Trending
SALEM – Huffman Fruit Farm is preparing the way for a seventh generation with a new market building across from the long-standing barn at 13075 Lisbon Road.
The old market is inside a barn that dates to 1812 and sixth generation member David Huffman said the old timber-frame was built without nails. Instead they used pegs and a variety of joint assembly techniques.
Huffman said the uppermost timber is a one-piece, 60-foot long parallel beam and wondered how they got it up there.
“We want to preserve the building,” he said. “We hope to continue using it seasonally for hay, straw and pumpkins.” As during Halloween time.
Youngstown State University history classes have toured the 100-acre farm that has 30 acres of trees.
Huffman Fruit Farm is owned by John and Emily Huffman, both now approaching retirement. David and his wife, Carrie, will manage and operate the business from the new building under construction by Dutchcraft.
Construction began in June after the younger Huffman sketched out a design during the first of the year. Dimensions have been pretty much on the spot as the steel-sided and roofed pole building has taken shape.
“I was raised here and she (Carrie) was raised five minutes from here,” David said. They are both farm raised and hope their children, Kiera, 1, Kylee, 2, Javier, 3, and Sophia, 2 months, will be too.
The farm produces 30 different crops. There are 30 varieties of apples alone along with peaches, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, honey, brown eggs, zucchini, cider and sweet corn. “There’s a whole slew,” he said. Produce that isn’t sold wholesale to Rulli Brothers, to most of the local Sparkle markets and to a Giant Eagle store winds up under the roof of the 1812 barn and that long, one-piece beam. The farm also contributes to food banks and other community activities.
“We outgrew that barn 20 years ago,” David said. “To preserve the business for our future, we had to do something.”
The building is 70 by 80 feet including the porch with 4,200 square feet of downstairs space and another 1,200 square feet upstairs. The building has additional room to expand and the parking lot is four to five times larger than the old market across the street.
“We doubled the market area, tripled the work area, and have four times the cooler area, David said.
Numbers aside, to keep a crop-growing, money-making farm going year-round you have to love it, Carrie said.
Dawn to dusk? “Maybe a little more,” she said.
“You have to love being a farmer, if you don’t you’re not going to survive. I had two weeks after Kiera was born and I was back here working 12-hour days.”
“It’s in your blood – not to make money but doing what you love. We were raised on a farm and that’s the way our kids are,” added David.
He said that it’s definitely not a life suited to everyone, explaining the purpose of the new market building is to push more retail and to serve customers.
Carrie said there are basically fruit and vegetables and they would like to add coffee and cinnamon rolls.
David said beekeeping supplies will be available with designated space for them. “There’s enough interest,” he said.
The farm is also well-known for letting people pick their own peppers and tomatoes. That season, which is “a big thing,” according to David, begins the end of August. Then, in September, apple picking season starts.
With over six weeks of construction time in with the building, John Huffman said they expect to be fully operational by the end of this month. The farm employs about 30 people in the summer and a half-dozen during winter months.
The improvements are many, including the level access into the market – something the building across the road doesn’t have. John pointed out there are many elderly and people close to retirement in the area who frequent the country stores. “They still pick vegetables. We get calls from elderly people, ‘Could you check and see if my cane or walker is out there,” he said with a smile.
“We’ve had people worried because we’re expanding and think prices will go up, but they won’t,” Carrie said. She indicated there will be more products and the same low prices.
One improvement the Huffmans are powerless to make and have paid a price for is the condition of the Canfield-Lisbon Road section the market is located on. It has been an ongoing sore spot to Green Township officials and residents for years. The road, heavily traveled, is owned by Mahoning County and has been severely criticized for its rough surface for years.
“My father-in-law and nephew both suffered broken axles. This is the worst it’s been,” John said. “We’re definitely losing money over the road,” David added.
Huffman Fruit Farm is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday year round and for more information, visit the Facebook page.