In 2009, Holly Evans and Randy Buck met while interning at a farm on Orcas Island near Washington state. From that experience, three things bloomed: their relationship, a love for farming and a desire to own a farm themselves. They spent years traveling the world, learning and working at farms in places ranging from Hawaii to Turkey. They finally opened their own operation, Rosy Buck Farm, in Leasburg, Missouri, in 2016.
For Evans, a love for farming grew out of a love for food.
“I just really love eating food, and good food is not cheap,” she says. “We can either grow it for ourselves, or we can get some fancy office job where make a ton of money so that we have enough money to buy the good food, and I didn’t want to do that.”
They decided that farming was the path to maintain their independence, freedom and family time while giving back to the land and their community.
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“We like the food and the dirt and the independence, but there’s not very many other jobs that either me or my husband had any desire to ever do,” Evans says.
Rosy Buck Farm grows a wide array of vegetables. In addition to staples like onions, peppers, tomatoes, greens and potatoes, the duo enjoys trying out more unusual crops.
“We really like ground cherries, the little husk cherries that are in the tomato family and super sweet,” Evans says. “And then they were these radish pods that taste like a radish but they kind of look more like a green bean.”
The farm also offers foraged goods, like black raspberries and chanterelle mushrooms.
No matter what product you buy at the farmers’ market from Rosy Buck, you can be sure it was produced in a sustainable way. Evans is proud to be fossil fuel-free on the farm itself; all of the permanent raised beds are dug by hand, not by tractor. When they bought their land, the soil was in poor condition, so the pair has focused on revamping and restoring the health of the soil. They also refrain from using pesticides and compost as much as possible. Increased sustainability is one of Evans’ main goals for the future; she’d like to get a hybrid vehicle to travel to markets and install solar power on the farm.
You can find Rosy Buck Farm's fresh produce at three farmers’ markets: SOL Food, Wildwood and Point Labaddie. The farm also offers a popular CSA that runs sixteen weeks in the spring and summer. Visit the farm’s website to be placed on the waiting list for the CSA for the 2023 season.
Rosy Buck Farm, 314.740.0960, rosybuckfarm.com
Mary Andino
Managing Editor
Mary Andino is the managing editor at Feast. She loves making gnocchi, talking with farmers and makers, and promoting sustainability.