Luke and Stacey Hallman moved to Virginia from southern Maryland, where they had already farmed for seven years. They purchased 22 acres outside of Richmond and are building their farm from the ground up. They currently have eight acres in production, with plans to expand to 13-15 acres of vegetable production and six acres of orchards (peaches and pears).
They follow low-spray practices, using natural and organic inputs as much as possible, and keep bees on their land to help with pollination and to develop healthy fruits. Luke holds a B.S. in horticulture from Penn State, which has come in handy as he grows his vegetable production and refines his growing methods. Riverside participated in the LFH innovative agriculture project by demonstrating considerable mechanical acumen in developing a conveyor belt for harvesting melons, creating their own version of something that is usually size and cost prohibitive for small farms.
In July 2016, Riverside delivered 7,200 POUNDS OF WATERMELON to our warehouse in one delivery!