Slow Farm Organic

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Slow Farm has both an on-site farm stand selling pre-harvested organic produce and a U-Pick (pick-it-yourself) operation. As a certified organic farm and a diversified farm (we grow lots of different crops), we are unique among U-Pick farms and offer a hands-on experience of ecologically and socially-minded growing.

Please see below for information on both our farm stand and U-Pick. Updates on what’s available when and other news will be sent via our newsletter (sign up at the bottom of the page!) and posted on our Facebook and Instagram. Do give us a follow!

Farm Stand and U-picK HOURS

June 1-10 open Saturdays Only from 9am-3pm: The farmstand is open and staffed on Saturdays with whatever we have available for purchase. We also still have asparagus upick on Saturdays, and will soon be adding upick for garlic scapes and some beautiful lettuces. We accept cash, card, check, Venmo, SNAP/EBT, and DUFB.

Strawberries: We are getting lots of questions about when we will have strawberries! They are running a bit late this year because of some late frosts and almost no rain for the past several weeks. As of June 1 we are seeing lots of blossoms but only the tiniest fruits so far. Our best guess is that they will start ripening sometime after June 10th. Once strawberry season starts we will be open Wednesday thru Sunday from 9am-3pm.

After June 10th: Once we have strawberries we will have open hours Wednesday thru Sunday from 9am-3pm.

Self-serve Fridge guidelines

Self-Serve Fridge: See prices in blue tape on the fridge. Please bring exact change or a check to put in the cashbox on the camper. Or Venmo @SlowFarmOrganic.

What To Expect at the Farm:

• Biodiversity: Slow Farm has approximately 20 acres under cultivation and grows about 100 different varieties of fruits, vegetables, and flowers. Since we support biodiversity in all its dimensions, we have plenty of weeds and all kinds of insects and butterflies and birds. Be prepared to deal with that aspect of the farm and try to notice the amazing variety and diversity that you see, hear, smell, touch, and taste.

• Pricing: We sell most of our U-Pick crops by the pound and by the bunch. Most are between $2/lb.-$6/lb. Strawberries are $7/pound.

• Bathroom situation: There is a porta-john onsite, but no running water.

• The Ark of Taste: Since we believe in preserving the agricultural genius of our ancestors, we grow as many heirloom or Slow Food Ark of Taste varieties as we can and many from locally grown seeds.
  
  Learn more about the international Slow Food Ark of Taste, a directory of the world's most delicious and endangered foods, and more specifically about foods on the USA's Ark of Taste. Here’s a list of Slow Farm’s Ark of Taste tomatoes. Some of these we grow every year and some we rotate. Take a look and see what catches your eye for when you come to the farm!

What To Bring:

• Your own containers and bags if you would can (we love to prevent and reduce waste!).

• Sturdy shoes.

• Protective clothing.

• Hat/sunglasses.

• Water.

• Sunscreen.

U-Pick Etiquette and Best Practices: The first rule of the farm is: Don’t hurt the plants. That means unless it is a root, like a carrot or a beet, don’t pull it out of the ground and don’t break off the top. Only take mature, fully grown produce. These taste the best and are what we sell. Please don’t harvest the baby size.

Each crop has a particular way that it should be harvested and if you don’t know or forget what that is - please ask!! Greens, like kale and collards, should be harvested one leaf at a time, just a couple of mature leaves from each plant snapped off near the stem, starting from the bottom. Similarly for herbs - take 1 sprig at a time.

For things like eggplant, peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, and okra we provide clippers to make it easier to separate them from the stem - please don’t pull them off because this could break the plant. And we have shovels if you need help digging carrots and beets. We are very happy to help and we have tools that we can lend you - so again, please ask :)

Directions:

From M-14 East: 
- Take Barton Drive exit
- Turn right on Barton Dr.
- Continue north on Whitmore Lake Rd., approximately 2 miles
- Slow Farm’s main U-Pick and farmstand are on the left (west side of the road) at 4700 Whitmore Lake Rd.. Look for our sign and a camper/market stand and wagon.

From M-14 West:
- Take Whitmore Lake Rd. Exit (Exit 4)
- Turn right on Whitmore Lake Rd.
- Continue north on Whitmore Lake Rd., approximately 2 miles
- Slow Farm’s main U-Pick and farmstand are on the left (west side of the road) at 4700 Whitmore Lake Rd.. Look for our sign and a camper/market stand and wagon.

Questions?

We’re happy to answer them. Send us an email at slowfarmorganic@gmail.com.