A&L Produce has probably been one of the easiest farms to find out of all of our vendors, and with a farm stand right outside their house that is a good thing! Located in Cherrytree, PA right off of 286 East, it was a quick drive and a sign for their farm is clearly visible on the side of the highway. When we arrived we were greeted by a tiny dog and Leanna Cupp. Once out of the car we started walking a short distance behind the house to find rows upon rows and small field after small field of produce. We passed almost ripe watermelons, 3 different varieties, and cantaloupe, followed by beans, squash, and zucchini. We looked out over almost 3 acres of planted produce on their property. Azariah Cupp, who you're most likely to see behind the vendor booth at the market on Wednesdays and Saturdays, was away helping a friend while we visited, but his wife Leanna who works on the farm with him was a great tour guide.
Azariah grew up in Missouri where he and his family had acres of produce, Leanna is from Pennsylvania and has always had a garden and animals, but never anything like the farm they have now. They moved to Cherrytree two years ago and this is their first year farming the land. They built a pond to irrigate their fields, and with the help of Azariah's family who lives close by, they tend to their 3 acres of produce. It had always been Azariah's dream to have a farm, and Leanna enjoys gardening too. She enjoys being able to work as a family together with Azariah right in their backyard. Typically Leanna works at their farm stand which stands at the end of their driveway. She said with this being the first year, she was surprised at the amount of customers they've had at their stand.
All of their produce, except tomatoes this year, were started by seed in their greenhouse. They had trouble early on with pollinating of some of their plants, but they had someone put hives on their property and things have turned back around in terms of pollination. They grow cantaloupe, watermelon, beans, squash, zucchini, cucumbers, pickles, tomatoes, corn, potatoes, and beets. They also have Rhode Island Reds, a variety of chickens, that they hope to have eggs to sell in the future.
