Location: Mentone, AL
Farm Manager:  Brent Halderman
Farm Communications:  Megan Halderman

Type: Produce grown without the use of synthetic chemicals or pesticides, only biologically friendly and regenerative growing practices are used.

Products and Services: seasonal produce, grass-fed & finished beef, pasture-raised pork, pasture-raised eggs (non-GMO & non-soy fed), fresh cut flowers and bouquets, artisan small-batch sourdough bread through Valley Head Bread Co., and locally grown apples from Little River Orchard (seasonally).

Written by: Breanne Brazeale
Photographed by: Breanne Brazeale and Adam Stephens (drone footage)

I’d been to the Farm at Windy Hill a few times before my official farm tour along with Dr Koe last fall. I brought my children and met Farm Manager Brent Halderman while purchasing produce and eggs, and I was eager to return for a more in-depth tour.

*Above is a photo of two of my children, exploring the farm on a previous visit.

The Farm at Windy Hill was started ten years ago in 2014 by Camp DeSoto owners Phil and Marsha Hurt. The couple has been at Camp Desoto, located next to the Farm at Windy Hill, since 1988 and are now executive directors. The camp is an all-girls camp that provides outdoor summer experiences and three meals per day during the months of June and July for a camp community of 300. The farm grows and picks 900 heads of lettuce per week during peak season to give to the camp kitchen and provides about 40% farm to table fresh produce for the campers.

*Above is some of the lettuce grown and harvested on the farm.

The farm itself is made up of about 200 acres with 2-3 acres being used for vegetable production and the rest is used for grazing cattle, sheep, and chickens.

*Shown above are some of Windy Hill’s fields and high tunnels, respectively.

The produce not used to feed the campers is sold either in the weekly on-farm market which takes place on Fridays from 2-5pm during the growing season or is sold to local restaurants and retail outlets including, Elevation, Mentone Market, The Wildflower Café, the Hatter Café, and the Blue Jug in Fort Payne. Any produce not able to be sold at the market or in restaurants is donated to the St Joseph’s Episcopal Church food bank.

The weekly market, which runs from early March through late November, features the farm’s seasonal produce & herbs, grass-fed & finished beef, pasture-raised pork, pasture-raised eggs (non-GMO & non-soy), and fresh cut flowers and bouquets. The market also serves as a pickup site for other local businesses including Valley Head Bread (artisan, small batch sourdough) and Little River Orchard (locally grown apples).

*Photos of the Friday on-farm market are featured above.

The farm uses only biologically friendly and regenerative growing practices, without the use of chemical or synthetic pesticides or herbicides. They invest deeply in their soils, working to balance them for optimal plant performance in a variety of ways. They rely on cover crops, compost, deep mulching and minimal tillage methods.
They accept a certain amount of crop loss due to pests, disease, and bad weather; however, it is their experience that promoting biological life in their soil has increased the resiliency of plant life, from garden to pasture on the farm, to these stresses. They believe that all this helps result in superior quality, flavor, and nutrition in their products, and for their customers.
The Farm at Windy Hill practices organic-farming methods though they are not currently pursuing certification. They invite friends and customers to come see how they farm and to engage in conversations with the farmers about their practices.

*Above is an aerial shot of the farm taken in Fall 2023.