Our Farming Model
Sun Hands Farm consists of 6 acres located on the west end of Kalispell in the Smith Valley. The property consists of mostly native grass pasture with about 2/3 of an acre in diversified vegetable production. The farm also hosts several environmentally controlled buildings where Sun Hands grows an assortment of gourmet mushrooms including oyster, shiitake, chestnut, black pearl king, lion's mane and many other varieties.
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Sun Hands operates on the principle that healthy soil produces the healthiest food. We practice no-till agriculture in a beyond organic model. This means we use no pesticides or herbicides, even if they are organic approved. We disturb our soil as minimally as possible to preserve soil microbiology and create a regenerative system that improves our land's ecology rather than depleting it. We believe that most of our plants needs can be met by healthy soil microbiology and therefore our only fertility inputs come from locally sourced compost and organic composted chicken and duck manure. We treat our animals as if they are members of our family and give them the best life possible so that they can provide the healthiest eggs for our community.
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The core principles of Sun Hands Farm can be summarized as such:
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Disturb the soil as little as possible and avoid bare soil.
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Grow a diversity of plants to create a healthy ecosystem and wildlife habitat.
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Use an integrative and natural system for fertility and pest management with as few outside inputs as possible.
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Incorporate mushroom production outputs into our fertility and overall ecology.