things are definitely disheartening .” She persevered , poring over the county ’ s parcel maps to check out properties that she and Casey drove by on their way to work and following the red-hot real estate market in the county . It quickly became clear that it was likely impossible for them to find a farm through traditional real estate models . “ Things were selling so fast or priced so high that we felt like we were not going to be able to compete in this market ,” she says . Ultimately , Fireside Farm found a home for the 2022 growing season on two acres at Potomac Vegetable Farms , where Gustowarow also works part-time doing field management and cover cropping . Carlberg and Gustowarow both highlight the key role that Potomac Vegetable Farm plays in the community and economy in Loudoun County .
“ While growing vegetables is an important part of what they do ,” Gustowarow says , “ growing community and growing farmers , growing relationships is a big part of their work . They have been doing this for long enough that they can help a lot of people .” “ It ’ s important for any community to hold on to those farms that have been around a long time ,” Carlberg adds . Potomac Vegetable Farms “ has been around for 60 years . They know how to support other farmers and they like doing it . And they ’ re not going anywhere .”
Both farmers want to educate Loudoun County ’ s eaters and drinkers about the importance of farmland through the market and their pizza nights . “ You like local beer ? Local veggies ?” Carlberg laughs , “ well then , where does that come from ? Ultimately , I feel like that ’ s the only way farmland gets preserved : enough people caring about farmland preservation . We can try to do that through connecting it to what they ’ re eating and drinking .”
Van Vlack and the Fireside farmers emphasize the urgency of ensuring the future of Loudoun County ’ s working farms now . The farm economy in the county is strong enough today to support necessary enterprises like equipment repair and hay production , and the critical mass of farms allows farmers to connect with one another to purchase inputs collectively , sell excess crops , and contract for services . This summer , Van Vlack , who farms part-time in addition to his many other professional and volunteer roles , drove his combine five miles across
Loudoun to harvest Gustowarow ’ s wheat crop .
“ It is sad to me that land access is so hard ,” Carlberg says , “ because we have trained a lot of people over the years , and it seems really hard for a new person to start out . It seems like a dead end for people in this area . It ’ s sad to be losing that knowledge and not being able to show that career path to folks . If that land access piece was a little easier ,” she continues , “ we could have more farms . We already have these trained individuals . If there was an incubator farm or someplace that they could start to practice their skills and run their own businesses – it could work . But it takes this whole network to make it work .”
The current county zoning rewrite is unlikely to have much impact on farmland loss , according
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