Nokesville farmer puts new twist on organic

Jim Gehlsen was a successful masonry contractor when he bought a 98-acre farm at 12801 Hazelwood Drive in Nokesville in 1983.  The next year, he planted 7000 evergreen tree seedlings. Since then he has built a following among cut-you-own-Christmas tree enthusiasts.

Through the years Gehlsen has experimented with other crops, and on Aug.1, 2011, Evergreen Acres was the first farm in Prince William County to be certified organic.

In the past, the organic produce has included tomatoes, blueberries, asparagus and pie pump- kins, and he has been selling organic produce to the Whole Foods store at Fair Lakes.

For 2016, he has initiated what he calls a “grow-op,” for customers who want to come to the farm once or twice a week and buy organic produce direct from the farmer.

The grow-op idea grew out of many discussions he had with Lynn Holmes, whose diet is exclusively organic foods. Holmes attended the 2015 Wild Western Prince William County Farm Tour last September and met with Gehlsen about the possibilitis of being able to purchase organic foods where they were grown.

Initially they discussed the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model where a farmer offers a number of “shares” to the public, consisting of a box of vegetables each week throughout the farming season.

Under the grow-op model designed by Gehlsen, “[Participants] pay an annual membership fee of $50, which gives them the opportunity to come to the farm on Monday and/or Thursday evenings and pick produce out of bins and pay one-third less than retail for fresh picked organic produce.”

“People can get what they want in the quantities they want. I will also offer some varieties of #2s for two-thirds less than retail, such as tomatoes.”

Evergreen Acres will continue to serve Whole Foods as well, he noted.

The farm is adding to its produce this year so that more items will be available for future grow-ops.  New produce will include melons, asparagus, legumes, heirloom tomatoes to complement the hybrid tomatoes, greens, including kale, broccoli, cauliflower and Swiss chard.

Gehlsen is also planting 35 peach trees and 45 apple trees.

Evergreen Acres will continue to participate in the free annual Farm Tour, which in 2016 is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 24, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday, Sept. 25, noon to 4 p.m. Some farms may have products for sale.

As he approached having 45 participants for the inaugural grow-op season, he was pleased they came from a widespread area, including, Fredericksburg, Leesburg, Fairfax and Woodbridge.

“I could get 90 to 100 signees for next year,”  Gehlsen predicted.  “They are signing up, now.”

Gehlsen has also taken lessons to become a beekeeper, adding honey to the products originated at Evergreen Acres.  He hopes to add pears and plums to his farm’s output soon.  He is informing people of his “grow-op” opportunity by way of email, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) and at http://www.evergreenacres.biz  .
Gehlsen serves his community as chairman of the Prince William Soil and Water District, helping farmers and landowners preserve water and soil quality.

Gehlsen enjoys his life as an innovative farmer, and he appreciates his local farmer colleagues. He respects their efforts as well. He wants locals to know that Yankey Farms makes produce available through its CSA. The Earth has been good to Gehlsen and his family, and he enjoys returning the favor.