Four Women Farmers Continue The North State Legacy of Joyful Growing

From flowers to onions and seeds to goats, four women farmers in the North State are continuing this region’s legacy of farming the land and connecting with their communities.

Kalan Redwood – Redwood Seeds

Kalan Redwood, owner and seed grower at Redwood Seeds in Manton, California, says seed excellence and garden education are at the heart of her company, which is USDA Certified Organic and California Farmers Organic Certified. “Farming is about the lifestyle for me,” she says. “It is a way to connect with nature while working from home and maintaining a flexible schedule for my family.”

Giving back to the community is a cornerstone of Redwood Seeds, and the 15-year-old company supports after school programs in Shasta, Butte, Siskiyou and Tehama Counties. She also donates seed across the country, participates in seed libraries and emails a weekly garden newsletter. “My main mission is to support backyard gardeners,” Kalan says. “Increasingly I feel connected to this virtual community and see it as a way to connect with many folks from all over who are drawn together by a love of gardening.”

For others considering farming or growing crops in their gardens, Kalan says,“For some folks, especially in the valley, it is becoming harder and harder to garden during the heat of the summer. Pollen starts to die and can really stop veggies and fruits setting. It can be hard, and expensive, to get enough water on your crops. If this sounds familiar, switch up your planting calendar. The shoulder season gardens often thrive in the North State. Go big in the spring on leafy greens and look for short season summer veggies that can produce a good crop before the real heat of July and August.” She also advises farmers to get a head start on fall gardens by getting their plants in the ground by September with the aid of shade cloth.

Leslie Cooke – Maagic Mountain Farm

Leslie Cooke began her farming journey 15 years ago because her son had severe allergies, making it imperative for Leslie to know exactly what he was eating. Today, as Owner of Maagic Mountain Farm in Siskiyou County, Leslie says, “I farm and teach others how to build their own homesteads because I feel like it is the best use of my time.”

Maagic Mountain’s farm includes everything from goats to pigs and crops to bees, and Leslie does everything from farm maintenance to marketing to managing crops and says running a household for her children gave her the training she needed to become a farmer. American Guinea Hogs are her latest project and she plans to use these workers to remove invasive Himalayan blackberry roots.

She works “directly with local community by offering a cooperative experience, I offer consulting to others and host regular tours and school visits. In 2022, I began participating in a weekly work experience morning with the COS Adult Transition students. In the North State, we are blessed with a healthy environment and supportive communities. I love feeding my neighbors. We learn together how everything we need is really all around us. Life wants to grow and as we follow the natural cycles we grow too. A farm grows more than food; a farm grows people too.”

Emma Harris – Pine Creek Flowers in Chico

Emma Harris, owner of Chico’s Pine Creek Flowers, says her goal is to raise high-quality flowers for cut flower production, providing fresh flowers for everything from everyday centerpieces to weddings and other special occasions. “Farming brings me joy,” she says. “It is ever-changing, never boring, work, there are daily problem-solving opportunities and I gain a lot of satisfaction from hard work. Growing flowers also brings joy to my customers. Seeing how happy my work makes other people keeps me wanting to pursue farming as my passion and career.”

A regular vendor at farmers markets in the community, Emma says, “The markets are where I make connections with friends, families, other farmers, and even strangers. Social media is also important. This is where I post updates and share information and new people find us all the time.”

Emma is particularly excited about a few tulip crops this year. She ordered a dozen new varieties, and she noted that if they do well, then they will be exquisite. Heirloom mums are also a variety she is looking forward to this year, and they produce into late October and November.

Encouraging women to start growing, Emma says, “You can farm in pots on a balcony, you can start in a raised bed in your front lawn. Even in a very tiny amount of space, you can grow just about anything. Farming has brought me immense joy and satisfaction, but it hasn’t been without challenges and failures. While failing is a hard lesson, it is an important one that you will learn from and literally grow from. Trial and error is pretty consistent throughout farming, even when you have years of experience. If you haven’t started farming because you are afraid of failing, the worst failure of all would be not ever trying.”

Kate O’Brien-Mann – Homeward Bounty Farm & Seeds

At Siskiyou County’s Homeward Bounty Farm and Homeward Bounty Seeds, Kate O’Brien-Mann is an owner and grower who has a deep love of farming..“I farm because I’m addicted to fruit that is picked at peak ripeness, sweet and fresh,” she says. “I farm because I love getting my hands in the dirt and knowing plants intimately, like friends. I farm because I love to process food in volume, canning vats of tomato sauce, putting up frozen corn and green beans, and storing sacks of onions. I love to farm seeds, because they’re alive and so resilient. Humans and seeds have woven a story together that goes back for thousands of years.”

Kate says the process for growing and selecting hardy organic seeds is precisely calibrated for the North State’s climate: “We vet and grow seed varieties that thrive in our unique and challenging growing climate; one that has high elevation, with short seasons and hot summers. More and more we’re trying to push drought tolerance in our crops to select for plants that can handle minimal watering and still have strong yields.”

Kate grew up in Siskiyou County and being a part of the community is at the heart of her business. She says, “My dad called this chapter of my life, my ‘homeward bounty’ and it stuck. It fills me with endless joy and purpose to know that I’m increasing organic and local food and seed access for my community. Now that I’m a mother of two kids, running a business has many challenges, mainly time constraints. This last year however, my then 3-year-old was out there, harvesting seeds with me. It gave me an overwhelming feeling of gratitude to be able to share this with my children and have them grow up with this knowledge.”