Photo Credit: Erica Mallory
Since their first date, Erica Mallory and her husband, Zach, had fantasized about an idyllic lifestyle on a farm. The couple made their dream a reality when they purchased four acres of historic farmland in Eagle, Wis., to grow vegetable crops and keep honeybees, chickens, ducks, goats and even an occasional rescue animal. Using a regenerative farming model, which balances farm ecosystems through pollinator-supporting crops and using repurposed natural materials to keep weeds down, growing hemp was a natural progression.
Mallory, who’s a registered nurse, understands the beneficial uses for hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD), which she discussed with the Shepherd Express back in April. This past spring, she started seedlings in a greenhouse from blue genius and regenerative hemp strains purchased from a company in Oregon.
“We are grateful to people through the years that have taken many risks with saving these seeds. I do not take for granted the people who are currently serving time because of saving seeds and keeping this plant in the underground,” Mallory says. She started with a greenhouse grow to challenge the plants, realizing that generations of those strains had experienced perfect growing scenarios with the best light, water and plant food. But would the plants stand up to Wisconsin’s harsh spring?
“The greenhouse grow for us was a nice test. I know we stressed those plants; we had snow in April and we were trying to run a heater in our 12-by-20-foot greenhouse, which is just a wood frame covered with two layers of polyplastic,” she explains. “They weren’t the tallest plants, but they put out some great flowers and a great product to start with.”
They harvested at the end of May, dried the plants and had them processed into CBD tincture and balm. In June, the Mallorys planted an outdoor grow on one acre of their property. “We placed the hemp plants in an area near nine beehives so the honeybees can access some of the flowers. In between the hemp, we placed red clover and herbs like fennel, dill and basil that would attract pollinators and keep away the predatory insects.” As of mid-August, harvest was underway. Mallory notes other crops like tomatoes were late this year.
She hopes to see more resilient strains, particularly from wild hemp plants that went undetected throughout cannabis prohibition, being incorporated into other strains to provide true native Wisconsin hemp. Wisconsin’s hemp pilot program is so new that the state still lacks some educational resources and support, but everyone is learning together. “We’re all holding each other’s hands, but it’s wonderful to have that camaraderie because it’s really showing the true spirit that Wisconsin has.”
When Mallory began selling their vegetables at the Waukesha Farmers Market in spring, they brought their CBD balms and tinctures with them. Mallory reaches out to people in her community with a dual approach—speaking as a nurse, as well as a local farmer, to educate about cannabis and CBD. She says a farmers market setting can provide a comfortable space for people curious about CBD but reluctant to walk into a dispensary.
Herb Amore’s tinctures are priced low, at $20 for a 60-milliliter bottle and $15 for a one-ounce jar of pain balm. “We are not a farm than only sells hemp, we are a farm within community that has many things to offer, so we wanted to be part of a plant with longevity and help people in a positive way,” Mallory says.
Herb Amore sells their CBD products at their stand at the Waukesha Farmers Market, Eagle Farmers Market and Mukwonago Winter Market. People can also order online or call the farm.
For more information, visit herbamoreherbs.com.
