Hall Family Farms – Lara Hall

Time	Subject
0:01:21	Size and location of farm
0:01:47	History of farm
0:02:47	Discusses sale of farm
0:04:07	Education and work history of Lara and Kevin
0:05:08	Decides to get in strawberry growing
0:05:40	Talks about first year of growing
0:06:27	Process of growing strawberries
0:08:09	Use of workers and employees
0:08:43	Planting and growing Pumpkins
0:09:55	Growing cantelope in first years
0:10:47	Farm stand on location before strawberry field
0:11:21	Trying farmer’s markets
0:13:17	Community relations
0:14:32	Beginning of school groups visiting farm
0:15:37	Strawberry Season opening and how that is determined
0:17:47	Pumpkin season, length vs strawberry season
0:18:17	Education of owners and application to farm
0:19:27	Hayrides and birthday parties
0:19:54	Farm is sole income
0:22:17	Discusses organic farming
0:23:25	Advantages of small farm-spot farming
0:24:27	What typical day is like
0:25:12	How weather has affected crops
0:27:01	Changes in farming business, effect of immigration laws-effect on labor
0:28:20	Climate change effect
0:29:47	Pumpkin period and supply
0:30:35	Benefit of location
0:31:13	Largest expenses
0:32:21	Design of corn maze
0:34:27	Use of GPS in farming
0:34:47	North Carolina Strawberry Association, North Carolina Agritory Association
0:35:25	Modern drip Irrigation
0:36:07	Plasticulture
0:36:45	Different kinds pests to deal with: deer, geese aphids
0:37:34	Petting Zoo
0:38:47	Learning about farming
0:39:07	costs of farming
0:40:17	Agritourism in future, expansion
0:41:22	Working with children that visit the farm, educational benefits
0:43:21	Future of Farming in Charlotte

[00:00:10]

>> Hi this is I have to say I’m a graduate student from you and C.C. and I’m here with Laura Hall of all farms and we’re doing the interview the picnic table at the far and today we’re here to talk about the queen’s garden oral history project which seeks to collect the stories of those who grow cultivate produce and distribute fresh food in the Greater Charlotte region and lower if you would stay for the record.

[00:00:37]

Your name and what is your Ross ocean with all family. Name is Larry Hall and I need one and actually I have a question for you Are you related to Sam Hall not to you know that Bush invited South Carolina that we are not OK Do you want to make sure it was actually some way to recommend I interviewed him also yes and I was curious so if there was a connection now on now to take it just a coincidence Yeah OK OK And obviously we are wrong at your farm so you’re located here in Providence Rhode your Ballantine How big is your farm and what is an incompetent.

[00:01:21]

Farm is located in downtown Union and province west Johnston road it’s about 40 acres and weak racer agrees pumpkins 18 and anger tourism are angry and. Point me right. OK And. What just what about the history of the farm. The reasons I’m sorry to cross the street I’m injured way.

[00:01:52]

In around early $1000.00 hundreds run 191120 it went it was about $500.00 acres and it went all the way down down time hotel it was primarily going cotton and tape and it. See a part of it was sold to Governor Marston in the fifty’s and then the last of it was sold.

[00:02:20]

The main farm in 1942 that here is Family Fortunes Grange to develop down and now we have the 40 acres left and that has been sold to no one OK actually it’s been asked and later on the same time you brought that up I’d say you know in the observer of the story the story by the tell us this actually the process of probably something going on for a few years yes we knew when we started our fire in 2007 that we were not going to be here permanently down and the family let us now that when their grandparents who have lived here all their lives cast away they’re going to sell the farm that the last grandparent passed away in 2011 so it’s taken a still 2019 to find a buyer and sell the actual farm and analyze that in March of this if you’re sold the farm how long are you continue operating before you know we will do our last crop of pumpkins and October and then we’ll take a year off to develop the new farm and then whine and will reopen again probably in 2021 and that’s our plan will be the same type of farm with the same you know yes same products strawberries and pumpkins Yes we’re going to start with this same.

