Intervale Farm in Westhampton lies in a bucolic valley under the east slopes of the Berkshire hills, surrounded by a patchwork of farms. Rick Tracy and his wife, Maureen Dempsey, are the current farmer-managers of the property.
Tracy is the third generation to farm the land. Rick’s grandfather, Dick Tracy, purchased it in 1936. He says, “My grandparents moved in on April Fool’s Day, 1936. At the time, my grandfather thought it was a big joke.” After the family moved in, they found a sign in the eaves of the barn for “Intervale Farm,” and it stuck. Tracy’s parents, Bill and Janice Tracy, bought the farm in 1965 and primarily worked it as a dairy farm until 1980.
Tracy was a rising college senior in the summer of 1980 as the family stepped away from dairy. “This opened the opportunity for me to start raising vegetables. It was basically just a garden that got out of control,” he says.
Tracy and Dempsey studied agronomy at Penn State; they eventually married, and have stewarded the farm ever since. While still a student, Tracy determined that using herbicides on crops was both impractical and unsustainable. “I didn’t have the equipment to handle chemicals, and so I just said, ‘We’ll plant a few extra plants.’” The farm is not certified organic, but grows without chemical herbicides or pesticides.
Ever since that first summer, Intervale Farm has been at farmers markets. Both the Amherst and Northampton Saturday markets have been running for more than 50 years, and Intervale Farm grew alongside those markets. The farm continues to sell at the Northampton (Saturday) and Florence farmers markets. The farm also grows for Hilltown Market in Worthington, which was initially a mobile farmers’ market which served the Hilltowns. Dempsey says, “We’ve been working with them for a while now. If they need it, we grow it.”
Tracy sold produce through the Northampton and Amherst farmers markets beginning in college, and those relationships endured. Dempsey explains that early on, they grew for the Easthampton and Holyoke markets also. At the time, Holyoke was just getting started, and it was not financially viable for Intervale Farm to stay there; however, that market inspired conversations that led to them trying a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model. She says, “When we gave the Holyoke market up … we talked to a bunch of people about a CSA and said, ‘Well, we’ll just try it.’’’
As Intervale Farm begins its 24th CSA season, Dempsey and Tracy are ready to step back from the pace of intensive production. Ben Geary, the couple’s nephew, started growing vegetables on the farm in middle school. Last year, Geary took over the responsibility of the CSA. This year, Geary fully embraces the CSA as the new owner of Barn Swallow CSA. In addition to growing produce, Geary is harvesting maple syrup on the property, which Intervale sells at farmers’ markets.
The new moniker for the CSA is inspired by both the farm and family. Geary explains, “Barn swallows are everywhere here, and they come back to the same nest around my uncle’s birthday (April) each year.”
Geary grows the same variety of produce, herbs and flowers on a weekly basis that members love in their CSA. Farm eggs are available at pick up as an add-on. Geary explains the CSA will start the first week of June, with greens, peas, and beets. The season offers the abundance of summer crops, finishing with fall storage crops like broccoli, carrots, leeks, and onions the week of Oct. 13. Geary says, “I’m excited to offer a good variety with a wider selection than last year. A CSA is always stressful to ensure people get their money’s worth, but not get 12 pounds of potatoes at once.”
For Intervale Farm, farmers markets and their CSA means they sell directly to their neighbors and community. Over the years, they enhanced these relationships with participation in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the state Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) as payment.
Dempsey says, “Our customers are incredibly grateful we take SNAP and HIP. She adds, “Farmers market people just seem very appreciative: appreciative that you’re there with fresh food, appreciative that you offer snacks. It’s really something that SNAP and HIP help more people afford to eat fresh food.”
Another way Intervale Farm engages directly with the community is by growing produce for Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture’s (CISA) Senior Farm Share program. Intervale Farm supplies seniors in Huntington and Chesterfield with fresh, smaller shares of produce for ten weeks. CISA pays whatever the current share value is, subsidizing the low cost of $10 per participant. Dempsey says, “The seniors love it. It’s a wide variety of vegetables.”
Whether helping the community enjoy fresh, abundant produce or enjoying the face-to-face conversations during farmers markets and CSA pickup, farming brings joy to the farmers at Intervale Farm and Barn Swallow CSA.
Geary notes, “I like a plan working out — it doesn’t always happen that way, but it’s nice when it does. I enjoy the challenge of it.” Dempsey says, “I like everything else, but I like the greenhouse work and the flowers the most.”
Tracy shares, “I’ve been doing this for 43 years, working outside and making things grow. It’s satisfying when we’re sending folks home happy with their bag of food. I like to think I’m a little bit overly generous sometimes, but I think that in the long run it pays off and keeps people happy. They keep coming.”
The Intervale Farm stand opens on May 1, selling plants. Find Intervale Farm at the Northampton Saturday and Florence Farmers’ Markets this season starting in May. The Northampton market is Saturdays, 8 a.m.-1 p.m., on Gothic Street, and the market accepts SNAP and HIP. The Florence market opens May 6 at the Florence Civic Center parking lot. The Florence market accepts SNAP, and some vendors accept HIP. See intervalefamilyfarm.com for more information.
To learn more about the Intervale Farm CSA for the 2026 season, please email Ben Geary at benatintervale@gmail.com.
Lisa Goodrich is a communications coordinator for Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA). To find CSAs and Farmers’ Markets near you, check CISA’s online guide at buylocalfood.org.
