Local Farm Highlight: Rose Story Farms
In preparation for Mother’s Day and the rose bouquets in this week's produce box, we visited Rose Story Farms in Carpentaria, California to check out their land.
We are grateful to get the chance to collaborate with the farm on our Mother's Day boxes, and even more grateful to visit their space. While on the grounds, we got the opportunity to speak with them about the importance of shopping local, Farm Box Collective, and sustainable agriculture.
View from inside the canopy of roses located at the entrance of the farm:
Farm Box: Why do you think supporting local farms is important?
Rose Story: “There’s really no choice, it’s just the right thing to do. We have to support local business, especially right now.”
Farm Box: "What do you see are the benefits of The Farm Box Collective?"
Rose Story: “It’s great to gather lots of small farms together in one box. We can specialize in one thing, but joining together is important for farms and consumers.”
Farm Box: "How many varieties do you grow here?"
Rose Story: “Over 200 varieties, along with companion plants such as native herbs, lavender, nasturtium flowers, thyme, mint, citrus, and avocados.”
Farm Box: What’s your favorite rose variety? Rose Story: “Madame Paul Massad, it’s got a beautiful creamy peach color!”
Farm Box: "Do you incorporate animals into the operation in any way?"
Rose Story: “We have chickens currently, and in the past have allowed ducks to roam to control snail populations.”
Farm Box: "What are you doing to improve your sustainability practices and environmental impact?"
Rose Story: “We’ve been doing drip line irrigation for years to limit water use, and we use all organic fertilizer.”
Multiple rose varieties interspersed with native herbs and citrus:
Roses are delicate and prone to fungal infections that are necessarily sprayed for on occasion. Although this prevents Rose Story Farms from being certified Organic, they are still a great example of land stewardship and sustainability.
They are able to balance productivity with biological diversity in a great way. Focusing on biological diversity, organic soil amendments, and planting native species alongside the roses to provide habitat for pollinators helps both the farm and the surrounding ecosystem.
Avocado interplanted with roses and Buddha. Avocado trees are great companion plants with the citrus and flowers:
The importance of shopping local, supporting small farmers, and sustainable agriculture is not missed on Rose Story Farms, which is why we proudly collaborated with them for our farm box Mother's Day bouquets.