[00:03:45]

Small business see how it goes and then we’ll expand if we if we want to we want to keep going and that’s gone sounds great so you seem to enjoy really doing this yes yet it’s not a lot of fun or a lot more about your husband’s background and what you did before you got him.

[00:04:08]

Going to school. He’s a mechanical engineer and. We graduated in 93 and 94. Corning. 2 years after. The program. Their 1st child. Trees. To do. Its job varies on the advice of his uncle. Who’s using. This. Here. First year like. Crazy because it was just meant. To. Everything.

[00:06:14]

Another 20. Yes. We get in early October to. 30. Dollars. During that time. To do that to get them ready and we do have to you in the one time we have to do cross protection we have to put these big can’t see them right now but they’re like they’re big blanket.

[00:07:23]

They’re big white papers blankets 6. Bags. And then in the summer time we have to get my husband has to get the fields ready for. Me to come and build them now we have to get ready. A lot of. Labor intensive. So it’s all hands planted in. We do we have.

[00:08:14]

For over 20 years. We actually. Have to. Part company. When you do it yourself. They were here for. Different. Track. 10. We knew they were always going to try to sell it like you said. If they were out there always there was always we’re not here permanently. They were talking about here.

[00:13:15]

It’s been interesting it’s been nice. If you’re here people can want. To come in here for years you’ve been marking from neighborhoods around here so you see the relations with your neighbors are really good now yes I like having the 4 here yes. 4 years he started. The 1st 4 years we had.

[00:13:49]

Pumpkins and then the next year we started with the corn. The the speaker that was the only thing really. Was that there was noise there recently some planes. It’s been a really good relationship with the neighbors. For the program but you have more you bring in. Groups of students and other groups come in and they pick strawberries.

[00:14:21]

Tell me about what you do there in the corn maze and all that. Came together and it was. My daughter my middle daughter. And her local school to come out. To see. How we do. You. Rotate. Stations. Started with one school. Playground. Yes. You know. About. Yes. But it’s.

[00:16:50]

Very. Harder to get those groups. 3rd. Because. They’re. We think I do or. Less great that you’re able to do this yes go back and I was reading on the website too that your manufacturing Yes well. Actually. I switched completely to. Where. The and that’s that’s that’s where I work in manufacturing such cases.

[00:20:22]

But as interesting as. We get reinforcing for construction at. All different business yeah actually we’ve been lacking an engineer. Engineer. Would do that to us yet. Actually profit off about. Tonight. Understandable. Orchard or an organic. Or take up the products. I mean. Like we got yes if we let it out here and we grew lettuce we never spray to let us and after that we must go with commercial chemical fertilizers that we.

[00:22:56]

Would use underground and so we want to get stores there’s organic certified or just organic methods was so right why use mostly organic or try not to use you know you know too much kind of chemical for allies or a little right and we try to. Somewhat yes you could say you say somewhat that what we take we that.

[00:23:26]

Pride. Whereas the small. Brain. We can. Let’s move on talk about a typical day on the farm I guess you know with very. Very severe tutor and the different crops that you grow and the differences but let’s just take for now French and since this is really getting close to the time you just made it to open season and just a time limit about what you’re doing to get for care as far as I guess you know the crops themselves get an employee’s lined up there buy ready.

[00:24:24]

For sustenance for the 1st week established players start. You know have a lot of stories yet you know well will do is we’ll at the tense tables the now tent will get the hay ride routes set up because we have to see why right that we have decorations and mash that’s not.

[00:24:47]

Will know the grass has. To the Iraqi get everything ready to fight again plant wise he does we just play pray for sunny weather. Over here that we sure have a lot of life yet which actually my next question. To this is up up in other interviews is where the winner is.

[00:25:09]

Always going to. Care about. The. Land. And if you can see more recently but we had a little lake over there and there’s probably won’t get picked that is Rose really get picked when it’s like that. The rain hasn’t been the big thing so much as the warmer weather and then the late the leaf Frost lately this.

