Popular SLO County farm is changing hands after 20 years — and getting a new name
A family that has farmed in Arroyo Grande for 40 years has handed operations over to the next generation of growers.
Jerry Rutiz and his family operated Rutiz Family Farms, located at 1075 The Pike, for about two decades, according to the farm’s website. Now the 30-acre farm, that uses organic methods, has new owners and a new name.
As of March 1, the farm, now called Halcyon Farms, is now owned and operated by Ariela Gottschalk and her husband, Jeff Pienack.
As the Rutiz family did before them, Gottschalk and Pienack are leasing the land from the nearby Halcyon community, established by the Temple of the People religious group.
“The land has been in agriculture for generations and it has been owned by (Halcyon) the whole time, since they started in (1903) and built the community in Halcyon,” said Gottschalk, whose family has a 10-year lease on the property.
Arroyo Grande farm focuses on organic produce
Jerry Rutiz and his family, including his wife Maureen, operated Rutiz Family Farms since 2003, after moving from Huasna Road to The Pike site.
They focused on organic farming methods, selling pesticide-free produce at a popular farm stand as well as the Santa Monica Farmers Market and farmers markers in Arroyo Grande and San Luis Obispo.
The farm, as operated by the Rutiz family and Gottschalk, aren’t certified organic under the technical term.
Gottschalk said that her family will continue that commitment to produce without the use of pesticides and grow crops with organic fertilizer. The business also will maintain the farm stand’s current hours.
“The farm had been in commercial strawberries for 50 years and Jerry immediately started to rebuild the soil with a cover cropping program as well as stopping the use of any pesticides,” the Rutiz family wrote on their website. “It was important to bring back the land in addition to protecting our neighbors from the chemicals that had been in use.”
Gottschalk said Harmony Farms will offer mixed crops including strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, artichokes, asparagus, herbs, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and potatoes.
Her background includes 20 years of experience growing vegetables, flowers, and nursery plants as farm manager for Growing Grounds Farm, a program of Transitions-Mental Health Association, according to the farm’s website.
The Rutiz family bid the community farewell in a note on their website.
“It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost 20 years for us in Halcyon and we feel that we have tried our best to be good stewards of the land as well as good neighbors to the community that not only surrounds the farm but come from all over San Luis Obispo County and northern Santa Barbara County,” the Rutiz family wrote. “We feel very loved and appreciated and would love to thank each and everyone of you, and with that we won’t exactly say good-bye but ‘See You Around.’ ”
The Halcyon Farms farm stand is open noon to 5 p.m. Tuesday and Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.
Correction: This story has been updated to clarify the farm uses organic methods.
This story was originally published April 30, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
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