Twenty-Four Hours with Upstream Farm

This is the third article in a series by Kath Keur in anticipation of her new digital publication Food Belt. Sign up for the email list today.

Last year, Seth and Rachel Parker purchased a plot of land twenty minutes outside of South Bend with ambitious plans of starting a vegetable farm. Rachel, a science teacher at Washington High School, had little experience in farming with the exception of a few house plants and herbs, and Seth had gained a small amount of knowledge from a summer job at a farm. The couple moved from their home in the Near Northwest Neighborhood to a small farmhouse on twelve acres of land in Buchanan, Michigan and began preparing for this year’s growing season following organic practices.

The twenty-four hours leading up to each Saturday market are always full with harvesting, washing, prepping, and packing. Here is a small window into their work:

Friday, Noon

In the barn, Seth and Rachel finish mixing and packaging greens for the salad mix and Rachel snaps a few photos for social media to share what veggies will be at the market tomorrow. They have already been working for hours, so they head inside for lunch to rest and refuel for an afternoon of work. 

Seth, an airplane mechanic at the South Bend Airport, dropped down to part-time in January in order to invest energy into the farm. Every Friday he is at the farm to work alongside Rachel preparing for Saturday’s market.

2:00 p.m.

Feeling reenergized for the day, they return to work. The last of the radishes are ready to be harvested from the row, but unfortunately the majority of this crop has already gone to seed and will be too bitter to sell. Only two bunches are salvaged, and the row will be cleared for a different crop to be planted in its place. But that’s a project for another day—today’s focus is on preparing for the market.

2:20 p.m.

Together the couple harvest turnips, and then split off to tackle the afternoon in succession, Rachel harvesting vegetables and passing off to Seth for washing and packaging. It’s currently early July and this is the most variety of produce they will have to offer yet this year.

3:30 p.m.

Back inside the barn, Seth is focused on washing the radishes, turnips, carrots, and onions in the large industrial washing station that he installed early this year. His experience in building and mechanics has been integral to the farm’s success.

4:00 p.m.

On the south side of the property, an impressive greenhouse stands tall having been raised earlier this spring with the help of friends and family. Inside, cucumber vines reach high through the rafters and trail back down, optimizing space and keeping the quick-to-rot vegetables off the moist ground. Among the rows, Rachel is hard at work harvesting the last of the cucumbers for this week’s market.

5:05 p.m.

Some of the last items to be harvested are the delicate herbs in order to preserve freshness for as long as possible. This week’s cilantro and basil are cut to be packaged, and the few remaining cherry tomatoes and okra are harvested from the greenhouse. The majority of the crop has been harvested throughout the week in order to prevent the vegetables from overripening. 

5:40 p.m.

Seth and Rachel gather around a mound of dried garlic and enjoy a moment to chat while cleaning and washing the first of the garlic bulbs to be ready this year. Becoming vegetable farmers was originally Seth’s vision, but it took little convincing for Rachel to be fully invested in the idea of growing and selling produce for a living.

6:20 p.m.

All of this week’s harvest is now carefully packaged in bins and placed in the barn’s walk-in cooler, an insulated room that Seth constructed and outfitted with an air conditioning unit and temperature regulator to keep produce fresh.

With the day’s work complete, the couple head inside for dinner and to rest before the following day begins.

Saturday, 7:30 a.m.

It’s a beautiful clear morning in July as Rachel pulls a sizzling pan of bacon sourced from Seth’s brother and sister-in-law’s farm down the street. Joel and Anna established Upstream Farm several years ago raising pastured pork and rotationally grazed beef before Seth and Rachel joined to grow produce. After a quick breakfast of bacon and biscuits, the work of loading the trailer for the market begins.

7:45 a.m.

While Seth loads the bins of veggies, signage, table, and tent from the barn into the trailer, Rachel writes out the week’s offerings on a chalkboard sign with pricing for each. 

The trailer is packed, and after a quick stop in the garage to check on the new barn kittens, they make the twenty-minute drive to The Near Northwest Neighborhood, just down the road from their former home, and set up their booth.

9:30 a.m.

A half hour before the market officially opens, eager customers begin stopping by Upstream Farm’s stand to check out this week’s offerings of fresh produce and locally raised meat. The Portage Farm Stands is a weekly market located right in the heart of The Near Northwest Neighborhood in an area where fresh produce is difficult to find.

10:45 a.m.

By mid-morning the small but mighty market is buzzing with activity and Upstream Farm’s stand is beginning to sell out of several of the week’s produce. By the end of the market they have sold out of onions, radishes, turnips, and cherry tomatoes.

12:15 pm

After a few stragglers leave, Seth and Rachel pack up the remaining produce and break down their display for the drive back to the farm. Any leftover vegetables are consumed by the couple throughout the coming week or preserved in some way to be utilized during the winter months when fresh produce in the midwest is sparse.

. . .

Pursuing a livelihood that is dependent on the changing seasons and dictated by weather patterns demands patience and self-discipline in order to succeed. Seth and Rachel have experienced several disappointments and failed crops this year, but they continue to be motivated and energized by the desire to work with the earth to provide quality food for their friends and neighbors.

Find Upstream Farm at the Portage Farm Stands, 1007 Portage Ave., every Saturday in the summer from 10am–12pm.