HUDSONVILLE, Mich. — As America approaches its 250th anniversary, Hudsonville’s agricultural roots are still helping shape the community today.
Known as “Michigan’s Salad Bowl,” the Hudsonville area became known for its fertile soil and thriving farmland, producing crops like celery, onions and lettuce for generations.
State Sen. Roger Victory, who is also a local farmer, said Dutch immigrants helped transform the land into productive farmland years ago.
“A lot of Dutch immigrants came to this area and they knew how to drain soil,” Victory said.
Victory said the area’s rich muck soil and proximity to large cities helped Hudsonville become an agricultural powerhouse.
“You could harvest that lettuce, celery, and onions in the morning and have it transported to Chicago that evening,” Victory said.
Hudsonville Mayor Mark Northrup said agriculture can still be found throughout the area today.
“You go a mile in any direction here, you’re going to find apple orchards, peach orchards, onion fields, celery,” Northrup said.
However, city leaders and farmers say the area has changed over the years as new housing developments and growth continue replacing farmland.
“Too often we see a lot of the farmland getting developed, we lose that farmland forever,” Northrup said.
While some farms have disappeared, others have adapted to changing times.
At Post Family Farm, what began as a pig farm in the late 1960s has evolved into a popular agritourism destination known for fall festivities, school tours and pumpkin patches.
“Farming looks a lot different than it did years ago, so we’ve had to find new ways to bring people out to the farm,” said Julie Phoebus, Manager of Post Family Farm.
The farm later expanded into different crops before finding success with pumpkins.
“We found that pumpkins actually did very well here in the sandy soil that we have,” Phoebus said.
Phoebus said the farm now focuses on connecting families with agriculture and helping educate children about farming.
“We want to educate them about farming and the value of farming, because the small farms are hard to come by, but you still need farming to run the country too,” Phoebus said.
Even as Hudsonville continues to grow, Victory said preserving the community’s agricultural history remains important.
“Agriculture built this community. Even as we grow, it’s important we remember where we came from,” Victory said.
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