[00:25:46]

That has been the worst time. Because it’s ability to light high heat. We’ve had him under cover for frost protection so that’s been really hard. But yeah the the wet weather the just. The biggest concerns is funded. Going on the plants and kind of. The boys know they just because the nature of the plant believes they have tight leaves and so when they get wet it’s just bad for moisture and insect issues and so.

[00:26:26]

It’s very easy for them to get. Into season when it’s warm and when. The prop looking more this year just get white flower that they’re so big white flowers I think what follows is that as yet big star varies from where you. Are if you serve. This if you see changes in the business people to your business before this is something which has affected you heard about from other people.

[00:27:00]

And the biggest and it’s affected as we get a lot of supplies from other farms jams jellies and breads because of the immigration. They have not those times have not been able to get the immigrant labor they need to. Build their their products in the past 2 years we have many and we very short handed we have not had a lot of outside product to sell on our shelves we don’t we’ve Percy don’t rely on a lot of them or any immigrant labor it’s all local family friends that we hire but I know other farms bigger farms and I said I had a really tough time.

[00:27:44]

Getting crop and. Getting stuff whole made for whole self because immigrant labor issue so some of the people that you might get other products from having difficulties because yeah labor labor shortage Yes a fascinating case will put in the order and the travel comment we’ve got 3rd Well we’ve played and Sally and they’re likely to have labor to make it so OK Let me think about that would you say that’s that’s sort of part one of the challenges of farming in the area for farmers what they just challenges.

[00:28:20]

For the bigger ones yet 2nd would be climate change and in the climate. We’ve when we 1st opened in 2007 we were. Late April now we have because guns and so much warmer in the winter. We’re opening late March early April we also have a huge problem with the rain we’ve lost a lot of light spotting off.

[00:28:51]

And the rain that’s just rain. Just thinking it would melt in your hands and the same is true now we get some. They were little you have some kinda exploding I mean. Because they’re so high now they’re. Saying this increase should get in the business yeah yeah yeah.

[00:29:20]

How do you mitigate the losses when you have a bad year in the weather. I’m sure you get some of your pumpkins from other people is it because you’ve had a. Bad. Experience because we had a bad year for us because. That supports us for the 1st. That was.

[00:30:21]

My next question is. What I would say are your. Every time. Out with a 0 term. My husband. And. I have. It’s fine this is a man I don’t know how much it cost but it sure sounds like you’re probably expensive Yes that would be. Great that he was able to do that and didn’t do it yourself yeah that’s what it was always an interesting thing you know was seen seen and figured out how somebody did it yeah I guess G.P.S. is a role terribly new yet relatively new technology I guess the one for when my kids were little Anyways yeah a lot is listen 1st to stern pieces he would just take is now around and just randomly can pass and then you realize you know why and he actually had sound.

[00:34:19]

And then yes I heard that you know the word commercial for tractors too on these 1000 multiple 1000 acre farm south in Indiana and the Midwest and they found out they could use it for designing corn is that how it started and you have seen the. Specific organizations or parties that.

[00:34:46]

That your members are for associate with. And North kinds Chivery satiation is why I’m. Kind of the knock on Agra tours in the state. And. Going back to what I said question is how much of the stuff here has been designed there are a couple of things on your website that imagine it’s a race thing to hear a lot more about there says use of modern drip irrigation based farming methods to explain what it with those are.

[00:35:25]

Really down the black plastic Thank You see. He looks. Just like a black and it has little holes in it. I turned. Slowly. If I’m not mistaken. That your husband designed to get. Those lights what is a plastic Ultra Classic old black or white plastic that’s a. Health control we.

[00:36:17]

That’s another way to limit pesticide use. That is. So that’s like in between. The plant. And it just helps a lot we can. Have a lot of problem with. Let’s pass and say. Do your we have time to. Say yes well yes chickens Yes Yes Yes OK Yes But they’re not good.

[00:37:27]

And there are more looks like a petting zoo rather than really we don’t use them for mean or production. Actually we do get their eggs but they’re older now so they’re egg production has tapered off a lot so they’re more than just family pets. But they’re fine. There but they’re now we are we would never use them for meat or intake of food production doesn’t seem very friendly when the you know when I walk down to take a look at them in the inject it’s all came up to me in the yeah in the goats in the pigs up with their noses up to the fence Yeah the Koreans are good now out there you know you don’t seem.

