Green Mountain Harvest in Waitsfield is growing fast. Last week, owner David Hartshorn signed an account with Associated Grocers of New England (AGNE) to sell his hydroponic vegetables in Hannaford's Supermarkets throughout New England.
"We're very excited," Hartshorn said of working with the new distributor. "We're just finishing up the paperwork." In addition to AGNE, Hartshorn has set up a meeting with a regional buyer from Whole Foods Market and he's already traveled down to Massachusetts to participate in a food show with the natural grocers.
Hartshorn, who also owns Hartshorn's Organic Farm in Waitsfield, started Green Mountain Harvest on the same Route 100 property in the spring of 2013. He partnered with John and Ted Farr to build two greenhouses, where he grows vegetables in nutrient solutions in water instead of soil.
Hydroponics has been around for centuries, but the growing method has progressed rapidly in the past decade with the use of computer technology to create optimal growing conditions for plants within a closed system sans unnatural chemicals. By using hydroponic methods, Hartshorn can now grow salad staples like lettuce all year round and local stores and restaurants have come to rely on his steady supply of greens.
"We produce every day," Hartshorn said of Green Mountain Harvest, "and every day it's the same amount." Now, "We're probably shipping out a couple hundred cases a week," he said of the greenhouses' current lineup, which includes butterhead lettuce, summer crisp lettuce, basil and watercress.
Watercress "is going to be a big player for us," Hartshorn said. The leafy green is "even more nutritious than spinach and kale," he said. It takes about half the time to reach maturity compared to other greens and because it grows naturally in rivers and streams watercress does very well when grown hydroponically.
Having already gone through two winters, Green Mountain Harvest is figuring out what works. Currently, it's the only hydroponic operation in the state that is growing vegetables year-round. "Every farm gets a little bit bigger all the time, but as far as hydroponics, we're kind of the guys here in Vermont," Hartshorn said.
As Green Mountain Harvest sells watercress to stores across New England, Valley dwellers can still find their greens at Mehuron's Supermarket in Waitsfield, East Warren Community Market in Warren and Village Market in Waterbury, among others, as well as several local restaurants and "I think every sandwich shop in town," Hartshorn said.Green Mountain Harvest in Waitsfield is growing fast. Last week, owner David Hartshorn signed an account with Associated Grocers of New England (AGNE) to sell his hydroponic vegetables in Hannaford's Supermarkets throughout New England.
"We're very excited," Hartshorn said of working with the new distributor. "We're just finishing up the paperwork." In addition to AGNE, Hartshorn has set up a meeting with a regional buyer from Whole Foods Market and he's already traveled down to Massachusetts to participate in a food show with the natural grocers.
Hartshorn, who also owns Hartshorn's Organic Farm in Waitsfield, started Green Mountain Harvest on the same Route 100 property in the spring of 2013. He partnered with John and Ted Farr to build two greenhouses, where he grows vegetables in nutrient solutions in water instead of soil.
Hydroponics has been around for centuries, but the growing method has progressed rapidly in the past decade with the use of computer technology to create optimal growing conditions for plants within a closed system sans unnatural chemicals. By using hydroponic methods, Hartshorn can now grow salad staples like lettuce all year round and local stores and restaurants have come to rely on his steady supply of greens.
"We produce every day," Hartshorn said of Green Mountain Harvest, "and every day it's the same amount." Now, "We're probably shipping out a couple hundred cases a week," he said of the greenhouses' current lineup, which includes butterhead lettuce, summer crisp lettuce, basil and watercress.
Watercress "is going to be a big player for us," Hartshorn said. The leafy green is "even more nutritious than spinach and kale," he said. It takes about half the time to reach maturity compared to other greens and because it grows naturally in rivers and streams watercress does very well when grown hydroponically.
Having already gone through two winters, Green Mountain Harvest is figuring out what works. Currently, it's the only hydroponic operation in the state that is growing vegetables year-round. "Every farm gets a little bit bigger all the time, but as far as hydroponics, we're kind of the guys here in Vermont," Hartshorn said.
As Green Mountain Harvest sells watercress to stores across New England, Valley dwellers can still find their greens at Mehuron's Supermarket in Waitsfield, East Warren Community Market in Warren and Village Market in Waterbury, among others, as well as several local restaurants and "I think every sandwich shop in town," Hartshorn said.
