On the Farm with Kindlewood
Written by Lauren Vega & Photographed by Taylor Czerwinski
Five years ago Ashley Loponte met her husband and farm inspiration, Matt. Together they’ve built a small sustainable farm centered around our love of growing. They started with a house in a neighborhood and two raised beds. Two became six which led to tilling the whole backyard and building their first greenhouse out of an old trampoline.
Fast forward a few years and they now own eight beautiful acres in Walterboro, SC, which they’ve lovingly named Kindlewood Farms. Ashley grows up to 40 different varieties of fresh produce using sustainable methods and crop rotation. She grows everything from seed in their 40ft by 30ft greenhouse.
If you can’t tell, we love working with Kindlewood here at Atlyss. From zucchini to radicchio, we opt for seasonal and local produce whenever possible. It’s important to share the story behind your food, because we think it is vital to understanding the connection between how we consume and how we support our local community and the Earth. After getting a glimpse at Kindlewood through our interview, we think you’ll fall in love, too.
“Our produce is nothing like what you’d buy from the grocery store. Our produce is harvested the night before and driven 45 miles from our house to yours.”
-Ashley Loponte, Farmer
Q: Could you share the inspiration behind Kindlewood Farms, both in its name and why it was created.
“The name comes from the street we lived on. It was our first house and it’s sale was the down payment for this land. It started because I didn’t want to get rid of any of my plants. I fell in love with planting, growing, and feeding the community, but I also love a challenge. I grow things that are really hard to grow like red cabbage and heirloom tomatoes, simply because I want to prove that I can.”
Q: How long have you, Ashley been farming for? What are some of the biggest challenges/ lessons you’ve learned?
“We’ve [Matt and Ashley] been farming for 5 years now. One of the misconceptions about the farm is that Matt is out here running it. While he does help, he has a full time job at Clemson. So it’s mostly me. One of the biggest challenges I’ve faced is being female in the industry. I shopped around for the tractor behind Matt’s back a little bit, and the reason I picked the person I bought the tractor from was because he actually talked to me like I was a farmer. Instead of saying, “Where’s your husband?” He respected me as a farmer too.
Q: In your opinion, why is it important to shop locally?
“It tastes better. It is better for you. It's harvested 2-3 days in advance, at the most, so it’s the most nutrient dense produce you can find. Someone at the market asked why our lettuce lasted two weeks and the lettuce from the store died in a few days. Well, the grocery store lettuce was grown in California, so that two weeks was spent in a truck coming here. It takes us 45 minutes to drive to Charleston. It's just better for the environment and more impactful in all the right ways.”
Q: Share an overview of how Kindlewood operates: How big is your team? Do you operate year round? What do planting and harvesting seasons consist of for you?
“I have two paid helpers, Bella and Miranda. Miranda has her own farm a few miles away. We participate in field trips with the Trident Technical Sustainable Agriculture class and that’s where Bella came from. Hopefully she has more friends she can bring! I want to cultivate female energy in the industry, so it’s pretty awesome to see them take interest in farming. But most of the time it’s me. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”
Q: How does it make you feel knowing what you grow with your bare hands touches the lives of other families and neighbors?
“Sometimes you don't notice but every once in a while you get a customer that makes you feel really good. One year we grew cantaloupe and we had a lady come to the market and ask if they were real. I told her yes, I picked them from my garden this morning and she told me no one grew a better cantaloupe than her grandfather. Well, every week after that she bought a cantaloupe and would get teary eyed thinking about her childhood memories with him.”
Q: What is something you’d like to share with consumers about shopping locally?
“Do it. Please,” she chuckles.
“During the pandemic, I feel like everyone thought that the world was ending. And they did it- they came, they shopped, they supported local. Now everything is slowing down and you can shop at the store again. I want people to keep that same ‘the world is ending’ energy, because they had the best at their fingertips and still do. I wish people understood that seasonality is better than getting a tomato sandwich in February.”
“If you can train yourself to think about the freshness of food, that’s a good start. Where it is grown, how long it takes to get to your table, where it is actually in season. You’re eating empty food because the nutrient value has depleted so much over that time. It’s one step above composting.”
“We are so fortunate to be in an area where you can grow all year long. People should take advantage that everything can be local, you just have to be okay with loving tomatoes between May and July. You have to cherish it. I challenge you to seek out fresh, wholesome produce whenever you can. Fall in love with what real food tastes like. Feed yourself and your family food that is grown with love and care from people who take pride in what they do.”
I want people to keep that same ‘the world is ending’ energy, because they had the best at their fingertips and still do.
Q: What are your offerings to customers? How can customers shop for your produce?
“We’re at the Sea Island Farmers Market, Summersville Market, and Mount Pleasant Market. We also participate in CSA, which is Community Supported Agriculture. We have a link to sign up for that on the website. We offer what is grown on our farm. Sometimes I source from our fellow farmers and list it as a “Featured Friends” item that week. We also grow for up to seven restaurants in Charleston.”
Pro tip: “Every farmers market has a 50/50 rule where farmers can resell what they have on their table. You can sell out of season, out of area produce if it makes up half of what you’re offering. So when someone has tomatoes and I don’t, it’s not because I didn’t want to grow tomatoes. It’s because they’re reselling tomatoes from Mexico. Look under their tables. If you see boxes, that’s an indicator that they’re reselling. For the most part farmers bring their produce in reusable bins.”
Q: What products does Atlyss use from Kindlewood Farms?
Zucchini
Radicchio
Heirloom Tomatoes
Eggplant