Pride Month: The ‘gayest farm’ in Colorado’s Boulder County is out, loud and proud
It’s Wednesday night, and you’re tired from another long day in the office. You’ve been feeling a bit drab lately, and your mother sent you an article highlighting the importance of consuming different types of phytonutrients into your diet — “Eat the rainbow lol” her text under the article link reads.
You find yourself at the No. 1 place to find the best fresh produce on a weekday in Boulder — the Wednesday night farmers market, where you shuffle wearily through the crowd of screaming children and couples in yoga clothes. Finally, you come upon a sight that yanks you heartily out of your midweek funk — before your eyes is a lush chromatic eden: A farm stand with some of the most delectable vegetables you’ve ever seen. A buffet of ruby red radishes, burnt orange carrots, golden summer squash, emerald parsley and mauve Italian eggplant, is laid out on a table beneath a sign that reads: “The gayest little farm in Boulder County.”
Meet Off Beet Farm, a queer-owned and operated vegetable farm located in East Boulder, where co-owners Kyle Stewart and Emmy Bender not only grow the rainbow but represent the rainbow. Together, the pair proudly serve “sass and veggies” to the Boulder Community, growing colorful and delectable vegetables using certified natural growing practices and sustainable cultivation techniques.
The idea for Off Beet Farm came to Stewart and Bender as most good ideas come to people: over some good, healthy, manual labor.
The pair, who have a combined experience of 15 years in managing vegetable farms, were working together in the fields at Kilt Farm in Longmont when they began discussing their dream of someday owning a farm. But the two also had fears about owning a farm — and launching a business seemed daunting. While pulling weeds one day, Stewart and Bender had the idea to join forces, and as queer individuals they envisioned creating what would later become their tagline — the “gayest little farm in Boulder.” They began searching for land, found a place to lease and their journey began.
But before launching to the public, Stewart and Bender had to carefully consider the role their identities would play in their venture. They would be stepping into the traditionally conservative agricultural sphere, which can be intimidating, especially as queer-identifying individuals.
“It was something that we were definitely nervous about and was something that we actively talked about,” Bender said. “We asked ourselves, ‘Should we start the gayest little farm in Boulder? Or not? How far do we want to go with making our identities a core part of the farm?’”
They kept the slogan, and it has been embraced by the community with enthusiasm.
“Honestly, it has been received so well, and we get so much validation at the Farmers Market,” Bender said. “People are really excited to see us there, they’re excited to see a Pride flag, and they’re excited that we are providing representation and excitement around our queer identities, and a space for people to feel like they belong at the Farmers Market.”
Stewart added: “Having support from people we’ve never met at the Farmers Market makes it feel like it’s all worth it.”
Stewart said it can be hard to stay motivated, but other local farmers have helped make the journey easier.
“So many of them supported us so much, whether it was lending tools or equipment, sharing knowledge, or simply being a supportive presence when we needed someone to talk to during moments of frustration,” Stewart said. “It all makes me feel like I’m a part of this big, amazing community. A big reason that I’m interested in farming is for that very sense of belonging.”
Bender and Stewart are proud to be a part of a community that has been so supportive of their endeavor and are thankful for the queer farmers in Boulder County who came before them — even if they have been a bit harder to find.
“There are a lot of queer farmers and queer-owned farms in the area, but they just fly under the radar because they aren’t as obvious about it,” Bender said. “But there are a lot of us out here doing the work. Off Beet Farm is definitely not the first or the only queer farm — We’re just the loudest.”
Building relationships with fellow farmers has been rewarding, as they offer significant assistance and create a sense of belonging within the farming community.
Where Stewart and Bender are good at growing community, they’re equally as good at growing vegetables. Throughout the growing season, the pair cultivate everything from hakurei turnips to rare heirloom tomato varieties. As the only full-time employees on the farm, the pair spends most days working from dawn until dusk to complete every task on the two-acre plot. They don’t try to alter the natural growth of their vegetables by using pesticides, instead, they accept the vegetables as they are and foster a nurturing environment where they can thrive — an approach that perfectly aligns with the ethos that Off Beet Farm aims to embody.
“We both feel like it’s really important to steward the land well, and a big part of that is taking care of the ecology of the soil,” Bender said. “It makes better food. It doesn’t kill all of the microbiology in the soil, so we are a low-till farm. We don’t own a tractor; we use a broad fork and hand-loosen the soil. It helps reduce the amount of irrigation we have to do, it reduces moisture in the soil and keeps it alive to help feed the plants. We just really want to preserve the biodiversity on the land and in the land. That makes sense long-term and in terms of like not taking everything from this land and leaving it ravaged, but rather, taking care of it as it takes care of us.”
That tender love and care is evident in every bite of a carrot from Off Beet’s farm stand. While you congratulate yourself on scoring the carotenoid-dense snack, you can’t help but imagine what a supportive and loving environment this root vegetable must have had while growing for it to taste this delicious.
You ask yourself, “Did this carrot have a better life than me?” If the carrot came from Off Beet Farm, the answer is probably yes.
Stop by Off Beet Farm’s booth on Wednesdays at the Boulder Farmers Market and Saturdays at the Longmont Farmers Market.