Visitors fortunate enough to take part in the Athens Farmers Market have likely come across 92-year-old farmer John Clemons and his legendary turnip greens in his 27 years of selling his local produce there.

Clemons, commonly known as the “Turnip Greens Man,” has become more than just a staple of the Athens Farmers Market, he’s an exemplary pillar to the Limestone County farming community.

“Everybody loves to buy his turnip greens,” Barbara Clemons, John’s only child, said.“He has people coming from Tennessee, Birmingham, Huntsville and Decatur just to buy his turnip greens.”

The turnip greens are not all that he is known for as he has a variety of vegetables that he tends to, referencing his love for farming to his upbringing with his father.

“I believe I’ve been farming all my life,” Clemons said. “See I was a sharecropper’s son, so I was born and raised on the farm. I used to follow my daddy around as he worked on the cotton farm.”

His life on the farm likely led him to pursue a career using his hands, working as a mechanic. Fortunately, he found great success in that endeavor, working 26 years as a heavy equipment mechanic.

“He can repair anything, he can fix anything,” Barbara said. “If the tractor goes down, he repairs it, if the car breaks down, he repairs it.”

Once he retired from his job at the Thompson Tractor Company in 1997, Clemons turned his focus back on his three acres of farmland.

While his daughter bragged about all the things he could fix, Clemons jokingly joined in to say that he cannot work on the new cars now because of all the things they have changed.

Clemons, who is going to turn 93 on Sept. 22, does not let his age slow him down in the slightest. According to his daughter, he uses the computer better than anyone she has ever seen at his age.

“Dad always tells me ‘can’t’ is not in his vocabulary,” Barbara said.“He orders his seeds online and he loves to send out holiday cards on the computer.”

Clemons has grown turnip greens, mustard greens, kale, collard greens, okra, squash, cucumbers, corn, as well as various types of beans and peas in his farm.

“I work on the farm seven days a week, sunup to sun down,” Clemons said. “I take breaks every now and then, but I work all day long.”

A family motto that Clemons has lived his life on is, “If a man don’t work, a man don’t eat.” He humorously noted that the day he stops working is the day that he can no longer eat.

“If you can find a way to live without eating I’d love to hear it,” Clemons said. “But until that day comes, I will be working. I know that.”

Outside of farming, the only thing Clemons has done as long is serve in his nearby church. He has been considered an elder of his church, serving for the past 60 years at Pleasant Grove CPCA.

“Farming is like being close to God,” Clemons said. “It is patience, it is understanding, It is all the lessons in life. That’s why I am thankful I am still here doing it.”