Farm Fresh

By Tara Shiver
Photography By Jonathan Fredin Apr 1, 2025

Small family farms don’t just grow crops — they grow community.

From her childhood in Illinois, Karma Lee recalls picking strawberries with her family every Memorial Day weekend. “I always had good memories of doing that, so I wanted to be able to give other families the chance to have good memories, too,” she says.

After moving to Apex, she and her husband, Jim, put that plan into action. But first, they had to learn how. “We were absolutely new to growing strawberries in 1997 when we decided to start,” she says. She joined the North Carolina Strawberry Association, which taught her “everything we needed to know,” and now has been spreading the strawberry love for 28 years at Buckwheat Farm in Apex.

Karma Lee has been sharing her love of strawberries for 28 years at Buckwheat Farm in Apex.

Each spring, Buckwheat welcomes the community into its 2.3-acre strawberry field for the type of “you-pick” experience that inspired Karma’s vision. “It’s been wonderful to see how many people come out and bring their families, and you see them year after year,” she says.

On weekends during strawberry season — which runs from whenever the fruit comes in to “when it gets hot,” Karma says — her brother-in-law sets up a station selling barbecue pork, chicken, and hot dogs. Real estate agents commonly have client appreciation days at the farm, and Girl Scout troops sometimes combine meetings with strawberry picking. Karma notes weekends are already booked up for events, but Buckwheat Farm still has weeknight availability for birthday parties and other group outings.

Michael Phillips also grew up with agricultural memories. His parents grew tobacco, hay, and strawberries on Cary’s Phillips Farms property, which has been in his family for more than 100 years.

In college, Michael had “just kind of an inkling of an idea” to turn the farm into a community hub, so he dropped out and “dove into agritourism.”

His inkling has grown into a massive success, with Phillips Farms now welcoming tens of thousands of visitors each year. The Family Fun Park offers acres of activities including wagon rides, cow and grain trains, slides, a petting zoo, bounce pillows, a toddler town, and lots more with ticketed admission.

While Phillips Farms no longer grows crops for consumers, a weekend farmers market welcomes local growers like Garden of the Vods from Fuquay-Varina, Sweet T Farm in Rougemont, and plenty more, showcasing produce, meats, bread, and beyond.

This year, Michael says the shelter space is more than twice its previous size, with 21 covered vendor spots, not including food trucks and beer vendors. Dampf Good BBQ sells low-and-slow-cooked brisket, ribs, pulled pork, and other mouthwatering meats from an onsite 32-foot trailer Thursdays through Saturdays. Other food trucks rotate in throughout the season. Access to the market and food trucks is free.

The family farm story shaped up a bit differently at Stoney Acres, a 4.2-acre homestead tucked away in a Cary neighborhood. Like Karma Lee, the Tischer family started from ground zero when they purchased the property on a whim. They learned how to farm by getting their hands dirty, consulting podcasts, videos, and other farmers for advice along the way.

“One of our favorite sayings is ‘Learn as you grow,’” says Emily Tischer, matriarch of the ever-evolving farm.

And grow they have. Stoney Acres welcomes visitors for open farm time most Sundays and hopes to add a second day mid-week this fall. “We usually have a great group of people turn out!” Emily says. “It’s becoming quite a great tool to build a community around agriculture.”

New this year, a summer camp will expose kids to the farm life at Stoney Acres. “Kids will start the day helping with morning chores, and we will move on to some fun themed activities,” says Emily, who was a teacher for 19 years. “We will learn all about chickens, goats, sheep, ducks, and honeybees,” in addition to enjoying farm-fresh snacks and, of course, plenty of playtime on the farm.

This year’s summer camps are full, but Emily hopes to add a track-out camp as well as additional camps next summer. The farm also hosts ladies’ nights, storytimes, birthday parties, and will soon add yoga classes.

The Stoney Acres farm store sells some produce grown onsite but is “much more of a way to bring products from other small farms and small, local businesses to a convenient location to make it accessible to people,” Emily says. The online shop includes everything from rice and coffee to dog treats and elderberry syrup from North Carolina producers.

The smallness that makes local farms so charming is also why they depend on our support.

“We’re at a point where we’re big enough to be able to invite the community but too small to get into big chain stores,” Karma says of Buckwheat Farm’s strawberries. “So for farms our size, we really depend on the support of the community to keep us going year after year.”

Smaller producers often do not have the capacity to welcome visitors or even host their own farm stands. Local farmers markets allow community members to support such micro farms and meet the growers who keep small-scale agriculture alive.

Stop In

Farming is unpredictable! Dates and hours vary, so check each farm’s website or social media before visiting.

Buckwheat Farm
Apex | buckwheatfarm.com
Open daily during strawberry season. On busy days, berry availability runs out. Call the farm’s answering machine line at (919) 303-0339 before stopping by to make sure the fields are open. Also available: jams and jellies, shiitake mushrooms, and homemade ice cream. After strawberry season, a roadside stand sells produce and flowers on the honor system.

DJ’s Berry Patch
Apex | djsberrypatch.com
Opening day at this you-pick berry farm is April 10. After strawberry season winds down, a farm stand offers tomatoes, corn, watermelon, cantaloupe, squash, lettuce, and loads more. Open daily.

Fickle Creek Farm
Efland | ficklecreekfarm.com
Option to stay on a working farm 40 minutes northwest of Cary and create your own meals with seasonal produce, cheese, eggs, and meats. Hosts farm tours the first Sunday of each month from May to October. Products include chicken, beef, pork, lamb, seasonal turkeys, eggs, and produce.

Hidwell Family Farms
Apex | hidwellfamilyfarms.com
Mini tours every Tuesday through April 29 allow kids to pet and feed a variety of farm animals, from bunnies and chickens to alpacas. A 24/7 self-serve egg stand accepts cash and Paypal. Contact the farm for info on Easter egg hunts, tours, and birthday parties.

Phillips Farms
Cary | phillipsfarmsofcary.com
Look for themed events throughout the season, beginning with a grand reopening and kids’ day April 5. Visit food trucks and an onsite farmers market or buy tickets for music and activities in the Family Fun Park. In fall, the fun continues with a haunted farm, including two new haunted houses this year.

Stoney Acres Farm
Cary | stoneyacresfarmnc.com
Open most Sundays for open farm time, plus additional pop-up events throughout the year. Buy North Carolina–produced goods through the farm store and sign up for the farm’s newsletter for updates.

Pay It Forward

The Inter-Faith Food Shuttle maintains two community gardens as well as its 14-acre farm.

Want to get behind the scenes of growing food while helping others? Check out volunteer opportunities with the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle. Sign up to help with watering, weeding, harvesting, mulching, and other tasks at the 14-acre Food Shuttle Farm. 80% of produce grown there is distributed through schools, senior nutrition programs, and mobile markets and other programs for community members in need. The other 20% is sold at the Food Shuttle Farm Stand, with proceeds benefiting hunger relief programs.