Our philosophy 

Soil Health

The heart and soul of our farm and nursery is our soil. We believe that soil health is the foundation for all success on the farm. We use regenerative techniques when managing our soil, which include such practices as cover cropping, minimally invasive tillage, recycling nutrients through composting, and using natural mulches to add organic matter and soil protection. 

Plant Health

Growing healthy plants is essential to our mission. Our commitment is to grow plants that are hardy and adaptable by growing them slow and by using natural products such as kelp, compost, beneficial fungi, and beneficial microbes. We want our produce to be as nutrient dense as possible for the benefit of all whom consume it.  

Ecosystem Health

Our farming practices aim to leave the ecosystem in a better state than when we started.  This includes providing food for pollinators, not using any herbicides or pesticides (even organic ones), and planting a wide diversity of plants to provide habitat for birds, amphibians, and beneficial insects.

Corey Wahl  (Co-Owner)

Corey knew from childhood that whatever he ended up doing it would most definitely involve being outside. His love of seeds started at a young age when he would ride his bike to the local feed store to purchase seed packets.  He would grow the seeds in the garden or in his bedroom window and would marvel at the plants as they sprung forth. 

Corey credits his decision to pursue horticulture to his botany professor in community college. It was in this course that he learned about the in-depth and  fascinating world of plants and how they respond to their environment.  With this rediscovered passion for plants Corey enrolled at Washington State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture.

Since graduation Corey has worked as a technician for the Agricultural Research Service, a supervisor at an interior plantscaping firm, the manager for the student farm at Texas A&M University, the head farmer for Ronin Farm and Restaurant, and finally as a nursery specialist. It was at Texas A&M where he developed his passion for natural and sustainable farming and it was with Ronin Farm where he realized that growing, cooking, and celebrating food is a way of life that brings joy and harmony to everyone involved. With all this experience he decided it was time to begin his own project, Hildaberry Permaculture Farm & Nursery, with his partner Susie Stopa.

Susie Stopa (Co-Owner)

Susie germinated in St. Helens, Oregon, and budded within the old McBride Elementary and St. Helens High School. After cultivating a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Psychology from Portland State University she pursued career opportunities under the hot Texas sun. She went on to harvest a Graduate Certificate in Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management from Southern Methodist University and is a certified mediator in the state of Texas. After 14 years of covering the countryside of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Ohio, and Colorado for work, she decided it was time to return to her roots. Luckily, it was an easy sell to get Corey to agree to make the move and start a farm.

Susie is a farmer-in-training and a foodie whose love of cooking, baking, and foraging comes from spending many hours in the kitchen, garden, and forest with her beloved grandparents. In their Polish & Czech household you grow and preserve fruits and veggies; raise and butcher your own meat; make breads, cakes and noodles from scratch; make your own wine and vinegar and forage for and dry wild mushrooms. During this time with her grandparents she learned the importance of self-sufficiency and the power that food has to bring people together, create a bond, and celebrate who you are by passing down family recipes, stories, and knowledge.