The art of agriculture – ‘locally and lovingly grown’

Chris Rugowski

Contributor

October 7, 2024

ST. CLOUD – The idea behind Airy Point Farms (N7090 Hillview Road), Co-owner Nicole Sippel said, was simple: “Everybody loves pumpkins.”

The hobby farm turned pumpkin patch turned flower garden was developed to be something husband and wife team Derek and Nicole Sippel said they could create that was their own – but that could also seamlessly fit into the dairy Derek’s parents own.

Starting small in 2014, Nicole said they took things full force in 2020 – putting Airy Point Farms on the map for agritourism.

Becoming Airy Point Farms

Though they grew up close to each other – Nicole in Campbellsport and Derek in Kewaskum – Nicole said their paths didn’t cross until they were both studying at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

After becoming a certified veterinary nurse, Nicole said she and Derek settled on a hobby farm of their own in St. Cloud near his parent’s dairy farm.

As she focused on accumulating more and more critters (fainting goats and a miniature pony, among others) to the farm as well as working full-time at a veterinary clinic, Nicole said Derek dove into the world of giant pumpkin growing.

“And by giant, I mean that his personal record is 2,147 pounds,” she said.

Beginning with pumpkins “because it was fun to do,” Nicole said things started small – with a self-serve, grab-and-go operation in a wagon by the road.

When it comes to pumpkins and Wisconsin, Nicole said the state has some heavy hitters – so they knew they’d have their work cut out for them.

However, what gives Airy Point Farms a slight advantage, she said, is that Derek is “obsessed with them” and his agronomy knowledge in developing sustainable ways to grow them.

Nicole said another advantage of Airy Point patch is none of their pumpkins have to be cleaned after picking – as they are grown on a bed of rye, so they generally come out clean.

Beyond the science, Nicole said having a business where pumpkins are a mainstay is one of positivity and joy.

“Nobody’s upset when you hand them a pumpkin,” she said. “You think of your childhood, a creative display, your favorite Halloween movie – it’s all happy connotations. And you get to see the fruits of your labor bring happiness to the faces of customers regardless of age.”

Focusing on pumpkins, Nicole said, gives them an opportunity to see the fruits of their labor.

In conventional farming – such as corn – Nicole said you grow it, chop it and it becomes feed – it serves a purpose, nothing more, nothing less.

But with pumpkins, squash and gourds, she said you go out to the patch and there’s a rainbow of different types growing out of the ground.

“There’s every shape, size, color and texture you can imagine,” she said. “You pick them up and people fall in love with them. It’s so cool to see something you’ve never seen before. Each one has its own personality.”

But it’s not just the customers’ happiness that makes it worth the effort – Nicole said Derek has the same excitement.

From his seed planning purchases that start in January to the harvesting in September, Nicole said it’s a passion project for Derek that brings joy as much as a successful business model.

More than a hundred varieties of pumpkins, gourds and squash, as well as mums, straw bales and corn stalks, Nicole said, are available for purchase at the farm from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily through Oct. 31.

In the last four years, Nicole said the initial side business that started with a small stand at the local farmers’ markets is now a full-blown home-based business – complete with a farm stand that sells local products, a seasonal pick-your-own pumpkin patch and a wedding flower arrangement business.

Nicole said the connections Derek’s family had in the area helped get the business off the ground.

Mainly growing through word of mouth in the beginning, she said the ramped-up social media presence in the last few years has supported continued growth.

“It helped us gain traction and get people on board with who we are and what we offer,” she said.

In addition, Nicole said she started a newsletter, which also expanded their reach.

Knowing neither of them wanted a brick-and-mortar, Nicole said a farm stand made the most sense to accomplish the mission of Airy Point Farms.

“This was a way where we could show people a farm – show them Wisconsin agriculture in a different way,” she said. “We could also partner with local businesses and bring some of their agricultural products here because maybe they don’t have an opportunity for a farm stand, so we can support them, too.”

Blooming out

When she made a side comment to her husband about maybe doing something with flowers, Nicole said the idea took on a life of its own.

“I said it in a very thinking-out-loud sort of way,” Sippel says. “The next morning, he had a business plan and garden layout. He was like, ‘we can do this and that’ – that’s when I realized we were really doing it.”

Nicole said they started with some seeds in their basement when COVID-19 hit. 

When things at the vet’s office were getting difficult to balance with having to be at home because of the kids’ school at the time, she said she knew it was time for a change – and that’s when things really took off.

“Everyone wanted to get out of the house and do things (during the pandemic),” she said. “So many fell in love with what we were doing, the farm and seeing what we had growing.”

Nicole said she knows they wouldn’t be able to run this farm if not for the community support and family support – especially in the last few years.

“We couldn’t do it without them,” she said. “But then vice versa, we hope that we’re giving back as much as they’re supporting us.”

For more on Airy Point Farms, visit airypointfarms.com.