Edible Food Find: The Front Yard Farm
Photos by Michael Piazza
The Front Yard Farm truly embodies the phrase “bloom where you are planted.” It’s the creation of two young aspiring farmers who turned a construction yard into acres of vegetables they sell on an honor system to a community that embraces it all.
Kelly Wheeler, 36, who earned a degree in sustainable agriculture from UMass Amherst, and Chris Allard, 40, who ran a concrete company, dreamt of someday having their own farm. They bought a house from Allard’s grandfather on land where he had operated an excavation business. “It was basically a big sand pit,” says Wheeler. “Our plan was to flip the house and buy a real farm.”
In the process of fixing up the house, Wheeler and Allard started building a garden by sheet mulching the front yard, smothering the grass with organic material and mulch. Little by little as they built up the soil, the couple added more rows. Then they worked on a patch beyond the house—it’s now bounteous with squash and asparagus.
“It was inspiring,” says Wheeler. “We were showing what you could do with property that’s not farmland.” It was also a major undertaking for them. “We put a lot of sweat equity into it,” adds Allard. Over time, the couple realized that they were already living on their dream farm.
They bought used greenhouses and erected them on the property. Now there are three heated greenhouses; the largest, with computerized ventilation and watering systems, contains row upon row of raised beds with tomato plants, basil, ginger, kale and peppers.
A fourth greenhouse is used for early crops like spinach, peas and salad greens. Wheeler started selling their vegetables at nearby farmers markets and in 2015 she and Allard formed The Front Yard Farm as a business. They built a small farm stand, stocking it daily with freshly picked produce.
“People really responded to the stand from the beginning,” Wheeler says. “We had customers from the farmers markets who found us and people liked that they could drive up and shop at their own convenience.”
The farm stand is located on Highway 32, a busy stretch of road between Barre and Palmer. “We thought being on a busy highway was a disadvantage when we bought the house,” Wheeler explains, “but it turned out to be a real advantage for the farm stand.”
Social media has also helped build the customer base. Wheeler maintains an Instagram account with vibrant vegetable photos and reels showing how they’re used. She uses Facebook to let the farm’s 1,500 followers know what’s fresh. In mid-July Wheeler posted that the first of the season’s garlic was available and within a few minutes there were cars in the farm stand driveway.
The stand is well organized and attractive. Coolers hold shelves of greens and cucumbers and Wheeler’s own pottery pieces mingle with the vegetables. Next to a carton of plump heads of garlic is a stack of garlic graters—shallow pottery bowls with raised grids on the bottom. You run a clove of garlic over the grater, then add olive oil and herbs for dipping with bread.
The farm stand runs on the honor system (there is a security camera mounted in a corner) with a locked box for cash or checks; Venmo is another option. “At first, people told us we’ll never make any money on the farm stand or that we’ll lose money and products to theft,” says Wheeler. Neither prediction has come true. “If someone is going to steal vegetables, they’re probably hungry. We’ve found it’s more often that people will round up the purchase price and leave the greater amount in the cashbox.”
Along with building a farm, Wheeler and Allard have built a community that appreciates it. Their customers are vocal in their support, too. She notes that “folks say ‘Thanks!’ or ‘We love what you’re doing!’ I’m so proud that we’re able to feed our neighbors and contribute to a healthy lifestyle.”
It’s yet another sign that the farm in their front yard truly has bloomed where it was planted.
This story appeared in the Fall 2023 issue.
