A new farm stand has sprung up in Alexander Valley, run by a
family who has been working Sonoma County soil for 36 years. The
stand is a first for Bernier Farms, and the Bernier family hopes it
will catch on.
“It’s been a bit slow getting started,” said Yael Bernier. “But
our idea is that we want to make this a really functional part of
the farm. We need another outlet for our produce.”
Bernier Farms at the Warren Ranch opened up for business in
July, before tomatoes were ripe. The stand is now flush with
several varieties of tomatoes as well as peppers, sweet melons, and
strawberries.
“Since we primarily grow vegetables, we want to really encourage
locals to come shop,” said Zureal Bernier, son of Yael and Paul and
the second generation to work on Bernier Farms. “We are developing
an orchard here so eventually we’ll have fruits, too.”
The Bernier family leases the Warren Ranch, a property that has
seen agriculture transition from prunes to grapes – and now to
vegetables.
“We took out four acres of vineyard, and put in one acre of
fruit trees and three acres of vegetables,” Yael Bernier
explained.
The crop diversity is part of the Berniers’ sustainable farming
model.
“It’s hard to find a label for the kind of farming we do. We
intend for it to be a sustainable operation,” Zureal Bernier said.
“We are not certified organic but we do grow organically. And we
try to keep our prices reasonable.”
Until the farm stand opened, Bernier Farms’ produce went to the
Healdsburg farmers markets, the Santa Rosa farmers market, and
local restaurants and caterers. But the farm stand offers customers
a unique opportunity to visit the farm where the produce is
grown.
“People definitely dig coming out here and seeing us work,” said
farmer Charles Schembre. “I think our location here is nice. We’re
small enough that people can come over and see us working in the
field.”
Schembre noted that many of the customers who drop by the farm
want to know whether the produce is local.
“People who come here ask me ‘do you grow all this?’ This farm
stand is all produce that we grow… we’re not a distribution type
farm stand,” Schembre said.
Currently, Nardello peppers, shallots, onions, watermelon,
cantaloupe, summer squash, cucumbers, strawberries, tomatoes and
arugula can be found at the farm stand. Yael Bernier’s locally
famous heirloom garlic is also available.
The farm stand is open Mondays and Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 3
p.m., and Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. It is
located at 3192 Alexander Valley Road. Yael Bernier can be reached
for additional information at (707) 849-7592.
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