Waterdrinker farms to take over management of Garden of Eve Organic Farm in Riverhead
The owners of Garden of Eve Organic Farm & Market have struck a deal to turn over management of their longtime farm stand at the corner of Sound Avenue and Northville Turnpike to members of the Weiss family, owners of Waterdrinker Family Farm & Garden in Manorville.
While Garden of Eve owners Eve and Chris Kaplan-Walbrecht will continue to farm most of the land, the public portion of their 20-year-old business — which draws as many as 25,000 visitors annually with various festivals, tours and other events — will be managed by Waterdrinker.
Ms. Kaplan-Walbrecht said the Weiss family is leasing 20 acres and the farm stand retail building on the east side of the property.
“Basically they were looking to expand what they’re doing, and we were looking to go out at the top with the farm stand, and allow us to downsize a little bit,” she said.
“We’re still continuing to farm organically,” she continued. “And we’re still offering our [Community Supported Agriculture] program for pickup at the farm as well as about 15 different locations across Long Island. We’re also offering home delivery in Suffolk.” However, she added, “we won’t be open to the public, except for CSA members picking up.”
The CSA is a subscription-based program in which customers invest in community farms by paying in full ahead of harvests, and then picking up an allotment of fresh produce weekly as soon as it’s harvested.
We’re still continuing to farm organically.
Eve Kaplan-Walbrecht
A note on the Garden of Eve website includes a final thank-you to customers: “We have transitioned management of our Farm Market to Waterdrinker Farm and are no longer offering events, festivals or U-pick. Thank you to our many, many loyal customers over the years, we love you and will miss you as we slow down a bit after 20 years!”
Ms. Kaplan-Walbrecht said that Garden of Eve’s organic traditions would continue under Waterdrinker management. “They’ve agreed to farm their acreage using organic practices as well. That was very important to us,” she said, adding that, in a sense, the 135-acre property was returning to its 1950s roots when it “was two farms … one farm on the east side and one on the west side.”
The Kaplan-Walbrechts will farm the west side while Waterdrinker will farm the east side.
Late last year, the couple sold the development rights to 66 acres of their property to Suffolk County, guaranteeing it won’t be developed. The cost was $4.6 million, Newsday reported in December.
Chris and Eve Kaplan-Walbrecht met in 2000 and shared a passion for gardening, tending a quarter-acre of land in Riverhead on nights and weekends off from their full-time jobs, according to the farm’s website.
“Since then, they … now grow 50 acres of certified organic vegetables, flowers, raise 1,000 pasture laying hens, and oversee almost 20 farm team members,” the site says.
Kirk Weiss of Waterdrinker Family Farm did not respond by press time to requests for comment.
