Grow Skagit Spring 2020 by Skagit Publishing

COLORFUL VEGGIES: Unique crop a valuable source of income PAGE 2

ORGANIC LEEKS: A profitable business for Mount Vernon farm

PAGE 4

AN EVOLUTION: Changing consumer tastes spur farmers to alter what they grow PAGE 6

A SUPPLEMENT TO THE SK AGIT VALLEY HERALD AND ANACORTES AMERICAN

2 - Wednesday, March 25, 2020

GrowSkagit

PURPLE SPROUTING BROCCOLI

Colorful vegetable a profitable new crop for farmer Francisco Cabrera holds a purple spouted broccoli floret March 12 at Viva Farms west of Burlington. He has 1 acre of the crop and said sales have been strong.

Story and photos by JACQUELINE ALLISON Skagit Valley Herald

In the produce section of the grocery store, purple sprouting broccoli is likely to catch your attention. The vegetable — only available in later winter and spring — has provided consumers with a burst of color for their salads and an exciting alternative to regular broccoli. It is also a valuable source of late winter and early spring income for some Pacific Northwest farmers, including Francisco Cabrera. Cabrera grows 1 acre of purple sprouting broccoli

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on the 10 acres he farms at Viva Farms, the small-farm incubator west of Burlington. In two seasons of growing the crop, sales have been good, Cabrera said through an interpreter. So good he doubled the acreage this season. “It’s sustainable because everything sells,” he said. Cabrera said his other crops, including strawberries and many kinds of vegetables, are not ready for harvest until late spring and summer.

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“(Purple sprouting broccoli) gives us extra money in the winter to support us,” he said. Cabrera sells the product through a contract between Viva Farms and Organically Grown Company, a Portland-based wholesale distributor. He grows three varieties of purple sprouting broccoli, which were specifically developed for Pacific Northwest growers. The Organic Seed Alliance initiated the project in 2009 with funding from the Port Townsend Food Co-op to expand winter crops for farmers, said Micaela Colley, program director for Organic Seed Alliance, a Port Townsendbased nonprofit. “Purple Sprouting Broccoli is an older European winter crop that used to be more prevalent in England in particular,” Colley said in an email. “Organic Seed Alliance helped revive this crop in response to farmers and chef’s desire for more local produce in the winter time as it is harvested MarchApril in the Pacific Northwest.” She said purple sprouting broccoli is different than other broccoli in that it is planted in the summer, grows through the winter and is harvested in late winter. She said the broccoli gets it color from genetics, and the cold weather brings out an antioxidant anthocyanin, which is also found in other purple-colored foods.

Purple sprouting broccoli is sold in early spring at retail stores and restaurants in the Pacific Northwest.

“Farmers can’t plant other broccolis and achieve the same thing,” Colley said. Mike Neubeck, director of purchasing for Organically Grown Company, said the Portland-based wholesale distributor sells purple sprouting broccoli to grocery stores and restaurants around the Pacific Northwest and San Francisco Bay Area. “Purple sprouting broccoli increases in popularity and recognition each year,” he said in an email. When cooked, purple sprouting broccoli turns a deep green, and is mild

and sweet with tender stems, according to Organic Seed Alliance. Cabrera said he experiments each year with new seeds and different ways of growing crops. “Some farmers are really established and know which crops are profitable for them and can be stable,” he said. “For me, I’m still experimenting and finding different crops until I find the balance that makes me a profit.” He said after he leaves Viva Farms, he would like to have his own farm, of at least 20 acres, in Skagit County.

Visit growskagit.com for stories in this issue and similar content. Cover photo • Jacqueline Allison Skagit Valley Herald

Rows of purple sprouting broccoli grow March 12 at Viva Farms west of Burlington.

