Terre Haute landmark plot now Cultivate Farmstead
Oct. 10—Though Kindred Roots Farm has closed its doors, those doors reopened Tuesday as Cultivate Farmstead, an organic farm under new ownership.
Former owner Josh Mason was offered an opportunity to run a large Community Supported Agriculture farm in Pennsylvania, which he and his wife Mindy thought would be good for the family. They sold Kindred Roots to Colby and Jennifer Peters, friends of theirs for a decade.
Colby grew up on cattle ranches, but, he said, "As far as vegetable farms, no — most of my background is in construction."
The appeal of the farm, Colby said, "had to do with the team that we have, with Hal [Hackleman] and Loriann [Hay, who oversee the farm together] and the rest of the gang.
"They have a passion and love for what they do, we have a passion for the community and wanting to provide for our community. It just seemed like it was the right thing to do, to keep this vegetable farm going."
Mindy was running the store Tuesday, and though it had only been open for a couple of hours, she had already sold some tomatoes. She's preparing room for the winter vegetables currently being grown.
"It's still coming together," she said. "We're bringing back a lot of the same vendors and hope to find some more local vendors to bring in."
Ferm Fresh and Son Spice, for example, are back and available in the store.
Also available are stickers and T-shirts created by Mindy for her Elusive Moose Studio. She has drawn stickers of pigs, including one before a colorful bouquet of flowers, and a cat in a cowboy hat saying, "Meowdy."
The farm also boasts a bull named Ferdinand, a cow named Belle and a calf called Jellybean. It has 125 chickens, with more eggs incubating, and will begin breeding pigs in the winter so they'll have piglets come spring.
The Peters have plans to make it easy for visitors to see those piglets, as well as Ferdinand, Belle and Jellybean.
"We want to become a location where people would want to hang out," Mindy said. "We have a plan for a farm walk people can do, making it more accessible and putting in a picnic area."
Colby added that there would be murals near the picnic tables. "We'll have walking paths around the whole farm so people can come and enjoy the adventure of the farm.
"We want to make it a place of destination more than just a vegetable stand.," he concluded with a smile.
Before it was Cultivate Farmstead and Kindred Roots, the farm was The Pickery. It's at 3279 E. Margaret Ave., Terre Haute.
David Kronke can be reached at 812-231-4232 or at david.kronke@tribstar.com.
