Verdant Hare, a small farm owned and operated by Whitney Jacques, has relocated its fruit and vegetable production to the River District Farm, in Liberty Lake.

Located at 20291 E. Indiana in the recently developed River District neighborhood, the 4-acre farm is across Indiana from Orchard Park just blocks away from Versalia Pizza and Sweet Annie’s Ice Cream.

Greenstone Corp., of Liberty Lake, is developing the River District neighborhood. That company also has developed Kendall Yards, just northwest of downtown Spokane, as well as a number of other projects in the Spokane-Coeur d’Alene area.

Greenstone CEO Jim Frank had the idea to incorporate a farm in the development as an amenity to the community. The land couldn’t be developed residentially because it acts as an easement for powerlines that are present on the property. Jacques is helping to bring Frank’s vision to life as a contracted farmer operating the River District Farm.

“I consulted with them for a couple years as the project was coming on board, then they had an opening for a farmer, and I thought this actually seems like a perfect fit for me,” Jacques says.

Many factors played into her decision to relocate her vegetable farm to the River District Farm and move her livestock production to her 5-acre home property, in the Glenrose area. Wanting to simplify her life and escape the “grind” culture, she welcomed the chance to farm on the River District property.

“We are pushed to exhaust ourselves, and at the end of the day, I didn’t have a lot left for my kids or myself,” Jacques says. “It made more financial sense for me to be here.”

Jacques previously relied financially on how much she could produce, which can be challenging during the cold winter months in the Inland Northwest.

Working as a contracted farmer with the River District Farm also has given Jacques the opportunity to spend more time with her four kids and immerse herself in a new community that has an interest in helping around the farm.

“When you’re a small farmer, you’re not just a farmer, you’re a marketing person, you’re the social media person, you do the ordering, you do it all, there’s no outsourcing for that stuff and that can be challenging,” says Jacques.

Since being contracted to farm at the River District Farm, Jacques now has one part-time employee who helps her in the field two days a week and hires out staff to run her markets.

The farm also has many community volunteers who help assemble harvest boxes, which are containers of seasonal produce that customers pay for in advance and pick up every week from June to October.

Volunteers also help run the 480-square-foot farm store, where Jacques sells much of her produce. The farm store currently is open 4-7 p.m. on Mondays and, starting in August, will be open 4-7 p.m. on Thursdays as well.

“My hope is that the store becomes a place where the community can shop for their vegetables for the week, and a few other things, maybe not a full grocery shop, but all the good local basics,” says Jacques.

Revenue for Verdant Hare has increased since relocating because of the farm store and a presence at the Liberty Lake Farmers Market. Jacques estimates that she has sold about 1,000 pounds of produce so far this season, compared with about 500 pounds in 2022. She also attributes the success to the greenhouse on the property. Having the 900-square-foot greenhouse on the same property as the field has been helpful when starting plants and continuing production.

“This is the first time I have ever had a greenhouse on the same site as my farm, so it has been amazing and I’ve been able to keep up on planting for winter,” says Jacques.

In addition to the farm store and the greenhouse, the property has a 1,200 square-foot hoop house that currently shelters tomatoes, cucumbers, marigolds, and basil. The hoop house provides needed warmth that extends the growing season, both at the beginning and end of the season. The basil grown in the hoop house is one of Verdant Hare’s bestselling crops.

Two metal shipping containers also have been converted into a refrigerated wash-and-pack station, making the preparation and transport of fresh produce more convenient for the farm.

Since starting Verdant Hare in 2019, Jacques has grown her produce at a few different locations. She first started growing herbs and teaching classes at her suburban house in North Spokane. Jacques then partnered with the Found Barn Farm at Greenbluff for the 2020 season, and leased a half-acre of land along Jamieson Road, off the Palouse Highway, for 2021 and 2022.

Jacques plans to farm at the River District Farm long term because of its amenities with the farm store, greenhouse, hoop house, and wash-and-pack facility.

“It has everything I need in one spot,” says Jacques.

While vegetable sales have gone up with the relocation, sales from Verdant Hare’s animal production have decreased significantly.

Having sold most of her livestock in the early spring to focus on her crops at the River District Farm, Jacques has eight sheep remaining in her flock. She also raises chickens that produce eggs she sells at the farm store. Jacques has hopes of rebuilding her sheep flock, as well as selling meat birds later in the fall.

Jacques has the goal of hosting more farm tours at the River District Farm later in the season. She will continue hosting a third-grade class from the Spokane Windsong School at the River District Farm once a month to learn about the growing process and at her home property once a month to see the animals.

Additional goals for Verdant Hare include adding to the farm store by collaborating with a local beekeeper to sell honey and incorporating the Lucky Lady Bread Co.’s bread products.

Despite Verdant Hare’s increased sales and production success with the relocation, the farm won’t meet the annual revenue goal of $100,000 this year, but Jacques feels confident in meeting that goal next year.

“When the community understands what the space is, what’s available to them here, our business is going to grow a lot,” says Jacques.