[00:38:11]

To get. That. QUESTION Is there any aspect of farming that you didn’t know that you had maybe you were getting into. Or that you could tell other people about maybe something about farming that most people don’t farm don’t understand or. Know anything about that. Are that have. I think the biggest thing in their dad actual production of what farmers have to go through how much it costs them to grow like how much and then actually cost to grow it and to sell it wholesale versus selling it directly to the market like and you know if we tried to sell.

[00:39:08]

$0.39 a pound we could never sell that wholesale and say these NASA farmers that have all these acres of produce and so I know that they are not getting nearly as much as what the grocery store charge charges us as a consumer unless they’re shining directly to the.

[00:39:30]

Nets even though we don’t have the you know food production. Just hearing other farmers and what it takes to grow chicken. And the costs and I know how much it costs to feed a chicken and to feed and go to feed a pig I’m surprised you didn’t hire.

[00:39:48]

So you see the impact that we can have migrant labor to do a lot of our farms would be a lot a lot higher than yeah that’s what we’re charging now lower pay now is consider where what you see obviously you’re you guys are going to move to a new place but where do you hope to see yourself in the farming business say and you know 510 years down the road I am probably more agrah tourism less farming.

[00:40:21]

We would still have the props and more we would have more animals but we have more activities there a lot more activities and want to like we have a train that’s on display out here that we want to put in. We have other activities. We have what’s called pedal cars the kind kind of go carts that we want to expand on this fun.

[00:40:49]

Hands on activities for the kids to do hiking trails that kind of thing. More things like that it sounds like. It’s rewarding to you to almost like give back to the children it is going to things to so it makes everything even more rewarding not just that you have the satisfaction of growing yet growing things but you’re giving back to children good now.

[00:41:17]

Doing things hands on and yet the spirits tell me more about it it’s neat to see that they’re soft like what is fish in the preschool. But the preschool kids I mean it’s a whole new world when they come out here and there is so excited and joke with them about.

[00:41:37]

Are you here to pick a limb and say no or they’ll say yes there’s a live interview right there and they’ll point to the T.V. so we get a chance to educate them about where Shari’s come from and the difference between the ones in the grocery store and the ones they’re going to get out here.

[00:41:54]

The different varieties that will play guessing games with them so they learn a lot about and will teach you about the farm animals the chickens. And just about farm life in general and I think they I think they really enjoy being out here at least from what I can tell.

[00:42:16]

Being outside of the classroom and just kind of because we try to keep it very relaxed when they come out here and they’re not so regimented even though they are assigned to stations they are. Certain. They feel like they have a lot of freedom here I think. We get to see how things are you know we have a lot of.

[00:42:47]

Insight Charlotte. And come out here and I don’t think. This is the 1st time they’ve been far and even though we are surrounded in down time by development. Going to taste of what it’s like to be outside. 40 acres here. Without a lot of supervision. Where do you see the future for.

[00:43:18]

Charlie to maybe go we. Are. And that’s because they’ve been there so they’ve been there so long they’re stuck around things Charlie when everyone is even leave. The city of Charlotte it’s just hard to taxes the property is needed for development. I see more people who start people who come to us who want to start farms are coming from rural counties things they don’t want to start anywhere near city I see it slowly disappearing yet and I guess it.

[00:44:04]

Is a question of high growth areas I guess the land is more bearable to developers. Yeah right I see more city if there’s going to farming in Charlotte it’s going to be more community City Gardens rooftops are things that we we do have some other students. I’ve interviewed some people there are some who are trying to start some herb and farms you know inside Charlotte and yeah I’m sure you know detect knowing which hopefully that’ll they’ll take root and yeah I think the biggest thing for the Charlotte government lies is just to get familiar with Agger tourism and urban farming because so many people here who just from the neighborhoods want to learn to have a couple of chickens for their house or when they have a community garden and this city and the home there is this is.