It’s Farm Tour Summer here at Western Colorado Alliance! “Sprouting New Futures,” our series of six two-hour tours of local farms, is a project of the Local Food and Agriculture Committee shepherded by Western Colorado Alliance regional organizer Nick Allan. And the goal of these tours is to connect consumers like you and me with local farmers, so we can see where food is grown in our community, and learn a little bit about how it’s done. We hope to show you that really good, healthy food is grown right here at home!

Farm Tour Summer started with a visit to Early Morning Orchard in Palisade. More than an orchard, EMO produces vegetables, tree fruit, and eggs in their main location near Mt. Garfield or at one of three other sites. Their naturally-grown food doesn’t travel far; it goes to local community food banks and to Skip’s Market in Fruita. The short trip keeps it really fresh!

Our second tour took us to Green Junction Farmstead near Palisade. Here, farmers Dawn and Brian grow a summer’s worth of vegetables that they sell through a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model and also at the Palisade Farmers Market. Dawn and Brian will tell you they grow healthy soil first because that’s the way to grow truly healthy vegetables.

The third tour to Hit the Hay Farm in north Fruita/Loma was a little different. Farmer Lowell King raises premium grass-fed cattle, and grows hay and corn for animal feed. Soil health here too comes first, because it’s important for growing healthy food and for taking care of the planet. Lucky cows graze on a nutritious blend of crops including grasses and legumes, and raise healthy, frolicky calves!

Our fourth tour is with the Lobato Farm in Fruita, where Farmer Lobato grows vegetables in soil that is increasingly healthy because of the farm’s regenerative practices, including “no-till” planting and the use of cover crops to feed the soil. Future plans for the Lobato Farm include an orchard and a vineyard. For our final two tours, we’ll leave the county to visit Highwater Farm in Silt and Freshies in Montrose.

Fresh food grown in healthy soil is nutritious — it’s good for us! And it’s good for our local economy when we “keep it local” by supporting our farmers. Our planet also benefits, from growing practices that preserve our soil’s fertility, reduce the need for harsh inputs, keep carbon in the soil where it belongs, and help us reduce our water use.

We hope to see you at a farm tour this summer!