I think most of us are familiar with the concept of a farmer’s market. These are gatherings of local vendors who often meet in parking lots on specified days of the week to create a pop-up style shopping experience. You can find a variety of things at a farmer’s market, from vegetables, fruits and meat to flowers, jewelry, and clothing. They’re lovely community events that help connect consumers with their food whilst supporting farms directly.
In the Duluth-Two Harbors area, there’s a different kind of market called the Clover Valley Farm Trail (CVFT). The CVFT is a cooperative community of farmers in the—you guessed it—Clover Valley, who all maintain farmstands on location. From June 15 until October 5 you’ll find farm stands open every Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Some stands are open other days as well, but rest assured, the farm stands are usually open for your weekly Sunday drive. The CVFT website (clovervalleyfarmtrail.com) is the best way to keep abreast of the farms who are part of the trail, but I want to share a few of them here with you.
Field.Store.House.
This will be the first growing season for Field.Store.House. in their Ryan Road location. Owners Tony Weston and Seth O’Donovan came to Minnesota after a nationwide search for a place to set down roots for their dreams of combining farming and hospitality. With a background working in Michelin level restaurants, they have a passion for growing food that connects the growing and cooking and hosting experiences. They were drawn to Clover Valley’s farming history and the connection to the woodlands of northern Minnesota.
“We moved here last May, traded work/farm chores on another farm on the trail (Little Chili Farm) for a spot to land our tiny house and animals while we property searched, and found this 40-acre old dairy farm for sale over on Ryan Road,” said O’Donovan. “We moved onto the property in November, and this will be our first growing season. We planted garlic first thing last fall and have about 1,000 plant starts going for our early spring planting for our market garden. This year will be a huge learning curve/getting-to-know-you season with this soil and site, and we’re really excited about it. We’re currently on the search for a used high tunnel or caterpillar tunnels to help out with some wind-reduction for some of the more ‘summer’ crops (tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers), so we’ll see if that manifests. We grew a test plot of vegetables at Little Chili last summer just to see how lots of our Colorado seeds would fare in a new climate and were really encouraged.”
O’Donovan continued, “This summer we’ll be running our farm stand (open Thursday through Sunday every week), cooking a brunch pop-up at Dreamcloud coffee roasters for the month of May (and possibly all summer if it goes well), and hosting five field dinners from produce from our garden and other sourcing nearby. We have big dreams for the final expression of this property/project, but in the meantime, we believe that we should always offer whatever we can to folks, and without any finished buildings on the property yet, those three activities are what we can offer. We just really believe in the crafts of our hospitality vocations (cooking, hosting, fermenting, etc.) to be a very key connector for the public to be able to weave their own perspectives of the world with what’s happening with land, stewardship, and farming in the U.S. and believe the way to people’s hearts and minds is through care and kindness and feeding them.”
O’Donovan finished by saying, “We’re really excited to be welcomed to the farm trail even as first year growers and think that helping folks find a network of farms in the area is so important to them finding it worth the trip out here. We also really love the group identity as a farming valley (that has an amazingly rich farming community history up here on the North Shore) that the farm trail brings to all of us working on growing here.”
Farm du Nord
Farmers Blane and Bridget Tetreault have a 10-acre farm where they grow a variety of fruits, vegetables, and native plants. You will often find their farm stand stocked with these along with freshly baked goods like scones, bread, cookies, and dog treats—a perfect pick-me-up on a Sunday drive.
From Blane and Bridget: “We believe in being culture-makers instead of just culture-consumers. We strive to be the change we wish to see in the world. Building our local community is important to us because it contributes to our mental and physical health and that of others. Knowing where our food comes from is also important. Helping to create a sustainable local economy is part of that. That provides independence from disruptions nationally or internationally.”
They continued, saying, “Being a part of the farm trail helps build our local community by connecting us with like-minded individuals and farms. The opportunity to serve community members via the fruits of our labor is very fulfilling. Right now, this is the only place where people can buy our baked goods and produce.”
These are just two of the current 12 farms who are part of the CVFT. Aside from vegetables, here are some examples of what the current 12 farms might entice you with: Agate Acres welcomes you with flower bouquets, eggs, and locally made barbecue sauce. Boreal Bounty Farm would love to share their herbs, apples, and canned goods like cucumber relish, salsa, and sauerkraut. Clover Valley Farms shares their special vinegars and herb-infused salts, wool roving and yarn, and wood turn artwork. Draupnir Farm has cultivated mushrooms, hand-harvested wild rice, horseradish, and various salves and tinctures, wool, sheepskins, and artwork. Farm du Nord shares their delicious baked goods, farm fresh eggs, and Lake Superior Surfing gear. Field.Store.House. hopes you will stop by for a field dinner coming soon. Little Chili Farm provides goats milk and cheese, flowers, and various baked and canned goods. Little Waldo Farm loves native pollinator plants, fresh cut flowers, and honey and beeswax products. Lucky Dog Farm loves to share seedlings, fruits, and vegetables. Shoreview Natives loves “creating pollinator habitat, one yard at a time,” and would welcome consulting with you on a project. SolFed Farm shares their garden produce, seedlings, and farm fresh eggs. Sörestad gets excited about early greens, strawberries, melons, and eggs.
If you’re like me, you may be surprised to learn of the farming history in what is often an unforgiving place. The surrounding area is full of thick clay that is impossible to dig, let alone plant in. The growing seasons are short, with last frost well into May, and first frost at the end of September. However, these farmers make it work using sustainable farming practices, permaculture (finding a way to work with the land instead of against it), and a whole lot of heart. As a result, there is a lovely community of farmers in the Clover Valley who seek to help each other out. So, this summer, pull out a map, grab your adventurous spirit, maybe a hungry belly, and go for a Sunday drive to check out the Clover Valley Farm Trail.
