Explore Lake County’s family farms

Lake County is well known for its great bass fishing and being home to the largest, natural freshwater lake in California.

Lesser known are a number of small family farms along the Soda Bay Road corridor. Their stories are as diverse as the people who own them and the crops they grow.

During this month’s Big Valley Small Farms Tour, the public is invited to visit six of them, meet the farmers, learn about their individual farming practices, their farm to fork philosophies and enjoy interactive experiences at each location.

Bell Haven Flower Farm

Before becoming full time residents last year, summers at Bell Haven had been a family tradition for Los Angeles-transplants Laurie and Doug Dohring’s for more than 40 years.

Having accepted an offer to buy the property several years ago, the next four years were spent gutting everything and restoring it to the motel/resort it was in the 1940s, but with hidden modern upgrades integrated.

The Dohrings also purchased the long-neglected 4.5-acre Edgewater RV Park property next door. Cleanup required filling 67 dumpsters, trimming ancient oaks and 70-foot-tall pine trees, and cleaning out the beachfront.

Two years ago, when the first crop of summer flowers was successful, they officially launched the Bell Haven Flower Farm at 6420 Soda Bay Road in Kelseyville.

It covers almost the entire 4.5 acres and includes an outdoor pavilion with views of the lake and four hoop houses to extend the growing seasons.

The large assortment of market flowers is supplemented with specialty blooms not easily found in local shops, as well as edible flowers like nasturtiums and squash blossoms.

Their oldest son set them up with a Flowhive, from which they harvested their very first batch of honey last month.

Ten hens provide fresh eggs, several orchards provide 40 different kinds of fruit, and an abundance of vegetables are grown next to compatible flowers in the hugel garden.

Campodonico Olive Farm

Richard and Lianne Campodonico won a trip to Tuscany in 2008 and it totally changed the lives of this former businessman and nonprofit administrator.

The centuries-old stone farmhouse where they stayed was entirely surrounded by olive orchards. The idea of growing their own olive trees and making olive oil enchanted the couple and they simultaneously agreed “we can do this.”

It took a year of searching throughout Northern California to find land suitable for growing olive trees. The property at 2570 Soda Bay Road in Lakeport was finally chosen for the Campodonico Olive Farm because it was a reasonable drive from the Bay Area and land was affordable.

In 2010, they planted 750 olive trees on two-and-a-half acres. Today, there are over 1,000 trees on nine acres. Drip irrigation and a soil moisture testing system allow them to limit water usage to only what is necessary.

Specializing in Tuscan varieties of olives, which are grown organically and pesticide-free, Campodonico Olive Oil is certified Extra Virgin. The outstanding quality and the robust flavor has resulted in awards from the Los Angeles International Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition and from the California Olive Oil Council.

Edenberry Farm

Mike and Pauline Biron had been looking for vacation property in Humboldt County when they got lost on their way back to San Francisco and ended up buying land for a farm in Lake County instead.

After working in the Cayman Islands for 13 years, she as a Telecom engineer and he as the CEO of a publicly traded Telecom company, they saw this as an opportunity to fulfill their long-held dream to escape the office.

Officially opened in 2015, Edenberry Farm at 3036 Stone Drive in Lakeport is CCOF-certified organic and one of only a few you-pick raspberry and blackberry farms in Northern California. The couple planted over 5,000 berry plants in 2016.

Their 10-year-old daughter cares for five sheep, five turkeys and over 70 chickens, and also manages her own egg business.

Edenberry’s farm stand, which is currently closed for the season, carries an array of preserves, jams, jellies, fresh eggs, fruit vinegar, homemade candy and more.

Shoppers can still find their products every Saturday, rain or shine, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Lake County Farmers’ Market, 4350 Thomas Drive, off Highway 29 between Lakeport and Kelseyville, and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday mornings through the end of September at Library Park on Park Street between 2nd and 3rd in Lakeport.

Finca Castelero

Luis Castelero and his wife Christie White were visiting her parents in Atlanta one Christmas when she was surfing the internet and spotted the Kelseyville property at 4050 Loasa Road that is now Finca Castelero.

It was a cold and rainy day when they first saw it in person and immediately fell in love with the oak trees. The couple’s original plan was to renovate the three existing bunk houses, hang out with friends, spend time outdoors and grow veggies, but things just kept evolving.

Something they never expected was to have property with both a vineyard and a pear orchard. For several years they bottled the organic Syrah grapes and sold the wine to restaurants in San Francisco. Now they just sell the grapes like they do the pears and grow vegetables they love and for which there is a market.

Castelero is from a rural farming community in Spain and was in the restaurant and hospitality business his entire career. White worked with clients in workplace design and technology.

For the first 14 years, they commuted from San Francisco each weekend to work on the farm, before moving permanently to Lake County in 2019. Earlier this year, 10 chickens joined their farm family.

The bunk houses have been totally refurbished and are available for rent, and for weddings or other special occasions, so is the whole farm. Either way, guests are welcome to gather goodies from the garden during their stay.

Peace and Plenty

Melinda Price and husband Simon Avery of Peace and Plenty Farm discovered their future saffron farm while perusing the online real estate platform Zillow.

Describing their find as an “historic bam,” the couple cites good, useable out buildings, good water, great soil, a mature fig tree, a wrap-around porch, beautiful old walnut trees and a seasonal creek.

Growing saffron ticked all their boxes.

Peace and Plenty also has a four-seasons market garden, a remnant walnut orchard, a budding fruit orchard, a cut flower garden and 720 no-spray French lavender plants, as well as 63 chickens for farm-fresh eggs.

Their farm, the largest organic commercial grower of saffron in the country, was featured in the September 2020 issue of Martha Stewart Living

Their on-site farm stand at 4550 Soda Bay Road in Kelseyville is open daily year around from 9 a.m. to dusk. In addition to produce, shoppers will find a variety of saffron teas and soaps. The saffron-infused honey is made with wild-foraged, raw honey procured from a beekeeper in Lower Lake.

Plans are underway to renovate their historic barn this winter in order to host weddings and other events in it starting early next spring. They currently do a series of farm-to-table dinners and, once the barn is completed, hope to offer those year-round.

The Ripe Choice Farm & Catering

Two years ago, marketing materials with pictures of an amazing farm property in Lake County were sent to a number of Los Angeles restaurant and catering owners.

Mark and Tammy Lipps were immediately captivated. He had recently retired from 30 years in the television industry, and she owned a successful, very busy custom catering company.

They decided to have an adventure and buy the farm, located at 2550 Soda Bay Road in Lakeport, renaming it The Ripe Choice Farm & Catering.

With its commercial kitchen, event space, and organic vineyard and orchard, the property not only tapped into their skill sets, it played to their passions for a healthy, sustainable lifestyle.

Garden crops are chosen based on current kitchen needs for their California farm to fork cuisine. Hot and fresh gourmet dinners can also be prepared and delivered within Lake County.

Their business plan called for becoming a destination for catered retreats and special events. Moving in two days before 2020’s coronavirus lockdown gave them time to learn about their newly-acquired farm.

In addition to lots of birds, squirrels and gophers, The Ripe Choice Farm & Catering is home to two dogs, three barn cats, two mini pigs, four chickens, a California desert tortoise and a much larger African sulcata tortoise.

Guests looking for an authentic farm experience can either bring their camper or RV and spend a few nights or book the upstairs studio space within the 100-year-old barn.

For more information about the Big Valley Small Farms Tour taking place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19, drop an email to mark@marklipps.com or send a text to 310-849-9181.