05/21/2026
UPDATE - the person who took 6 tomato plants on Wednesday May 13th, (and yes, it was a typo when I said May 15th) has paid for their 6 tomato plants. Here's a hint for those of you who don't regularly patronize farm stands that use the "honor system". If you don't have the money on you or you are having a friend who is one of our farm share customers use their farm share for it, TELL US by leaving a note that says when you will pay for it or whose farm share will be paying for it.
We are heartened by the outpouring of support and indignation about our plants getting taken. As someone who grew up in rural VT patronizing honor system farm stands, as a person that patronizes honor system farm stands when we are traveling, and who has had minimal problems with having an honor system farm stand at low volume times of the year for the 27 years that we have been in business, hope springs eternal that people are good and most are honest. I believe in looking for the good in someone, while certainly understanding that not everyone fits that description - which is why we have video so that we can provide such detailed descriptions. My other hope that springs eternal is that people who know who did this will have a conversation with that person so that our hard-working law enforcement officers don't have to spend their time on issues like this as they have for other farm stands in the area.
Yes, times have changed. But I refuse to let cynicism and distrust rule the way we live and interact with people in our local community or the larger community.
Hello to our fellow Stephentown and Taconic Valley residents. Many of you are aware that for many years now, we set up plant sales at our farm store at The Berry Patch on the “Honor System.” It has worked great for years with minimal losses. 2026 is starting on a different foot with our second “customer” of the year on Wednesday May 15th taking $30 worth of tomato plants without leaving money for them. He drove in at 12:26 PM from the north in a 4 door silver or white sedan with a sun roof. He is a moderately stocky man with wavy, moderately long white hair and a white beard and mustache wearing a dark blue or black short sleeve shirt and khaki pants. After putting the plants in his car, he stood on the far side of the car for a while, possibly texting on a phone. He drove out at 12:30 PM and headed back to the north. If you know anyone that fits this description and who has 4 San Marzano tomatoes and 2 Purple Cherokee tomatoes with hand-written white tags, please DM me. Or better yet suggest to him that he leave his payment of $30 in the mail slot of the garage door with a note that says “in payment for the 6 tomatoes that I got on Wednesday May 13th.”
On Tuesday May 19th at 1:10 PM a Bronze metallic or gray Subaru Forester or Outback drove in from the south and an older (70’s or 80’s) very slender woman wearing a wide-brimmed hat, medium blue short sleeve shirt, black leggings, and black or navy shoes with white soles got out of the car. First she chose 4 perennial herbs, then 2 dwarf sunflowers, then a dark red small dahlia. After putting all of them in the front of her car, she put a bill through the slot. Then she took a basil plant and a parsley plant. When a potential summer worker left and walked by her, she put the 2 additional plants in her car and got out her wallet. When I came out at 1:15 to help her, she said she had just gotten another plant and was putting more money in the slot. As Don noted later, she certainly was not showing any interest in chatting and seemed to be anxious to leave. She drove out to the south again. I walked into the farm store to check the box that all payments fall into. The photo below is of the $15 that she left for the $85 in plants that she took. The older woman owes us $70. This weekend, she should drop the payment in an envelope through the slot and write on a note “the remaining $70 for the 4 perennial herbs, 2 annual herbs, 2 dwarf sunflowers, and 1 dahlia that I took on Tuesday May 19th. After Memorial Day, I’ll be contacting the state police about both of these cases and giving them the videos.
For those of you that are kind, honest residents of the valley, we are sorry that we can no longer have our higher priced plants out on the honor system. We are happy to help you when we are there and supply you with our incredibly healthy plants. If you see our cars at the farm but don’t see us, follow the directions on the “text us” sign and we will be there shortly to get you whatever plants you want. That $15 that was left for $85 of plants doesn’t cover the cost of producing the plants that were taken, not to mention the wages of the local people that we hire. It doesn’t cover one day of county and school property taxes that we pay (the land has never sent anyone to school nor uses any services). It doesn’t pay for the donations that we make to community organizations nor does it pay for even one hour of minimum wage labor for a local high school student. And sadly, it doesn’t make the Taconic Valley the wonderful place to live that it used to be when you could trust your neighbors to do the right thing.
