A Farm in Transition

Four Leaf Farm is in transition.  “It’s a lot happy and a lot sad,” farmer Helga MacAller says.  “We love this place.”

Helga and Tim MacAller will soon leave their 12-acre farm property in Rougemont, North Carolina where they lived for 35 years and raised two sons.

When they began farming, the MacAllers did not have much money, but they did have jobs.  Helga MacAller worked as a physical therapist and Tim MacAller used his botany degree in several research and teaching positions.  They grew their farm business slowly over 20 years. They suggest new farmers “start small and dream big.” In this way, they have created a profitable farm business. 

“If we had kept working, we’d have more money,” Tim MacAller says, “but it wouldn’t be as fun.”

 The MacAllers are playful with their crop selection.  They experiment with unique crops for the region, many of which appeal to chefs.  Four Leaf Farm has two large thriving lemon trees in pots, which are moved into their greenhouse for winter.  They also have two hardy kiwi vines which produced hundreds of kiwi fruits this year.

“We like to grow weird stuff,” Tim MacAller muses. “We’ve tried almost everything in the seed catalogue.”  

Many newer farmers have learned from the MacAllers through employment and mentorship.  Tim MacAller enjoys seeing new farms and young growers succeed. “We have our niche and they are working on figuring out theirs,” he says.

From growing practices to business decisions, the MacAller’s influence is visible on many local farms.

At Four Leaf Farm, crops are grown in heavy rotation on two acres without chemicals.  Compost and cover crops add nutrients to the soil and much of the land is cultivated with hand tools.

When a task goes smoothly on the farm, such as having the right number of plants for a bed, Tim MacAller likes to joke, “just like the plan!”  He explains that in actuality—to the chagrin of their employees—there is no grand plan. 

“We’re not spreadsheet people.  We’ve never operated that way,” he says.

The MacAllers have tried multiple times over several years to transition their business and property to someone new, but their efforts have not been successful.  If they could work shorter or fewer days, they would keep going; farming and selling still feels rewarding.

“We like it all still.  We love doing every little bit,” Helga MacAller says, and then jokes, “Well…maybe not putting out row cover.”

Since their son, Sven MacAller, bought land in Orange County, North Carolina, the MacAllers have decided to sell their property and move to his farm.  They still have a lot of energy to help get the new farm started. Their son will focus on growing grains and they envision themselves as the farm’s “gardeners.”

They aspire to spend more time cooking, reading, riding bikes and traveling.  The MacAllers will no longer have to make money or manage a crew, but for big dreamers, scaling back will be its own challenge.

“How do you just plant four broccoli plants?,” Tim MacAller ponders.

While they are talking about transition, the MacAllers are not ready to give up the idea of selling produce to restaurants.  “We just can’t help ourselves,” Helga MacAller confesses. “It’s so fun.”

“I’ll still have my lemon trees,” she continues, “so I have to sell the lemons somewhere.”