ASHBURN, VA – Loudoun County farms are opening their gates this Saturday and Sunday for the county’s biannual farm tour, when visitors are encouraged to drop by, learn what county farms are growing, and maybe pet an alpaca or grab a slice of pizza.
The county event is intended to highlight the area’s agricultural produce and culture. The farmers themselves tell a story of a close, supportive community working hard to sustain themselves as small farmers and passionate about teaching others how their daily bread actually arrives on store shelves.
This year, 42 farms are taking part in the self-guided tour. Among them is the Double 8 Alpaca Ranch run by Doug and Bonnie Kittrell. They breed, sell and shear alpacas and llamas, make wool and other products, and run events on their 32-acre farm.
The Kittrells say Loudoun County is a unique place to run a farm. The area's diverse community means buyers and suppliers are often just down the road. “We've got guys that are right over there cutting hay, and just down the road over there are our feed suppliers,” Doug Kittrell told Patch during a visit to Double 8 Ranch.
Bonnie says it’s not an accident that the community is so solid. Programs like "Loudoun Made, Loudoun Grown” from the county’s Department of Economic Development have helped them thrive, and the proximity to Washington, DC, gives Loudoun County farmers access to a market that is interested in their higher-end products. Loudoun’s split between urban and rural is special, they say.
“The strong community support for local agriculture is huge – people genuinely want to connect with where their products come from,” Bonnie told Patch in an email. “Agritourism has also been a game changer. Farms like ours can diversify beyond traditional farming by offering experiences – tours, hikes, educational programs – which helps sustain operations financially.”
Events like the farm tour help them get the word out.
The Kittrells are also doing their part to encourage people to take up farming, a theme among the farmers who spoke to Patch. Double 8 Ranch is a certified youth mentor farm through the Alpaca Owners Association. Kittrell is the youth chair of that program, "trying to bring in more educational events and programs and scholarships to get those kids into agricultural programs, veterinarian programs, especially here in Northern Virginia," she says.
“Loudoun County has such a rich agricultural heritage, and we feel incredibly fortunate to be a part of that ongoing story. Farming here isn’t just about production – it’s about stewardship, preservation, and education," Bonnie told Patch. "We see ourselves as both caretakers of the land and ambassadors for agriculture.”
Just 15 minutes down the road from the Kittrells is the Fireside Farm, where Stacey Carlberg and Casey Gustowarow lead a team that grows 60 different kinds of vegetables you can find at the Leesburg Farmers Market on Saturdays or on the plates of the half-dozen DC area restaurants and shops.
The diversity of crops allows them to sell year-round and keep their farm stand tasty and colorful. It also means they need more employees – a positive thing, as far as Fireside Farm is concerned.
“We’d like to employ more people,” Carlberg told Patch. They started their careers on farm teams and enjoy teaching aspiring farmers the ropes.
Not everyone who does a stint at Fireside Farm continues in an agricultural career, she said, “but they definitely become a better food consumer after working on a farm, understanding what it takes to make this food show up at a market. So I feel like, for the most part, we've enjoyed having a crew and teaching them how to grow food.”
The tour is an important part of the year for Fireside Farm, because agritourism isn’t a very big part of their business. They use the tour and their pizza pop-ups to connect with people.
“This is a chance for people to actually come out and put a face to the farm and see some things growing,” Gustowarow told Patch
It’s not just about directing people to their stand at the farmers market, he said. “Western Loudoun is under threat of development constantly and so when people come and eat our pizza, or they come out for a farm tour … [they can] look out on the land and be like, ‘Oh, wow, this is where food is grown and we should keep this here.’”
Pamela Jones and Sarah Obuchowicz of Gathering Springs Farm have the same mission. Jones tells Patch they look forward to the spring and fall farm tours because of the opportunity it provides to meet people, especially children, and “show them that food is grown in the ground and it doesn't just mysteriously appear on a shelf in a grocery store.”
Jones and Obuchowicz have run their farm in Middleberg since 2018. They have a seasonal stand at the Haymarket Farmers Market, a farm shop and a community-supported agriculture (CSA) subscription service.
What they learned in the 8 or so years since they launched from working at Potomac Vegetable Farms to running their own small farm is that there are more ways to connect with agriculture than people realize.
Jones and Obuchowicz are already unusual in the small farming business because they’re friends and business partners who run the farm together, not a couple or a family working inherited land. Now they have full time and seasonal employees and run a kids summer farm camp, but their dream for Gathering Springs is for it to continue to gather people and partnerships in new forms.
Right now, they’re hoping to find people who want to partner with them to expand what they can produce on the land together, perhaps by growing flowers.
Because why start from scratch, Jones asks. “We've got the systems in place. We've got the tractor. We can prep the beds. … We don't all need to run separate businesses when we're all selling to the same people.”
Expanding the idea of what farming can be could draw more people to it. Too few people are involved in agriculture right now, Jones said. “We need to increase that number of people that understand and are involved, be it that their neighbors have a farm and they go and volunteer, or they buy a CSA, or they go to the farmers market. You don’t have to be a farmer yourself to support agriculture.”
“The way to impact our community in the biggest way is reaching the kids and showing them, ‘food is grown here. People are doing it successfully. This is a career option for you,’” she said.
They, too, point out that support from their neighbors and county government has been crucial for them. Their fellow Loudoun County farmers are “close knit, very friendly, want to share resources,” Obuchowicz shared. And “Loudoun County Economic Development are incredible,” Jones says.
The Loudoun County Farm Tour will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The county says visitors can expect a wide variety of experiences, including meeting farm animals, pick-your-own opportunities, and farm products of all kinds for sale.
For more on the event, visit www.LoudounFarmTour.com.
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