Anita Johnston Compass Real Estate

09/22/2026

In this episode:- Pure Salt co-founders Leigh Lincoln and Aly Morf...

09/15/2026

We're revisiting our conversation with Ryan Wakley, contractor and ...

09/08/2026

In this episode:- Third-generation-trained contractor Ryan Wakley...

09/02/2026

Toasted Coconut Sea Salt Matcha! I want this as a brownie.
And did you know Whidbey Island has Washington's very first tea farm just now in the infancy stage with plants going into the ground on North Whidbey Island outside of Oak Harbor.
Vale Matcha today announced Vale Farms, a 365-acre property on Whidbey Island. The company has now planted its first 12,000 tea plants as part of a long-term investment in Pacific Northwest tea agriculture.
Where the farm stands today
Right now, the work is refreshingly hands-on. Gavin and the Vale team are out weeding the first 100 tea plants, put in the ground together earlier this summer. A small but meaningful start to something much bigger. By the end of the season, the same field will hold 11,000 plants. Next year, growth accelerates further: roughly 100,000 additional plants across about 15 more acres. Once the farm is fully planted out, Vale Farms expects to be home to somewhere around one and a half million tea plants.

It's a long game by nature. Tea takes patience; a plant needs a minimum of three years in the ground, and more realistically closer to five, before it's mature enough to harvest. For now, that means the daily work is about preparation: breaking up the dense glacial till that sits about a foot beneath the farm's rich topsoil, improving drainage and giving roots room to grow, working in soil amendments, and staking out neat rows spaced six feet apart, center on center. The plants go in, and then the real work of watching over them season after season, and year after year begins.

It's early days for Vale Farms, but for Gavin, that's part of what makes it exciting. A decade into his career growing tea, he's still at the beginning of something new.
https://www.valematcha.com/guides/gavin-mcfarlane
https://finance.yahoo.com/small-business/articles/vale-matcha-announces-vale-farms-173900853.html

09/01/2026

We're revisiting our conversation with Bre Hance, interior designer...

08/29/2026

Summer in Whidbey can’t be beat! Sunshine, clear skies and live music every Wednesday during the summer

08/28/2026

🎉 Fun Fact Friday! 🏡Did you know we have a quiz built just for YO...

08/28/2026

08/28/2026

🎉 Fun Fact Friday! 🏡

Did you know we have a quiz built just for YOU?

Whether you’re thinking about buying or making the move to Whidbey Island, our quick quiz can help point you toward options that fit your goals. 💙

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MoveToWhidbey.org