Brian and Roxane have been farming since 2010, and vending with the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market since 2013. This permaculture farm specializes in heirloom vegetables, especially heirloom tomatoes. Growing tomatoes in northern New Mexico can be a challenge but they think they’ve found the right combination of hoop houses and thermal mass. They use chicken tractors as a integral part of their farm, and they brew compost tea. This liquid gold supplements the soil and plants around the farm.
A chat with Bryan in April, 2018
What is a signature item that you sell? Free range, pastured, sprouted grain fed chicken eggs
What’s the best way to store it / how long will it keep? All the eggs at market are harvested that week, so they keep in the fridge for a long time, at least 1 month.
How long have you been farming? 6 years
How long have you been a member of the Market? Since 2013
Share a favorite memory of the Market: It wasn’t a favorite, but the most striking memory was backing into a pole in the parking lot before the start of the market. That was a wake-up call.
How did you get into farming? Accidentally. We were growing things for ourselves then started selling microgreens, salad and cooking greens at the Los Vegas Market. We kept expanding.
Do you own or rent the land you grow on? Own.
Are you certified organic? No pesticides? Free-range? Hormone free? No pesticides, and our animals are free range and hormone free. We are not certified organic, but follow organic as well as permaculture principles.
How was your growing season last year? This year? Last year wasn’t bad. We grow year round in greenhouses, so weather vagaries are less of an issue for us. This year is going pretty good. It would be nice if we got rain. Though we do use ponds, wells, and water catchment that can hold up to 10,000 gallons on water.