Featured Producer: Anne Lefevre

It wasn’t Anne Lefevre’s intention to become an organic vegetable farmer. But, just as some people are naturally proficient at math or business, she found her knack in growing food. “I just had a green thumb,” Lefevre says.

Lefevre grew up on Colorado’s Front Range, and farming took her to New Mexico, where she developed the skill set required for coaxing things out of the earth in the arid and harsh climate of the American Southwest. When Tony and Barclay Darayni put their Norwood vegetable farm up for lease, Lefevre brought that skill set to Wright’s Mesa. 2019 represents her third growing season managing the Indian Ridge vegetable operation.

At Indian Ridge, Lefevre uses high-intensity and restorative methods to grow a huge variety of organic produce on about an acre of land — or as she puts it, “a little bit of a lot of different things.” These include greens like arugula and kale, peas, potatoes, beets, squash, herbs, onions and tomatoes. The veggies go into CSA boxes for the Town of Mountain Village’s Farm to Community program — which provides fresh vegetables to 60 income-qualifying families. They also help stock the shelves of The Hub, and are featured in The Hub’s CSA program and local restaurants.

There are a lot of challenges inherent to farming on Wright’s Mesa — a short growing season, arid climate, harsh weather and critters, to name a few. But Lefevre enjoys discovering just how much produce can come out of this land when it’s farmed right. Plus, it’s a great place to raise her two sons.

“We eat well, live well and I’m able to eke out a living,” Lefevre said. “It’s my idea of happiness.”