Melissa gives us a tour of the greenhouses on her parents’ farm.

One of the special treats Mr. FixIt and I enjoy in the summer is a lovely evening drive through the country. The temperature cools down. We don’t need the air conditioning. The light shifts to a soft green glow with touches of pink and blue. The world seems softer and gentler. A kind and safe place for sharing some love.

As we drove home from town last night, I suggested we take a ride out to a family farm we know of. The Offutts have owned this expansive 600+ acre farm for about 35 years. They raise cattle and sell beef. There used to be a nursery on the back of the property where they sold rhododendron. Then, in 2018, they added a greenhouse. In 2019, they added a second.

Can you imagine this view every night from a rocking chair on the front porch, sweet tea in hand? God was just showing off when He created West Virginia!

One thing I love is their honor system produce stand. Bags of tomatoes, a cooler of green beans, and whatever else they may have at the moment, sit on a table beneath the nose of a gooseneck trailer. We came here last summer and bought produce…placing our money in a can then putting the rock over it so the bills wouldn’t fly away in the wind.

This was Melissa’s Grandfather’s Cattle Truck that he sold years ago. A gentleman restored it, and Melissa’s dad bought it back a couple of years ago. “It’s great fun in parades!” says Melissa. “You wouldn’t happen to know where I can find a 1946 West Virginia License Plate, would you?” Hmmmmm…I just might, Melissa!

When we pulled up, a young woman was walking back from the greenhouses. Melissa is a daughter of the Offutts. She met us with a friendly smile and asked if we’d been there before. We told her we had and introduced ourselves. I told her I’m a writer and asked if she would mind showing me around and let me take pictures. 

The Honor System Produce Stand

Last year was a banner year for tomatoes. This year, it seems they are struggling a little, however Melissa noted she had a late start in planting them this spring as she has five children under the age of nine. One of them was brought home from the hospital just four months ago, so she has had her hands full with them. Add two greenhouses and it’s been a lot. 

Rows and Rows of Tomatoes

Growing things is Melissa’s therapy. She said she wan’t going to come down to the greenhouses last night, but when her husband had all five kids in the tub, she decided that was as good a time as any to escape for a little R&R. She happily showed me around. They have some beautiful peppers going. A new batch of cucumbers is just leafing out. Of course, there are the tomatoes. And rows of green bean plants about six inches high. 

Loofah Gourds Growing in the Greenhouse

One of the coolest things was in the back of the first greenhouse. Melissa is growing loofah gourds on a large arbor. She says she planted them outdoors last year, but they have an incredibly long growing season so they didn’t dry and become “loofahs”. This time, she decided to grow them in the greenhouse and started by planting seeds in pots indoors at Christmas. It will be November before they fully dry.

My Weekend Bounty: Muskmelon from Ward’s Market, Parkersburg, WV; Tomatoes from the Offutt’s greenhouses – Nursery Road off WV Rt. 14; and Apple-Walnut Pie from Abruzzino’s Italian Bakery – Gypsy, WV

The Offutts farm sells meat, honey, and produce. They sell what they can at the roadside stand and the two local markets as well as the school buys up everything else. I love to support local farmers by buying direct. If you find yourselves out WV Rt. 14 heading east, make a left at Nursery Road. Make a left at the first fork and drive on till you find the Honor Stand at a bend in the road. Tell Melissa you heard about her wonderful tomatoes here at Marshmallow Ranch and Ginny sent you!

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He will also send you rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the land will be rich and plentiful. 

Isaiah 20:23