Meet the Team
Experts in soil stewardshipAt Deep Roots TX, our team is made up of dedicated agronomists, soil scientists, and environmental experts—united by a shared passion for sustainable agriculture and healthy soils.
With decades of combined experience, our backgrounds range from working hands-on in farming and managing large-scale farmers markets to leading innovative soil restoration projects across Texas. We bring deep expertise and practical know-how to every project, working closely with farmers, landowners, and communities to identify soil challenges and deliver customized, biology-based solutions that improve fertility, structure, and long-term productivity.
Our commitment to ongoing research and learning keeps us at the cutting edge of soil health science, so we can offer our clients the most effective, environmentally sound strategies available.
Alistair Barnes
Founder, Director of Business DevelopmentAlistair helps shape Deep Roots TX’s soil-first approach, grounding our work in soil health principles and a long-term vision for resilient land.
Growing up on an apple farm in southern England fostered in Alistair a deep connection to open spaces and living soil. Decades later, that connection was rekindled in Austin County, Texas, as he and his wife, Amy, worked to restore land left barren by wildcat speculators. Guidance from Dr. Elaine Ingham and mentor Betsy Ross deepened their understanding of soil biology and inspired them to found Deep Roots TX—continuing Betsy’s legacy of rebuilding the life beneath our feet.
Amy Barnes
Founder, Director of OperationsAmy helps ensure Deep Roots TX’s soil-first practices are supported by the systems, planning, and operational clarity needed to deliver consistent, thoughtful soil health outcomes over time.
Amy’s role at Deep Roots TX focuses on the steady, behind-the-scenes effort that allows good ideas to take root—building and maintaining the structures, processes, and rhythms that support the rest of the team. Her relationship with the land began in her own flowerbeds and vegetable garden and deepened through years spent restoring neglected acreage in Cat Spring. Amy is also a co-founder of a Houston-based nonprofit, Books Between Kids, where she worked alongside staff and volunteers to help develop the operational foundations that allow the organization to serve children at scale.
Tyler Horne
Business Development ManagerTyler works closely with clients and partners to explore how Deep Roots TX’s soil-first approach can support healthier land at every scale.
Tyler’s work focuses on building thoughtful relationships that connect people, land, and long-term stewardship. He spent seventeen years with Urban Harvest as Director of Farmers Markets, helping grow Houston’s largest producers-only market by partnering closely with regenerative farmers and ranchers across the region. Tyler holds a business degree in management from Houston Christian University and is a frequent speaker on agriculture, sustainability, and local food systems. Outside of work, he enjoys fly fishing, paddling canoes, gardening, and spending time outdoors.
Clay Zdobylak
Field Operations ManagerClay leads the hands-on application of Deep Roots TX’s soil-first treatments, bringing deep field expertise and close attention to soil biology to ensure every site receives thoughtful, consistent care.
Clay grew up on the coastal prairies of Texas, spending summers on his family’s farm in northern Louisiana, where time outdoors shaped an early connection to land. He earned a degree in Anthropology from the University of Houston with a focus on cultural ecology, later working and living on an organic farm and dairy west of Houston and traveling through Southeast Asia to work on farms and wellness centers. Before entering soil and landscape health services, Clay worked as an archaeologist, gaining a deep, hands-on understanding of soil structure and land history. Today, he brings that experience into every site, approaching each property with care, curiosity, and attention to detail.
Our work is grounded in non-toxic treatments that support living systems.