery, their property is fun to tour and educational, and they have a great mission to get behind. I regularly find myself out there getting new plants to add to my food forest. read more

Really enjoyed coming to Echo Farm. They have a great shop full of handcrafted items, imports, homemade honey and jams ect. They have lots of unique bamboo, pepper, banana, dragonfruit, ect. To see any animals you must go on the tour. I attached a photo of the date and times. Bought a lot of Neem and Moringa. I loved the shoppe. read more

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Wonder place with beautiful plants and every purchase benefits others it's great! I've bought multiple plants and they have all lived! Bringing joy and nutrition to my family. I'm grateful and appreciate this business. Shops here build a food garden. Start the change! read more

I've been to Echo a couple of times and both times have been exceptional...and different. I did not want to go the 2nd time because we had already been, assuming that everything would be the same but it was not. We went with friends so I felt we had to go and glad I went the 2nd time. Our tour guide stopped at different locations along the path and explained different mechanisms to grow certain plants. We also got to see the goats which we did not see before, as well as the pigs. The concept and development of Echo Farms is pretty amazing. This is a must-see for anyone visiting the area. read more

Beautiful and very educational place. Produce and so yummy and the variegated cacti we purchased 7 months ago is doing amazing!

Echo has a really important core mission. I applaud their research and enthusiasm with regards to sustainable farming. However, I was extremely disappointed with the way they are handling COVID. There are signs indicating that masks are required inside the store. However, I would say less than 10% of the people there were wearing a mask. Only one employee was wearing a face shield, which is actually ineffective. There were too many people for the tour so they split it into three groups, but nobody social distanced anyways. Within 2 minutes everyone in the group had put away their masks besides one child. CDC guidelines were not encouraged or followed and I felt it was very disturbing. I understand that it is impossible to control other people, but there was no effort to create a safe environment for all. How can a place that is fighting to save people that are dying of hunger not promote protecting and even potentially saving the lives that are right in front of them? read more

Very informative and heart warming. Love the global initiative of what they are doing. Will go back.