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4 - Wednesday, March 25, 2020

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RALPH’S GREENHOUSE

Mount Vernon farm finds success with organic leeks Story by JACQUELINE ALLISON • Photos by CHARLES BILES Skagit Valley Herald

After 20 years of dairy farming in Skagit County, Ralph de Vries retired and started a garden on his west Mount Vernon farm. In search of a new vegetable to grow, he went to a Seattle produce market for a suggestion. Leeks. Ray de Vries said his father, who died in 1993, took the suggestion and planted 1 acre. The crop grew so well the first season that his father was only able to fit four leeks in a 10-pound box, de Vries said. The next time, the customer asked for smaller leeks. “That was the start of Ralph’s Greenhouse,” de Vries said.

when Ray de Vries was 5, and his father milked cows on a dairy farm in East Los Angeles. After two years, Ralph de Vries moved his family to Skagit County to start his own dairy farm. “As kids, we were very glad to move,” de Vries said. “It was just the wrong climate for people from a marine climate. The weather here in Skagit County is absolutely similar (to Netherlands.) Fir Island — that’s exactly Friesland, (Netherlands).” The maritime climate is ideal for cool-weather crops such as leeks, carrots, beets, parsnips, chard and kale — all grown at Ralph’s Greenhouse. De Vries said when his dad started growing leeks, few farms GROWING DEMAND were doing it. In 1988, when Ray de Vries “They’re a lot of work, they started farming with his dad, they grow slow, but they’ll over-winplanted 3 acres of leeks, a milder ter,” he said. cousin of the onion. He said leeks take six to nine “As people recognized that months to grow, and the farm there were leeks available, the harvests the crop 10 months of market slowly grew,” de Vries the year. said. “There was a time in the 90s Today, the 250-acre organic when we (supplied) a significant farm — which Ray runs with wife portion of the leek supply across Becky de Vries — grows about 60 the United States,” de Vries said. to 80 acres of leeks. If you see leeks in the grocery “Simply because we have an ideal store, they’re likely from Ralph’s climate. We don’t grow oranges or olives well, but leeks (grow well).” Greenhouse. De Vries said the farm’s marThe farm is the only comket area today is concentrated in mercial grower of leeks in Skagit the Western United States and County, and a primary grower of the vegetable in the Puget Sound Canada, and some product is sold on the East Coast. region. ‘Organic works really well’ What can you make with leeks? De Vries said when his father “Breakfast, lunch and dinner,” emigrated from the Netherlands, de Vries said. For breakfast — omelettes. For he brought his farming practices with him. lunch — soups and salads. For “We always farmed organic in dinner — steamed leeks with butHolland — that was called farmter and Parmesan, stir fry and as a ing,” he said. topping on pizzas. Ralph’s Greenhouse became certified organic in 1988, the IDEAL CLIMATE same year the state Department The de Vries family immiof Agriculture started its organic grated to the United States from program, according to the farm’s Friesland, Netherlands, in 1958 website.

ABOVE: Ray de Vries demonstrates harvesting leeks Feb. 27 at his farm near Mount Vernon. LEFT: Organic leeks are stacked after harvest.

healthy soil producing healthy crops, and a healthier farm for people to work on. It’s a win-win.” The farm grows cover crops — such as grass and wheat to improve soil quality but not for harvest — to add organic nutrients back into the soil. “A fallow (field) means you’re letting your soil have a vacation to recoup and rejuvenate itself for next year’s crop,” de Vries said. Cover crops also help hold De Vries said for fertilizer, the also killed all the beneficial bugs, farm uses manure, compost, and and now you have to re-establish nutrients that would otherwise be washed away by rain. certified organic fertilizers. It also the beneficial bugs to make the “People need to know where applies an insect-killing soap — whole system grow again,” de their food comes from and how certified for use in organic garVries said. it is grown,” de Vries said. “There He said another benefit of dening — to deal with pests. are so few farmers left that it’s He said chemical pesticides can organic farming is that the farm doesn’t have to worry about work- kind of an oddity. People need to harm beneficial microbes in the ers being exposed to chemicals. soil. make the connection that you are “Organic farming works really what you eat. They need to know “You’ve killed whatever bug well,” de Vries said. “You have you’re trying to kill, but you’ve their farmers.”

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dishes that are sure to delight your taste buds. What’s more, you’ll always get a warm welcome and the most attentive service! It’s never too late to step outside your comfort zone and try something new. So, if you’ve been meaning to try the French bistro a couple of blocks away or that Thai place your coworkers keep raving about, now’s as good a time as ever. Who knows — maybe you’ll even become a regular! What are you waiting for? It’s time to treat yourself to the best cuisine your region has to offer. Reserve a table at a local restaurant for an evening of friendly faces and fantastic tastes. Bon appétit!

