116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Wanted: Sustainable farm for donated Solon land
Sustainable Iowa Land Trust leases land for growing edible food
SOLON — Brian Fleck’s dream is to have a farmer move onto Bee Haven Farm — he built a tiny house for the purpose — start a produce farm and give Fleck a share of the tomatoes, peppers and other crops.
“Right now, if you want to try it, I won’t even charge you for it,” said Fleck, 70, of Iowa City.
Fleck and his wife, Sabra, in 2020 donated their 40-acre Bee Haven Farm near Solon to the Sustainable Iowa Land Trust, a West Branch nonprofit with a mission to preserve Iowa farmland for sustainable table food. The trust, known by its acronym SILT, stands out from other organizations seeking land donations because it aims to keep farmland in production.
SILT has preserved 1,200 acres on 16 farms in Iowa since 2015. A new campaign, Circle Our Cities, sets a goal of creating 10 permanent food farms around 10 Iowa cities in 10 years. The first cities are Des Moines, Dubuque, Iowa City and Fairfield. It wants to add Cedar Rapids and Council Bluffs.
“When I came to Iowa, I was coming from Texas. The farms were very different there,“ said Breanna Horsey, who became executive director of SILT in February. ”I was completely blown away that we (Iowans) didn’t grow our food here.“
About 94 percent of Iowa’s farmed acres are in corn and soybeans, according to Iowa State University. Without diversified crops, Iowa’s agricultural system is more vulnerable to pests, disease and market volatility.
SILT leases donated land to farmers who agree to produce, within three years, table food that is certified organic, naturally grown or, in the case of raising animals, Animal Welfare Approved.
“They have to do one, whichever is the best fit for them and their goals,” Horsey said. Beyond produce or animals, farmers could plant berry bushes, fruit or nut trees or another product consumed by humans.
The first lease is three years, but if the arrangement works with both sides, they can sign a second lease for 20 years, she said. While tenants don’t own the land, they can build equity by investing in buildings or equipment SILT will buy back after the lease.
Farm donor supports sustainability
The Flecks bought Bee Haven Farm in 2007 as an investment. Brian Fleck, who published the Solon Economist from 1980 to 2000, had just completed an education degree and was looking for a teaching job. Maintaining the land was a burden in the early years, he said.
“Then when COVID happened, there was nothing else to do and I started to spend my time out here,” he said.
Fleck planted more than 3,000 native trees on 7 acres and established prairie grass and pollinator fields on the remainder of Bee Haven. He started keeping bees in 2018. Most of the land is in the Conservation Reserve Program to regenerate the soil.
Near the farm plot, Fleck has built a 650-square-foot building, now serving as a workshop. It’s insulated with a mini-split heating and air conditioning unit, small wood stove and a loft for sleeping. Soon it will have solar panels.
“Someday, hopefully, it will be a small home for somebody to live in,” Fleck said.
The Flecks decided to donate the farm to SILT because they believe in the group’s mission, he said.
“I believe in the phrase ‘be the change you want to see in the world’,” he said. “My goal is to have land farmed without chemicals, hopefully planted with produce. Nothing against big farms, but I want to do something different.”
Hard to find affordable land
Speaking of different, this year, Virginia Houser, 68, of Iowa City, is using a slice of Bee Haven Farms to grow gourds. Houser’s husband, William Blair, makes one-of-a-kind art from the large bushel gourds, drying and hollowing them before shellacking the surface to preserve the mottled coloring.
“It’s hard to come by people who have this kind of land,” Houser said. The gourds, grown on small hillocks, soon will have vines spreading 80 to 100 feet out from the plants.
Finding affordable land to lease is a challenge to new farmers. The average cash rent for Iowa farmland increased 9 percent in 2023, ISU reported. Immigrants, especially, have struggled to find land to grow crops from their home countries.
SILT charges below-market rent, Horsey said.
“The low cost of our leases is very appealing,” she said. “Many of the farmers that farm our land might otherwise be leasing a portion of property on a shared space.”
Donating land to SILT
People who donate land to SILT can do so in one of three ways:
- Donate the land and let SILT find tenants and lease the land
- Make an estate gift, which means the land transfers to SILT at the time of the donor’s death
- Allow SILT to place an easement on the land to ensure it’s farmed sustainably, but the landowner still owns and manages the land
To learn more about SILT go to its website silt.org, send an email to info@silt.org or call Breanna Horsey at (712) 291-6890.
Comments: (319) 339-3157; erin.jordan@thegazette.com
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