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Mel
and Bobette have farmed in the Hebron area since 1965. Along with field corn and soybeans, they grew sweet corn and peas for
a local canning company. They also grew specialty crops such as gourds and Indian corn for the South Water Market in Chicago.
Mel and Bobette have two children. Mike and his wife, Tracie and their three boys, Quentin, Xander, and Valen, and
daughter Neysa are partners in the farm/market operation. Michelle and her husband, Richard reside in Clifton, IL where Richard
is Chief of Police. Michelle is a pediatrics nurse in Kankakee. In August of 2008 Michelle and Richard added their first
daughter to the Von Bergen family. Sayla Grace was born on August 28th. Neysa is so happy to see someone else in pink and
Sayla loves to come to Grandma and Papa's house to play on all the fun "farm" things.
The birth of our present
day vegetable market came when then nine year old Mike wanted to grow and sell pumpkins. It started on a hay wagon in the
yard, then moved to the old milk house. Each year more vegetables were added and it grew into the retail/wholesale, (July
though October), market of today, selling everything from apples to zucchini. Our bi-colored sweet corn, picked every morning
for maximum freshness, and Mel’s famous muskmelons, sweetest around, are our specialties. And yes it is true that Mel and
Mike try to have sweet corn through October, weather permitting. (In 2008 we did have sweet corn and tomatoes through October
31st!)
Mel and Mike are the true “farmers”; planting,
spraying, cultivating and harvesting the vegetable crops. They continue to improve our growing power. Our early sweet corn
is grown on plastic which ripens a week to 10 days earlier than the conventional planting.
Bobette and Tracie
manage the vegetable market. They prepare, display all we grow and find the best quality produce we cannot grow, to be a full
service store for one stop shopping. Quentin, Xander, and Valen are learning the business by helping wherever they can.
We have been hosting school tours for over 25 years and continue to educate the area children by their helping us
harvest some of the specialty crops in the fall. It’s a fun way to teach the students that things are not grown in the grocery
store.
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