The Tani Creek trio of Max, Amber and Jonah is changing the face of farming on Bainbridge Island. Not only are they fresh-faced young people who have taken up the passion of growing food on our fair isle not known for fostering young farmers,  they practice a method of land stewardship that goes way beyond the term organic.

Tani Creek Farm's beautiful produce, after starting from raw ground only last year, is testimony to not only the hard work of double digging all the beds but to the sustainable and regenerative aspects of the farming style they practice. The three met in Eugene and each of them interned at different farms in Oregon, where they were exposed to the concepts of biodynamic farming. All report learning biodynamic principles not in school, but from the mentoring they received from the farmers they worked with. The philosophy of biodynamic farming utilizes a full circle approach that puts back what is taken from the land, planting by the zodiac calendar, and taking cues from nature for nourishing the soil and creating a lush, complimentary growing environment without the use of pesticides.

Max’s parents provide the land on the south end of the island, where the three live and work alongside Max’s parents and brothers. In a very short time Max, his family and Amber and Jonah have created a self sustaining landscape, with ponds that capture the runoff from other areas, including the house roof; pond water is then used for irrigation. There are neat double-dug rows of raised beds and several hoop houses for heat loving crops like tomatoes. The outlying areas are fruit and nut orchards of baby trees, growing amidst companion plants of beneficial weeds and flowers. They make several biodynamic natural potions from animal parts, herbs and minerals to provide the supportive biota which is then sprayed onto the fields and plants and used to inoculate compost heaps. I saw several hand tools probably known to other farmers but not on display in the usual nurseries that make double digging by hand easier than with just a shovel.