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6 - Wednesday, March 25, 2020

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CONSTANT EVOLUTION

Farmers try new crops as consumer preferences change Story by JACQUELINE ALLISON

Potatoes, like these red potatoes pictured in September at Skagit Valley Farm’s processing facility near Burlington, are the county’s top crop by acreage. Charles Biles Skagit Valley Herald

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For generations, Skagit County’s farmers supported themselves on green peas. In 1968, the crop covered about 32,300 acres in the county, and growers earned about $6.1 million annually from peas — about $45 million in today’s dollars — according to agriculture statistics from the Washington State University Skagit County Extension. “Skagit County used to produce about one-quarter of the nation’s green peas,” said Dave Hedlin of Hedlin Farms in La Conner. “There were about 12 processors here at peak, so it was big. Just about everybody put themselves through school working in peas.” Hedlin said green peas, like other legumes, improve soil quality by adding nitrogen and have a short growing season, which made them a good rotation crop for farmers. Peas are no more in Skagit County. After the last processing plant left in 2010 following a decline in demand for frozen peas, farmers stopped growing the crop. For Skagit County farmers, what crop has replaced peas? Today, potatoes are a mainstay for many farmers. By 2000, potatoes had pulled ahead of green peas as the county’s top crop by acreage. In 2018, Skagit County growers planted 12,000 acres of potatoes and earned $60 million, according to the extension’s statistics. Farmers have also started growing a greater

Skagit Valley Herald

Skagit Valley Herald file

Skagit County farmers are making a profit growing grains for niche industries such as malting and craft brewing.

diversity of crops. About 90 are grown commercially in Skagit County, according to the extension’s 2018 agriculture statistics. Hedlin said his farm has found a niche in growing fresh-market vegetables, and sells about 15 to 20 kinds of vegetables. He said the need to diversify grew out of the increasing consolidation in agriculture, such as farms becoming larger over time. “In an area like Skagit, we have to find ways to differentiate ways in the marketplace,” Hedlin said. “We’ll never be the lowcost producer for the commodity market. We’re not going to produce an acre of grain cheaper than some farm in Iowa.” Hedlin said Skagit County farmers have found success growing grains for niche industries, such as malting and craft brewing. “They add value so we

don’t have to compete in the brutal commodity market,” Hedlin said. He said farmers also have an opportunity to connect with consumers through more education on where their food comes from. “People are going to want to know where their food is produced, who is producing it, and how it’s produced,” Hedlin said. Brussels sprouts is one crop that has taken off in the Skagit County in the past five years. In 2018, 1,600 acres were planted, up from a few acres in 2010, according to the extension’s statistics. Skagit Valley Farm grows a majority of the Brussels sprouts. Founder and CEO Tony Wisdom said the farm grew its first Brussels sprouts in 2015, and planted more acres as demand rose. “I think American consumers are waking up to a variety of uses for Brussels sprouts,” he said. “Historically it was kind of around and Americans boiled it to death and no one liked it. Now we’re roasting it and deep-frying (Brussels sprouts) … It’s on almost every eating establishment’s menu in the country.” Wisdom said Skagit County’s moderate maritime climate works well for Brussels sprouts, which don’t do well in hot weather. “On the flipside, it is extremely difficult to grow Brussels sprouts — they are susceptible to disease pressure, and it’s a long season,” he said. Pioneer Potatoes is the other grower of Brussels

Wednesday, March 25, 2020 - 7

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Washington State University Skagit County Extension

A historic photo of a pea harvest in Skagit County. Peas were a dominant crop here for generations, until the last pea processing plant left in 2010.

and grandfather who grew peas for many years, Thulen said “peas were perfect” because of their short growing season and ability to add nitrogen back to the soil. Now, consumer preferences have changed. Thulen said younger generations, such as his niece and

nephew, are more likely to want a whole pea pod than a pea. “As farmers we’re looking for what’s ahead and what people want (to eat),” he said. “And that’s hard. It helps if a chef or magazine comes out with new thing, and we see if we could grow that crop here.”

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