Grown In Marin 

Small Row Crop Farms in Marin

September in Marin is a great month to showcase your farm. Harvest is peaking and brilliantly fresh food is everywhere. The three small family farms featured here are typical of the kind of operation emerging in Marin County: family owned, premium quality production, and attention to sustainable practices.

       Peter Worsley farms in four different locations in West Marin. Peter's Tomales location reveals much about his careful attention to detail and quality. Two acres of potatoes, dried black beans, and perfect delicata squash stretch out in the rich, loamy Tomales soil. The long rows of delicata squash are thick and green, and rows of mature black beans for drying extend across the gently sloping ground. Peter has been growing his dry bean crop for a few years now, and the pails of shiny black beans he has on hand look like they would make a great soup. His operation is a model small vegetable farm. He chooses his crops carefully, selects only the best product for market, and displays and distributes it with a modest smile. Peter's main outlets are the Point Reyes farmers' market on Saturdays. But you need to get there early. By noon he is completely sold out.

     Janet Brown and Marty Jacobson always have had great heirloom tomatoes, but this year they outdid themselves. Along with the Brandywines and Green Zebras, the farmers have added to their successes with a new portfolio of hot-weather veggies like  tasty and rare heirloom peppers and truckloads of sweet juicy melons. The melons are what really get you. The crane variety, developed in Santa Rosa, is outstanding and has turned into a signature for the farm. The choice of hot-weather varieties is smart, as most of our row crop farms are coastal and grown for the cool weather climate. What we need to round out crop mix in Marin has been filled in a sweet and tasty fashion!

       Canvas Ranch straddles Marin and Sonoma counties in the Two Rock area. Its twenty-six acres are owned and run by Deborah Walton and Tim Schaible with the able help of Courtney Delello, farm manager. The farm is a mix of specialty livestock, vegetable row crops and dog breeding. Canvas Ranch runs a fifty-four member CSA that has been very successful and well managed, with drops in Sonoma and Marin counties. The boxes include fresh produce, eggs, and edibles from Canvas Ranch and neighboring farms.

       On the animal side, they raise cashmere goats, Southdown, "Babydoll" sheep, Maremma livestock guardian dogs, and Arucana layers. The Southdown sheep enterprise reflects Deborah's savvy marketing knowledge. Southdown is a small, short-legged breed that is ideal for weed control in vineyards and orchards. Deborah leases the "Babydolls" out to vineyards and orchards, and also breeds livestock for sale. The cashmere goats provide cashmere that will become added-value products, and the guard dogs are handy to have around in coyote country.

       The Canvas Ranch operation is diversified and will become more so. They are adding lavender and plan on distilling for essential oils. The operation is a great example of  mixing of plant and animal agriculture for added value.

       What's special about these farms? They represent a growing and key segment of our local food system. The larger conventional farms and ranches do the heavy lifting, but these "micro-farms" provide us with specialty local foods and fresh products. Because they are not bound by commodity pricing structures and world competition, these farmers are free to experiment with emerging niche markets. Sure, it's risky and some enterprises don't pencil out. But the scale of these farms allow for creative marketing and consumer sampling opportunities that may eventually make it up the food chain to influence the industries.

       That's all important, but equally important to economics and marketing issues is the simple truth that these small farmers love what they do, and their efforts appear on our tables and add to the quality of our lives.