3 minute read
Ranch life: Turner Farms 406
family Life
on the Ranch
Turner Farms 406 continues to shine in suburban Missoula
WRITTEN BY REBECCA COLNAR PHOTOS TURNER FARMS
Turner Farms 406, with its appealing farm store, market garage, hogs, sheep, pumpkin patch, vegetables and more, is an oasis amid the bustle of Missoula suburbia. The farm, which the Montana Farm Bureau Spokesman featured several years ago, has expanded by adding a few acres and renovated buildings, some from the Orchard Homes subdivision dating back to 1910.
The Turner family has been growing their farm since 2006, when the boys wanted to buy bunk beds and had to contribute to their bunk bed fund. They had been harvesting more than their share of corn and vegetables that year, so they got creative and set up a farm stand in the driveway for friends and family. The kids made enough money for bunk beds, and the family decided that selling their home-grown produce was an excellent small business they could all participate in and enjoy.
Since the Spokesman article, the Turner boys have grown up; two headed to college, and the youngest, Gus, to high school. Ethan returned after receiving a degree in agricultural business from Montana State University.
“After I graduated, my parents hired me as their farm manager,” Ethan said. “I’m developing a plan on where the farm is headed and taking care of the animals. Going through 4-H and FFA was my preliminary experience in agriculture, and attending the College of Ag at MSU was an educational and excellent experience. I looked around in college and realized many people didn’t understand where their food came from.”
Over time, the Northwest County Farm Bureau members switched from selling at farmers markets to having people come to the farm to purchase home-grown produce. Today, their produce is for sale via the honor system in their farm store, a charmingly renovated horse barn, which opened in 2018. Most of their business is word-of-mouth, along with a website and social media.
The young farmer said that, in the urban/suburban interface, reaching out to the public with agri-tourism can generate additional income. The Turners repurposed a garage, now called their “Market Garage,” adding the necessary furniture and equipment which they rent for business parties, wedding receptions and other events.
Turner Farms held a farm-to-table event in August with 30 people attending. The Valentine’s Dinner in February (Gus’s project) brought people to a delicious farm-to-table event that raised money for the Montana Farm Bureau Foundation.
Although they still offer Consumer Supported Agriculture (CSA), the job of harvesting the vegetables has switched from Ethan’s brothers and grandmother to farm interns from high school responsible for the CSA.
Ethan’s passion is educating young people about agriculture, and he has introduced a summer day camp where he hopes youth can learn the fundamentals of agriculture. The age groups include 6 to 7-year-old Sprouts and 8 to 13-year-old Young Farmers.
“I had some incredible teachers starting with 4-H, and I feel the need to pass that knowledge down.”
Rebecca Colnar is Director of Public Relations for Montana Farm Bureau and a freelance writer from Custer, Montana.
