Farming is often trial and error, especially in a county of varying soil, climates and other factors that may not allow some visions to come to fruition.
Even if self-grown pumpkins didn’t really pan out this year at Gather and Feast Farm in La Center, farm owner Mark Lopez said he will be bringing in Clark County-grown pumpkins by way of Bi-Zi Farms.
Also, the ever-popular Scottish Highland cows will still put on a show for visitors to the farm, as well as other farm animals and even flowers still in bloom.
The fall vibes will be strong at the agritourism farm. Lopez said as the pumpkins are placed in the field, self-service pumpkin picking and self-guided farm tours with a spooky forest to walk through will be going on every day of the week.
Lopez will even be extending the farm hours to 8 p.m. for people wanting to walk the spooky forest under the light of the moon.
On Saturday, Oct. 11, Gather and Feast Farm will host a day of Pepper Palooza — created by Warren Neth, co-owner of Cosmic Carrot Farm in Yelm, who previously farmed in Clark County. Lopez’s portion of Pepper Palooza will focus on smoked peppers. Lopez added that he plans to bust out either brats or pizza for the event, as well, as he has a food license for his catering company.
For more updates on October farm plans, visit gatherandfeastfarm.com. The farm can also be found on social media under the farm name. The farm is located at 2706 NE 369th St. in La Center.
Are smaller farms about to be even harder to come across?
This fall harvest has been slightly different for Lopez.
Pumpkins didn’t go as planned, and he also needs to wear an important hat in the midst of one of the most crucial times of year for farmers. Lopez attended the in-person workshop on the Clark County Comprehensive Plan Agricultural Lands Study on Tuesday, Sept. 30, in Battle Ground.
“So this fall, we’re putting our farm advocacy hats on,” Lopez said. “Along with turning beds over, getting them ready for winter or for cover crop and then moving animals around to continue to rotationally graze.”
While the farm is in the middle of planning for next spring, over-wintering and more this fall season, Gather and Feast Farm offers a unique opportunity for visitors.
What exactly is Gather and Feast Farm’s role in Clark County farming importance? Well, the answer to that question is simple: providing the chance for the general public to engage in self-guided tours of a working small-acreage farm with diverse plants and animals.
And just how important is providing a first-hand look at farming in a day and age where farmland in Clark County is under the microscope for development?
“I think it’s paramount,” Lopez answered. “I mean, deep down, most people know, like, ‘OK, yeah, our food comes from a farm of some sort.’ I think in 2020, just physically looking at empty shelves in grocery stores, made that link a lot more painfully obvious.”
When the question of food security comes up, Lopez goes straight to the access and the ability to produce food in the short-, medium- and long-term.
“We always had a garden growing up, and that’s how I became a tomatoholic,” Lopez said. “And that’s what planted the seed for me to have a farm, is I love fresh tomatoes. … Then coming from a culinary background, it’s easier to make good food when you start with good ingredients. So, those are a couple pieces of the puzzle that I think about.”
Lopez previously attended a small farm conference at Oregon State University in Corvallis in the early years of his farming endeavors. His biggest takeaway is the percentage of farmers from the pioneer days to present times.
“Back in the late 1800s, 92 percent of the population farmed, and I was like, ‘Wow that’s a high number,’” he said, adding that the percentage of the population that farmed when he attended the conference was less than 2%. “That just absolutely blew my mind and I was like, ‘OK, I feel like I’m on the right path. I feel like this is to be something that we do not lose.’ And it’s been a journey since then from learning how to seed save and learning how to be beyond organic and less soil disturbance and be more regenerative.”
But when Lopez met a husband and wife who grow enough wheat to make a loaf of bread per week in an entire year, that “something that we do not lose,” turned into a realization that farming is something soon to be lost. Lopez said they told him how they could not find a small-scale wheat processor and practically had to build one from scratch for their own use. An issue arose right then and there as tools for small farming and to be self-sufficient have grown increasingly hard to come by.
