Hopewell Farm

by Dave Straub, Cordata produce department

Buckets of freshly harvested Hopewell Farm organic blueberries await their final destination—our produce departments and your tummies.

Recently a co-worker asked me, “If you could only eat one kind of fruit for the rest of your life, what would it be?” I was quiet for a moment, looked deep into my soul, and then said, “Blueberries.” Hypothetical questions don’t usually have correct answers, but we both knew I nailed that one.

Blueberries are nutritious, taste amazing on everything from ice cream to salmon, and are historically one of the most local foods available.

People in these parts have feasted on them for thousands of years, and if you’ve hiked the North Cascades in September when the trails are lined with ripe huckleberries then you’ve probably enjoyed this local bounty as well.

These days we don’t have to brave the mountain wilderness for fresh produce, thanks to Pete Dykstra of Hopewell Farm and his 16 acres of blueberry bushes nestled at the base of Sumas Mountain. I journeyed out to this picturesque field and walked the rows already abundant with dainty bell-shaped flowers that will become my breakfast. While there I chatted with Lisa Dykstra, Hopewell’s sales rep and the youngest of four Dykstra generations to farm this land.

As we talked I got a sense of how diversified Hopewell Farm has become over the years due largely to the prodigious efforts and entrepreneurial spirit of Pete.

Besides their famous blueberries and carrots, they grow a variety of other vegetables, medicinal herbs, and seed crops. They operate a dairy farm and grow their own silage for the cows that in turn produce compost for the fields. They even maintain wild habitat for beneficial predators such as hawks, kestrels, and owls.

The evidence of their holistic approach was all around me ...

... honey bees buzzed in their hives at the end of every row, happy cows played beyond the fence line, and Lisa spoke glowingly about being on the forefront of progressive efforts.

Hopewell is certified organic, GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) certified, and receives outstanding scores for worker satisfaction. In Pete’s own words this means, “The fields are healthy, they produce great crops, and there is life in the soil.”

And if you’re wondering what all this means for you, my patient Co-op shopper, it means the most delicious blueberries you are likely to eat this summer—fresh, hand-picked, and delivered farmer direct to our shelves for your culinary pleasure.

Farm Fund Spotlight: McIntyre Family Farm

by Laura Steiger, Outreach Team

farmers holding baby sheep at mcintyre family farm

Life is never dull on Jena and Matt McIntyre’s family farm where they raise and shear a flock of Icelandic sheep.

With support from a Co-op Farm Fund grant, couple shares equipment and know-how to help revitalize the art of sheep shearing.

In late May, Matt Curtis, Co-op graphic artist and photographer, and I had the good fortune to visit McIntyre Family Farm. We couldn’t have visited at a better time, as the McIntyre’s Icelandic sheep flock had recently finished lambing and we enjoyed the splendor of 20 adorable lambs, some only one-week old, cavorting around the barn, being generally silly and annoying their moms. Oh, we also got to hold a tiny lamb, which was a wonderfully satisfying treat for us city slickers. I’d recommend it, if you ever have the opportunity.

Oh, we also got to hold a tiny lamb.

Since 2013, Matt and Jena McIntyre, now with their young son Elton, live and farm off the scenic North Cascades Highway near Sedro Woolley in a charming farmhouse and chicken coop that date back to 1925. The farm is a diverse enterprise that focuses on pasture-based and grass-fed livestock.

The couple is in the third year of Sustainable Connections farm mentoring program, Food To Bank On, and has also completed a hands-on course at the Washington State Shearing School where they learned the New Zealand method of sheep shearing. If you’ve ever watched any of those televised sheep shearing competitions from New Zealand where people shear a perfect one-piece fleece in an insanely short amount of time (like in a minute!), that is the type of shearing they learned. Google it; it’s amazing!

farmer shearing goat on mcintyre family farm

The breed, valued for its thick dual-coated fleece, is relatively new to the U.S. having been introduced in the 1980s.

goat with full coat shearing process on mcintyre family farm

before
&
after

white, sheered goat on mcintyre family farm

Matt and Jena aren’t breaking any world records, yet, but the knowledge they acquired at the sheep shearing school did inspire them to apply for and receive a Farm Fund grant to purchase mobile shearing equipment so they could share their skills and equipment with other local farmers.

Shearing is somewhat of a lost skill, and small farms are outlaying a fair amount of money to pay professionals, in high-demand, to shear their animals. During our visit Matt and Jena sheared several sheep. Those New Zealanders make it look easy, but up close and in-person, it doesn’t look easy at all.

There is a lot of technique involved (and a lot of back strain)!

The new mobile shearing system, funded by a Farm Fund grant, will help farmers in several ways.

1. It is far more efficient than handheld electric shears, saving time and labor.

2. It can be run from a 12-volt battery making it entirely portable so sheep can be sheared on pasture even if no electricity source is available, which benefits the sheep since they don’t need to be transported for shearing.

3. By avoiding costly professional shearing fees, farmers can add another revenue stream from wool—a value-added product.

After word got out that the McIntyres had both shearing know-how and equipment, fellow farmers initially wanted to simply hire them to shear their animals. But, the couple is confident, that given time, the farming community will realize the benefit of learning how to shear their own animals.

Jena and Matt established their sheep flock in 2015. Of the 20 lambs born in the spring of 2016, all were twins except for two onlies. Matt explained that twins are not only common, but very desirable as the first lamb basically pays for the mom and the second lamb will generate a profit for the farm.

