We Kept a Secret

March 2, 2026

Part 1 of 2

A small farm. A secret. And one night that changed everything.

We've been sitting on a secret for months. A really, really good one.

A handful of close friends knew bits and pieces. But we made a deliberate choice to hold this close — to keep it quiet, savor it as a family, and wait for exactly the right moment to share it. That moment came when we saw photos of our own farm flash across the giant screens at Farm Aid's 40th Anniversary Concert in Minneapolis. That's when we knew this story was ready to be told.

Until now, we haven't shared much publicly. So, if this is the first you're hearing of it — you're in for something good.

But before we get to the big reveal, we need to take you back to where this story really begins. Not to the concert. Not even to the email. But to ten years ago, when two people with a dream and a piece of land outside Alexandria, Minnesota decided to build something real.

Ten Years, Two Parcels, One Vision

Rustic Roots Farm didn't start as a business plan. It started as a set of values.

Chad and Julie wanted to raise their kids — Leah and Blake, now teenagers — surrounded by the kind of lessons that can't be taught in a classroom. Independence. Hard work. Self-reliance. Perseverance. Creative thinking. The belief that if you put your hands in the soil and show up every single day, something grows — and not just crops.

The farm spans two parcels. Our home property is nestled within a maple forest — the kind of place that feels like it's been there forever, quiet and grounding and full of life. Our farmland sits a short commute away, where the real work happens season after season. From garlic to dahlias to maple syrup, everything we produce is small batch, artisan, and made with the kind of care that simply cannot be replicated at scale.

Our mission has always been to balance sustainable stewardship of the land with a blend of innovative techniques and time-honored traditional methods. We believe premium quality comes from premium attention — to the soil, to the process, and to the people we're growing food for.

The maple forest that surrounds the Rustic Roots home property — where it all began.

Growing Alongside the Farm

Leah and Blake have been part of this farm since they were young enough that the tractor seemed enormous, and the harvest felt like magic. They've grown up alongside it — learning to work hard, think creatively, and take pride in something they helped build with their own hands.

That's the heart of Rustic Roots. Not just what we grow, but who we're growing into in the process.

In 2021, we were honored to become a featured grower at the Minnesota Garlic Festival — recognition from a community that takes quality and craft seriously. It was a milestone that told us we were on the right track.

And in 2024, we opened our dahlia field for pick-your-own events for the first time. That field carries a story of its own — one we'll share fully another day — but know that those blooms represent more than beauty. They represent love, legacy, and the kind of thing that makes a farm feel like it has a soul.

The Rustic Roots dahlia field in full bloom — now open for pick-your-own events.

The Land Stewardship Project Opens a Door

It started with an application through the Land Stewardship Project — a Minnesota-based organization we deeply respect for their commitment to sustainable agriculture and farm advocacy. They had partnered with Farm Aid to arrange farm photography sessions ahead of the 40th Anniversary Concert in Minneapolis, and they were looking for farms to participate.

We applied. And we were selected.

What followed was a visit from Scott Streble — a professional NGO photographer who has spent six years traveling across the United States documenting family farms for Farm Aid. Scott is Minneapolis-based, and this was his chance to do that work on his home turf. When he reached out, he told us he was excited to finally photograph farms in his own backyard after years of doing this work across the country.

We were humbled. And more than a little excited. The Land Stewardship Project has spent decades working alongside farmers like us — people who believe that how food is grown matters as much as what is grown. Being selected through their program felt like a nod from a community we deeply respect, and it set everything that followed in motion.

Photograph by Scott Streble, whose work with Farm Aid has taken him to family farms across the country.

Garlic, Dahlias, and a Photographer Who Noticed Everything

Scott's timing couldn't have been more perfect.

He arrived while we were in the middle of cleaning cured garlic bulbs, preparing them for sale. Properly cured garlic is actually odorless — that's one of the ways you know it's been done right. What you're left with is something almost papery and perfect in your hands, each bulb a quiet testament to the clove you pressed into the earth months before. It's one of those farm moments that feels both ordinary and extraordinary at the same time — humble work that carries a whole season's worth of patience in it.

And just beyond the garlic, our dahlia field was in full, glorious bloom. Thousands of blossoms in every color, swaying in the late summer light. Scott moved through it all with a quiet attentiveness — noticing the things that tell a true story, finding the details that most people walk right past. The land. The light. The family. The feeling of a place that has been worked with love.

We weren't entirely sure at the time how the photos would be used. We knew they were connected to the Farm Aid concert. We knew Scott's work was serious and meaningful. But the full picture was still a mystery — one our family decided to hold onto quietly and see how it unfolded.

Harvest season at Rustic Roots — garlic bulbs fully cured and getting ready for market.

Scott Streble photographed the farm while our dahlias were in full bloom.

Scott left the farm that day with images on his camera. We went back to our work — more garlic to clean, more dahlias to tend — carrying a quiet excitement and a secret that was ours alone to keep. Weeks later, Chad and Julie headed to Farm Aid's 40th Anniversary Concert in Minneapolis with two of their closest friends. They knew their farm photos were somewhere in the mix. They just didn't know what 'somewhere' really meant.

What we didn't know was that by the end of the night, strangers would be tapping us on the shoulder, our phones would be exploding with messages, and a legendary American rock icon would be on stage while our little family farm from Alexandria, Minnesota was seen by people all across the country.

Part 2 drops next week. You won't want to miss it.

Many of the photos featured in this post were captured by Scott Streble of Scott Streble Photography, whose work with Farm Aid has taken him to family farms across the country. We are grateful for his artistry and his eye.

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Come find us at Rolling Forks Vineyards Winter Market, the Minnesota Garlic Festival, and at pop-ups at our Farm Store and Flower Field. We'd love to meet you in person.

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— Chad, Julie, Leah & Blake | Rustic Roots Farm