Personalities
Barbara & Bill Spencer
Owners, Windrose Farm
Windrose is a small family farm located east of Paso Robles, near Creston, in San Luis Obispo County. Owners Bill & Barbara Spencer have been organic and currently follow biodynamic farming practices. The farm has been “clean” for twenty years; since its purchase in 1990.
In 1993 Windrose began selling at Farmers’ Markets with produce from their first small market garden. At that time, both Bill & Barbara were involved in other occupations; Bill was in real estate locally and Barbara was commuting weekly from Los Angeles, working as a studio musician. Then at the end of 1995 they took the plunge into full-time farming. Having already discovered the enjoyment of growing many “specialty” varieties of vegetables – most particularly heirloom tomatoes and potatoes, they also found they loved selling to wonderful restaurants, as well as to their friends, at Farmers’ Markets.
In addition to tomatoes and potatoes, Windrose grows onions, garlic, green and dry beans, peppers, eggplant, winter squash, carrots, turnips, beets, cucumbers, melons and many varieties of greens. They also have the apples and stone fruit. Their little valley is a unique micro-climate that is good for the diverse crops of lilacs, apples, super-sweet onions and melons.
Bill & Barbara state that “The longer we farm, the more enthralled we are with the old traditional seeds and plants. We strive as much as possible to use open-pollinated or heirloom varieties and have begun our own seed-saving program. Every day brings us more knowledge and a stronger belief in the principals and practices of sustainable farming. It is complex and labor-intensive – but the burst of life in the soil and the habitat of our little valley is astonishing.”
