Black Dog Urban Farm Grows Fresh Produce Inside the City
Sammy Gibbons, photos by Andrea Paulseth |
Farmlands sprawl for miles just past the outskirts of Eau Claire. However, to find fresh produce, city folk can travel to a place much closer to their own backyards. Two Eau Claire farmers, Chad Rykal and Brett Berg, own Black Dog Urban Farm, which is composed of three farming plots, two of them at Rykal’s Eastside Hill home at 1721 Altoona Ave., not far from the heart of downtown.
At Altoona Avenue you’ll find the original five-year-old garden, which the duo refers to as the “OG plot” (which, in this case, does not mean “original gangster”), as well as a plot that was planted this year. This space had raised beds and plants in wooden boxes, but has been renovated in the past year to maximize space. Now, there are 30-inch-wide permanent beds that vary in length depending on the plot. Their other plot can be found at Berg’s 3.5-acre McKinley Road residence, which features 60-by-50-inch long plots.
“It gives you the opportunity to try something you might not have tried. You’re getting enough for a good salad for three or four days out of the week. We consider it the best salad mix in Eau Claire.” – Brett Berg, on Black Dog Urban Farms’ produce stand
The gardeners, who have been pals since their high school days, use a no-till approach, and follow organic practices, but are technically uncertified and cannot officially label themselves as an organic farm. They grow fast-rotation crops, such as peppers, squash, cucumbers, and excellent specialty salad greens, with a seed-to-harvest lifetime of 30-40 days.
“This is really all an experiment,” Rykal said. “We’re somewhat knowledgeable, but we’re learning every single day from what we’re doing. We’re not doing what your typical CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) or organic farm would be doing, just because they have much more space. We’re just trying to produce what we can with the space we have.”
Black Dog, which the farmers refer to as both an experiment and an entrepreneurial venture, started about a year ago. According to Rykal, they have put in a lot of hard work but have been very lucky. “It’s been good as far as production is concerned,” Rykal said. “No bug infestations and fantastic weather. Rain has been solid, and the warm weather now is perfect for the tomatoes to go gangbusters.”
For four weeks, Rykal and Berg have sold their produce mainly at emBark, a dog day care near Memorial High School, once a week from a produce stand in the parking lot. Their business name stems from this partnership, and from Rykal’s two black flat-coated retrievers, Summit and Peak. The food they sell is about as fresh as it can get: They cut the plants less than 24 hours before bringing them to market. They also offer “Black Dog Veggie Boxes.” These bushel-sized crates are filled with nine or 10 different foods from their garden and are sold for $20. The idea is similar to a CSA program, but differs in that they offer the boxes each week. Buyers can message Black Dog Urban Farm on Facebook to let the men know they are interested, and then they can pick up their next meal at emBark when the produce stand is open.
“It gives you the opportunity to try something you might not have tried,” Berg said. “You’re getting enough for a good salad for three or four days out of the week. We consider it the best salad mix in Eau Claire.”
The farmers have gotten a following of nearly 400 on Facebook and have a few regular buyers of their boxes. They have received positive feedback and interactions with neighbors and local fans who want to know about what they are doing. With this motivation, Black Dog is already envisioning the future. They are considering eventually adding more space, and are conjuring plans to build a water system for their current plants that will hopefully utilize rainwater. They have put feelers out to several local eateries and have the goal of someday having their produce used in restaurants’ dishes.
One benefit of an urban farm, Rykal noted, is that you can’t source ingredients any more local than from your own urban area. “You’ll be at a restaurant literally a mile away from where your food comes from, and that’s as local as it gets.”
Berg and Rykal are both satisfied with the success of their big experiment, and will continue to grow for, and in, the Eau Claire community.
“Not only are you feeding the area, but you’re feeding stuff back into the local economy,” Berg said. “Not only is it fresh, great and local, but we’re bringing it back to the community.”
Learn more at www.facebook.com/blackdogurbanfarm.
