The Roanoker November/December 2023 - 53

Dining
THORNFIELD FARM
Flowers are the newest product
fueling sales at Thornfield Farm
in Fincastle.
Susanna Thornton started a
flower cooperative several years
ago, selling the farm's blooms to
local florists. She's growing at
least a hundred different varieties,
with fall dahlias as the marquee
flowers.
But that's only a slice of
what Thornfield Farm offers.
Thornton's family farm, where
her dad still raises beef cattle,
produces meat, eggs and produce,
and is a regular seller at the
Grandin Village Farmers Market.
" We have a strong emphasis
on stewarding the land to the
best of our ability, " said Thornton,
who grew up on the farm, but
moved away after college to chase
nonprofit work in larger cities.
Eventually, a rural lifestyle
beckoned her back to her roots.
" I decided that I didn't want to
live in a city, too much concrete, "
she said. " I missed the land of the
mountains. "
Thornton worked on a farm
in Maine before making her way
back to her family's farm, where
she now leases about 15 acres of
the 300-acre property from her
parents.
Thornton and her farm crew
sell items at the farm's own stand
on Tuesdays, along with one at St.
Elizabeth's Episcopal Church in
Roanoke. Additionally, they have
a pre-order farm share program.
Thornfield's farm fare also is
available at several Roanoke area
restaurants, including Bloom,
Lucky, Fortunato and Local Roots.
" I enjoy the ability to be outside
and work with my body, "
Thornton said. " It's a big life
improvement to be connected
deeply with the outside. "
WOODS FARMS
When Mark Woods was a teenager,
he had his own tomato patch.
He distinctly remembers grating
his own tomatoes, which is a process
of peeling and pureeing the
vegetable. It was clear then that
farming was in his blood.
He grew up working on his
family's farm, Woods Farms in
Boones Mill, an enterprise that
his grandfather started in 1947.
In 2015, Woods became the
farm's owner.
He said he most enjoys seeing
plants grow throughout the different
seasons.
" You plant your seed and then
you see your tomato plants and
then you harvest the tomatoes, "
Woods said. " The changing
of the product...it's like your
adulthood. "
Over the years, the farm business
has diversified its selections
of foods, from chickens and eggs
in the early days to apples, tomatoes
and peaches in the summer.
During the holiday season, the
farm sells Christmas wreaths and
trees.
Woods Farms is a staple in the
local farming scene, namely at the
downtown Roanoke Farmers
Market. Several years ago, in
response to the pandemic when
fewer people worked in the city's
downtown offices, Woods opened
a second stand at the South
County Market on Virginia 419
in Roanoke County.
Now, the farm sells its offerings
from the downtown market
Fridays and Saturdays, and at
the county market a few days a
week. It also has its own store in
Boones Mill.
Look for the farm's tomatoes
paired with hamburgers and
" We're looking for the consumer
who wants to know
where their food came from
and know how it was produced.
They are willing to
pay more. " -Leslie Slusher, Fields Edge Farm
TheRoanoker.com
other menu items at two area
restaurants, Burger in the Square
and Holly Jo's Creekside Grill in
Boones Mill.
GARDEN VARIETY
HARVESTS
It began with a backyard.
Cam Terry, who runs Garden
Variety Harvests, moved to
Roanoke in 2017 after a career
detour. Formerly a film producer
in Colorado, Terry wanted to
build an urban farming business.
He started a backyard garden
at his in-laws' home in Garden
City. And the business concept
sprouted, literally, soon making
its way into backyards across the
community.
Since then, Terry moved much
of the operation to a 3.5-acre site
at Lick Run Farm on 10th Street
in Roanoke. The space is located
in the midst of a neighborhood.
Family and friends make up the
farm crew and work to grow 40
to 50 different crops throughout
the year.
" I don't believe that food production
needs to happen in one
part of the community and transported
to where we live, " Terry
said. " We teach people that small
spaces can be productive. "
Garden Variety Harvests is a
regular vendor at the Grandin
Village and West End farmers
markets and sells its produce to
local restaurants, including Local
Roots, Bloom, Rockfish, Blue
Ridge Catering and others. Its
best seller for restaurateurs is a
bagged lettuce mix, which combines
spinach, arugula and kale.
Terry said he's inspired daily
by the magic of growing food
that people want to eat.
" There's so much optimism
to it, " he said. " The planting of
food is the most hopeful thing
you can do. " I
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2023 53
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The Roanoker November/December 2023

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