The couple is also establishing a herd of cows, raises pigs and poultry (mostly chickens) for both meat and eggs, and farms vegetables. They carefully care for their 30-acre pasture by constantly rotating their animals and crops, which not only controls parasites and disease but provides the best possible forage for their livestock.

You can find McIntrye Family Farm products at the Saturday Bellingham Farmers Market, and during the summer season they also offer a CSA.

Learn more at mcintyrefamilyfarm.com.

Vendor Spotlight: Broad Leaf Farm

by Laura Steiger, Outreach Department

Dusty Williams of Broad Leaf Farm in Everson is one of the hardworking and super-knowledgeable local farmers who has been providing the Co-op with fresh, organic produce for many years.

If you’ve purchased fresh produce at the Co-op in the past 16 years or so, you’ve likely enjoyed some of the organic veggies grown by Dusty Williams of Broad Leaf Farm in Everson.

Dusty has been selling his organic produce to the Co-op since the turn of the century (yeah, we had one of those recently).

He began purchasing farmland back in 1987 at a price that would make new startup farmers weep for the more attainable land values of bygone days. Luckily for those weeping beginning farmers, Dusty has been making his farmland available, and sharing equipment and his invaluable expertise, for many years.

He recently attained the enviable position of head cider taster for Washington Hard Cider. In exchange for fixing up an outbuilding on the farm, the cider makers are using the space to brew their tasty ciders.

Additionally, two farms providing the Co-op are currently working on the farmland —Spring Time Farm and Terra Verde Farm—and a Fairhaven College student is running a CSA for her senior project. Co-op shoppers will recognize several other alumni of the farmland: Rabbit Field Farms, Backyard Beans and Grains, and Spring Frog Farm at Holistic Homestead.

Certified organic since 1996, the farm has an abundant diversity of crops

Crops include green and purple asparagus, snap peas, strawberries, napa cabbage, red and gold beets, lettuce, tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, kale, chard, zucchini, onions, and garlic … lots of garlic.

As we looked out over the garlic field I asked Dusty if the garlic scapes growing on each plant would need to be cut by hand. Short answer: yes. It seemed a daunting task. “It looks overwhelming, but you just need to start working, and before you know it you look up and you’re at the end of the first row,” said Dusty.

Dusty, or his staff, make deliveries to the Co-op three times per week to keep up with demand and to keep the produce as fresh as possible.

Some produce from Broad Leaf Farm will be clearly labeled as such, but others may be labeled as “assorted Whatcom County growers,” particularly kale and other greens that have rapidly increased in popularity. To keep up with the demand from Co-op shoppers, many local, organic farms are now also growing these crops.

In keeping with Dusty’s love of farming, and his passion to continually care for and improve his land, he is growing chestnut trees to enhance the property and a winter rye cover crop, the seeds of which are also harvested for sale. He is experimenting with bamboo to use for poles. The bamboo was particularly beautiful with a dark burnished appearance that was so shiny it looked as if it had been varnished. In 2014, solar panels were installed on the farm and are now producing about one-quarter of the energy needs.

Luckily for all of us, Dusty has no plans to stop farming any time soon. “The years between 60 and 80 can be the best working years. In your 20s and 30s is when you should be traveling and trying out different things. When you get older is the time to stay put and work.”

Brownfield Orchards

by Dave Sands, Produce Department

Brownfield Orchards grows, harvests, packs, and delivers their premium-quality certified organic fruit directly from their orchard to our produce department.

The alarm goes off as Mike Brownfield wakes up in his house overlooking the orchard below, with the Columbia River just beyond. It’s early morning, and the certified organic fruit orchard near Chelan springs to life as Mike meets the crew at the packing shed nestled in the midst of 46 acres of fruit trees.

Brownfield Orchards, established by Mike’s grandfather, has been growing premium quality fruit for generations. The farm is in operation year-round producing many types of fruit that ripen in succession, thereby enabling the same crew to work throughout the year doing lots of off-season pruning between growing and harvest seasons. Brownfield Orchards is one of the few orchards that directly markets their own fruit, and over the years they have built their own packing facility and cold storage rooms from the ground up.

Produce Managers Dave Sands and Wynne Marks recently visited the farm to meet Mike Brownfield and gather first-hand knowledge about the fruit varieties he grows.

The first fruit to ripen are cherries, which are ready to pick in July. Mike packs the summer delicacies into a 20-pound box with special liners that allow the fruit to breathe and stay fresh during the trip over the mountains and to our stores. Next up are apricots, plums, yellow peaches, and a produce staff favorite—lasting just a short while—donut peaches! So much care and time goes into picking these fruits when ripe and allowing the flavors to fully develop; it’s a truly premium eating experience and we’d like to acknowledge and thank Mike and the entire crew at Brownfield Orchards for providing these jewels of summer stone fruit for our shoppers.

Once the soft fruit wanes, there are 10 apple varieties, including the ever popular Honeycrisp and Pink Lady, and three types of pears that we have to look forward to in the fall.

This summer, when you are shopping for something sweet and fresh, and grown in Washington by expert organic fruit growers, look for signs that say Farmer Direct from Brownfield Orchards in Chelan.

Hopewell Farm

by Dave Straub, Cordata produce department