Carrie Carlton and Steve Amundson search for a plant that they’ve grafted in their greenhouse in rural Medford. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
(Below) Carrie Carlton and Steve Amundson show the part of a stem after it’s been grafted. The root system is taken from a more disease-resistant plant and attached to the fruit-bearing part of a different plant. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Tequila, Kahlua and Spice are the miniature donkeys at Merton Valley Farm. They are a favorite of the kids who visit. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Carrie Carlton and Steve Amundson grow all kinds of flowers and vegetables in their greenhouse. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Merton Valley Farm uses a mailbox as a cash register. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Merton Valley Farm is marked by a neon orange sign at the entrance of the driveway. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Merton Valley Farm’s greenhouse sells vegetable plans and flowers on an honor system. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Merton Valley Farm is marked by a neon orange sign at the entrance of the driveway. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
As you pull into the driveway of Merton Valley Farm in rural Medford, the cottonwood seeds blow past all sides of the car, giving the illusion of traveling through the stars at hyper-speed.
On a sunny summer morning, the birds chirp and the fresh breeze gently travels through the trees surrounding the farm.
The farm is a few miles outside of town but the owners say they’re often told it’s worth the drive to see the serene slice of Americana.
Down the driveway, a small sign directs you to park on the left side of the path. After parking, directly in front of you is a 20-by-42-foot greenhouse full of homegrown vegetables and flowers.
Merton Valley Farm’s greenhouse sells vegetable plans and flowers on an honor system. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Carrie Carlton and Steve Amundson were between jobs and were gardening as a hobby, which led them to sell their plants at the local farmers market. Loading the plants every Saturday became time-consuming and was tough on the plants.
After just one year, they’d built relationships with customers and invited people to come to the farm instead. Carlton shared a story about a professor she worked with at Carleton College in Northfield.
“Well, I’d be happy to bring some plants in for you,” she said. “He’s like, ‘No, no, no, I like driving out there.’ He says, ‘I want to come and visit.’”
Even when Carlton and Amundson are away, anyone is free to walk into the greenhouse to pick out their plants, pay for them and even count their own change using the money in the mailbox. Carlton explained that the honor system makes transactions easier and limits person-to-person contact during the pandemic.
Merton Valley Farm uses a mailbox as a cash register. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
The possibility of someone coming into the greenhouse and taking a plant isn’t a big concern for the family.
“If they’re that hungry,” she said, “they can go ahead and take them.”
Amundson is well educated about how to raise plants and has even traveled as far as Holland to refine his gardening expertise. But he still experiments with new growing techniques and learning varieties of plants he’d never heard of before.
In the greenhouse, there are nearly 30 varieties of tomato plants. Some grow yellow tomatoes the size of a grape and some grow into plump red tomatoes that can reach 4-5 pounds.
Carrie Carlton and Steve Amundson grow all kinds of flowers and vegetables in their greenhouse. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Some of the unique varieties are from an era with less disease and insect problems and can easily die from exposure to modern nature. Amundson can combat the issue by grafting the plants.
Grafting is when you cut the stem off a sensitive plant and attach it to the roots of a more resistant one. As the plant grows, the top fruit-bearing part of the first plant attaches to the root system of the second, which protects against modern disease and bugs.
(Below) Carrie Carlton and Steve Amundson show the part of a stem after it’s been grafted. The root system is taken from a more disease-resistant plant and attached to the fruit-bearing part of a different plant. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
As their customer base grows, Merton Valley Farm has outgrown the current greenhouse. Next summer, the 20-by-42-foot greenhouse will be replaced by a bigger greenhouse measuring roughly 30 feet by 70 feet. This time, Amundson says he’s springing for all the bells and whistles, like automatic plastic walls that open for better airflow.
Children who visit the greenhouse tend to have a fondness for Tequila, Kahlua and Spice —the family of miniature donkeys who reside on the farm. Carlton says they’d prefer the donkeys’ area to be easier to access from the greenhouse, so they can be more of a centerpiece of the business.
Tequila, Kahlua and Spice are the miniature donkeys at Merton Valley Farm. They are a favorite of the kids who visit. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
“We’re gonna try to work so they can, you know, see them a little more readily than walking way down here,” she said. “Because they like to take pictures of the kids and the donkeys. That’s kind of a big thing for the families.”
The greenhouse also has a partnership with Hannah’s Honey in Waseca.
“I grow the hot peppers for her and then she infuses some of her honey with the really hot peppers,” Amundson said. “It’s like her bestselling honey.”
Whether it’s moving the donkeys’ pen for the kids or growing plants with small stalks for people growing in a small apartment, Merton Valley Farm changes year-to-year to match their customer’s wants and needs.
“We had a couple people ask for eggplants,” said Amundson. “We grew them for two years, but that person never came back, and we never sold an eggplant. So, this year we don’t have eggplants. Now, we had two people ask for eggplants.”
“We talk to the customers,” Carlton adds, “and say, you know, please come back next year and we’ll have some for ya.”
Carrie Carlton and Steve Amundson search for a plant that they’ve grafted in their greenhouse in rural Medford. (Colton Kemp/southernminn.com)
Reach Reporter Colton Kemp at 507-333-3129. © Copyright 2022 APG Media of Southern Minnesota. All rights reserved.
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