Mark Casady; Agronomist, Bradley Aide

Mark Boon Casady, agronomist and former aide to Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, has died of Valley fever at the age of 53.

Casady died Friday at the Kern Medical Center in Bakersfield, his brother Cort Casady said Tuesday.

He was a pioneer in organic agriculture and helped start Cal-Organic Farms in Kern County, the largest commercial organic vegetable grower in the country.

At the time of his death, Casady was director of research and development for MPX Systems/Cal Foliar Inc. He previously was chief of field consulting for Petrik Laboratories and president of Fertility King, a company he founded in 1979 to promote soil management and crop fertility techniques in the San Joaquin Valley.

Working for Bradley in 1977, Casady directed the Los Angeles Community Gardens Program to help residents develop produce gardens in their neighborhoods. In its first year, the program yielded more than $3 million in produce for about 10,000 participants.

A native of McAllen, Tex., Casady grew up in Phoenix and the San Diego area. He attended San Diego State and Howard University in Washington and briefly worked as a journalist with his father’s newspaper, the El Cajon Valley News.

As a young man, Casady began working for Democratic politicians. One of his duties was to drive John F. Kennedy around San Diego before the 1960 Democratic Convention in Los Angeles. Casady later served as field deputy for state Sen. Thomas M. Rees and helped him get elected to Congress.

Much in demand as a consultant and lecturer, Casady was asked twice to use his knowledge of organic soil nutrients to restore the Hollywood Park turf before the Breeders’ Cup race.

Casady is survived by his father, Simon, brothers Derek, Kent, Lance and Cort, and his son, Justin Shane Casady.