Local food, made interesting and available.
Enter Southpaw Fruit Farm -- because that’s exactly what they aim to do. Opened just last year by Abbi Smith and Mark Gallo, Southpaw Fruit Farm is located in Waterloo, Wisconsin and grows a variety of exciting flowers and fruits.
Described by Abbi as a “little postage stamp in a sea of soy and corn,” Southpaw Fruit Farm offers Wisconsinites exciting and new produce options that they may have never experienced before.
“We choose to grow varieties that you can’t just find at your local grocery store,” Abbi explained. “We want to have people open up their range of what's available in terms of fruit or flowers.”
You won’t find just typical produce like sunflowers or apples at this farm. Abbi and Mark are making an effort to offer a variety of produce and maybe introduce you to a new fruit of flower that’s different from what you’ve known.
“We love growing our own food, and we love farming as a way of providing interesting local food to our community but also as a way to improve the environment around us.”
With a combination of over 20 years of farming experience, Abbi and Mark met working on another farm before deciding to open up Southpaw Fruit Farm. Abbi began farming by working on an orchard, so her first love was growing fruit. She then began growing flowers on the side and learned to love it.
Abbi and Mark also decided to combine fruit and flowers on their farm because of how complementary the two are -- flowers help pollinate the fruit. This is just one example of how they operate with an environment-first mindset.
“A lot of farms in Dane County grow with sustainable growing practices or with the environment in mind, and we're definitely part of that,” Abbi explained. “Everything we do is to improve the environmental system that we are a part of.”
Southpaw Fruit Farm’s main focus is biodiversity and building up their soil, so they plant a lot of native pollinator plants, grow diverse crops and use standard organic practices. Their flowers are grown without the use of synthetic fertilizers or pesticides.
“We love growing our own food, and we love farming as a way of providing interesting local food to our community but also as a way to improve the environment around us,” Abbi said. “That’s who we are--that’s our focus.”
The decision to sell their produce at local farmer’s markets came from the love of connecting with customers and being able to meet the people that buy their products. Abbi and Mark chose the Monroe Street market specifically because of the strong emphasis placed on community and community building.
This upcoming season is Southpaw Fruit Farm’s second year at the Monroe Street Farmer’s Market. They will be offering fresh cut flowers, as well as dried flowers later in the season. Also later in the season, Southpaw Fruit Farm will be selling a variety of melons, gourds, winter squash and decorative corn.
“We're trying to grow local food that people love to eat and that's affordable and that's accessible,” Abbi said. “We want to have people open up their range of what's available in terms of fruit or flowers.”
Be sure to visit the Monroe Street Farmer’s Market on Sundays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Edgewood High School.
For more information on Southpaw Fruit Farm, visit their website: https://www.southpawfruitfarm.com
Follow Southpaw Fruit Farm’s Instagram: @southpawfruitfarm