Dec 12, 2022
Hey, Steve here. I am going to take you through our journey to create the Fields of Glory Organic Farm, and our line of products made with our USDA certified organic hemp.
Today is just an overview of how we found our farm, and the vision to create products that bring amazing benefits to so many.
I had been thinking about growing hemp for several years, once it was legalized after an 80 year prohibition. In the fall of 2019, we were vacationing in Estes Park, Colorado, on a 2 week break from our busy lives in Reno, Nevada. I was a general contractor, and Claire, a registered nurse. As our time of hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park was over, we headed back towards Reno. We decided to stop and see our nephew who was growing hemp in Paonia, Colorado. This is located on the western slope, across the mountains from Denver. We arrived at night, and couldn’t see his crop, but we sure could smell the fragrant, ripe flowers. In the morning we walked out into the field.
Right then and there, I knew I wanted to grow this beautiful plant.
Once back in Reno, we contacted a Realtor in Paonia, to start the search for a suitable property. As she was looking, I flew out to Tennessee to attend my first Hemp Expo. I was there to learn as much as possible about the industrial hemp industry.
Soon after, our realtor found a property that was off the market, but the owner was willing to sell. I drove out to view the property with my son-in-law and nephew in September, 2019.
The property was 11.4 acres, and had been a horse ranch for 20 years.
We walked the fields-(lots of mud and manure) and I started to picture where we would plant the rows on the top and middle field, run irrigation, and build a 30’ x 60’ greenhouse.
This property had 2 wonderful benefits: First, 10 shares of the Paonia Ditch. The irrigation ditches needed some help.
In the West, water is everything if you want to farm or ranch. The saying is, “Whiskey’s for drinking, and water’s for fighting.” This ditch, in 25 years, has never run dry at the end of the season, and has high priority water rights, being established in the 1890s. The second blessing was the North Fork of the Gunnison River runs right through the northern section of the property. We have since cleared some ground of trees and brush next to the bank, and it is the perfect spot for camping and dining after long, hot hours in the field.
I made an offer on the spot and Greg and I drove back to Reno that same day. After some appraisals and negotiations, we signed a contract.
In December we closed escrow in Delta, Colorado, and the property was ours. Then we drove to the property so Claire could see for the first time what she had just bought. Fortunately she loved it, and we made plans to start the season as soon as possible. We went back to Reno and returned in March with our travel trailer. We had leased back the house to the previous owner, so we stayed in the trailer for 3 months while building the greenhouse and preparing the land. The rush was on, as we needed the greenhouse to be ready by mid-April to plant the seeds, in order to put them in the ground June 1, and harvest in September. The seasons don’t wait.
Over the coming months I will be sharing everything that it took to produce a crop that looked like this. . .
Then at the end of March, I will start frequent reports as we start a new season, on what it takes to grow these amazing plants in the Fields of Glory.