Save Tierra Vegetables Now and for Future Generations
October 31, 2025
After 45 years of sustainable farming, Wayne and Lee James may be forced to close their Santa Rosa farm, Tierra Vegetables, unless they can raise enough money to buy their farmland by December 1. Without financial support from our community, they risk losing everything they’ve built: the land they’ve sustainably stewarded for decades and all of its infrastructure, including a commercial kitchen.
The siblings have many plans beyond purchasing the farm, from expanding their CSA program to passing on their legacy to the next generation. They’ve teamed up with award-winning Oakland chef Geoff Davis to take over the farm’s operations after they retire. But if they aren’t able to buy the land, this beloved farm will be lost. Donate to their GoFundMe now to secure Tierra Vegetables’ future, and read on to learn more.
The Past, Present, and Uncertain Future of Tierra Vegetables
Beloved by shoppers and chefs alike, Tierra Vegetables is one of the founding farms of the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, where they are known for their specialty produce, including many varieties of heirloom corn, peppers, and other vegetables, as well as their handcrafted value-added products such as hot sauces, dried chiles, and tortillas.
Lee and Wayne first established the farm in 1980, with a focus on sustainable practices and environmental stewardship. Since then, Tierra Vegetables has grown to include a popular farmstand, a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program, and community celebrations at the farm. Over the years, they’ve farmed on different plots of land. Their first lease was with a neighbor who didn’t ask for money from the siblings, so for 20 years, they farmed without paying any rent.
When they moved their farm to 16 acres in Santa Rosa in 2002, they negotiated a lease with the Sonoma County Agriculture Preservation and Open Space District, which meant they would not need to pay property taxes
The government of Sonoma County has made efforts to encourage land ownership for farmers. They buy land, establish a conservation easement that ensures the land will only be used for agricultural purposes, and then sell it to local farmers below market rate. The county plans to sell Lee and Wayne’s farmland with an easement, which will lower the cost. Conservation easements such as this can reduce a property’s value by 30 to 70%.
In addition, California offers tax exemptions for farmers to make some aspects of their operations less expensive. For Lee and Wayne, this allowed them to build infrastructure without the added strain of property taxes.
“We’ve built a farm there, a huge barn, and a commercial kitchen, all paid for by the farm, which would have been very difficult if we were paying even the taxes on Sonoma County land,” Wayne says. “At this point, they do not want to own the land anymore.”
After 23 years, the transition from renting to buying comes with a fast-approaching deadline and a lot of money to raise for the James siblings to make ownership a reality. If they don’t raise $200,000 by December 1, they will lose the land. As of October 31, they are halfway there, with only 31 days remaining to reach their goal
“We’ve been negotiating a sale on this land for a long time, but it’s a complicated situation. The actual appraisal and the price of the land only came up within the last few months… Everything’s happening rather fast,” Lee says. Even their conservation easement was only approved by the Board of Supervisors in late September. Now, the Sonoma County government wants to close the sale by the end of the year.
“What now complicates things even more is that we are having to make the purchase, which we should have done 10 or 20 years ago, but we’re also getting to the point where we really want to back out and retire, slow down on what we’re doing,” Wayne says. “It’s all happening at once.”
Creating a Succession Plan with an Acclaimed Chef
The average age of a farmer in the United States is 58.1 years, and many small family farms like Tierra Vegetables will disappear if they do not have a succession plan in place.
As they were considering how they might be able to retire and pass their farm on to the next generation, Lee and Wayne were approached by Chef Geoff Davis. “Geoff chose us,” Lee says. “Probably because he likes our produce and our products.”
Geoff, owner of the nationally acclaimed Oakland restaurant Burdell and a Ferry Plaza Farmers Market regular, first met the siblings 15 years ago, much earlier in his culinary career. At the time he met them, he was working at Cyrus, a Michelin-starred restaurant that uses Tierra’s produce. He began using their products more intently in his next position at True Laurel, five years later, along with produce from other local farms. He remains a loyal Tierra customer, sourcing seasonal produce for Burdell, which was named the Food & Wine’s Restaurant of the Year in 2024.
In addition, Geoff is also doing his part to support their efforts to purchase the land by taking responsibility for a portion of the funds that need to be raised and hosting one of several benefit dinners that local chefs have organized. After a purchase is made, he’ll turn his focus to farm operations, done with guidance from Wayne and Lee.
“We don’t want to change anything about the farm,” says Geoff. “There may be some small changes and tweaks to make the farm a little bit more efficient and profitable. But really, the spirit of what they’ve built is going to stay the same. This isn’t Burdell having a singular farm that only supplies the restaurant. It’s a customer-facing farm.”
In the future, Tierra Vegetables hopes to expand their CSA boxes south, to the rest of the Bay Area. When Geoff takes on operations at Tierra Vegetables, he plans to continue selling to restaurants and at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, and potentially expand into more farmers markets. The team of 12, including Lee and Wayne, will be employed throughout the transition. When and if the land is purchased, it will be co-owned by Geoff and Tierra Vegetables as separate entities.
“Right now, the important thing is buying the land,” Lee says. “Then we can think about the transition on the farm. All my customers go, ‘Where’s Lee?’ You know, I’ll be here for a while.”
Donate Today To Save Tierra Vegetables
Donate today to stop Tierra Vegetables from closing; the deadline is December 1. The community has also come together to host several dinners to support the fundraiser, including a Thanksgiving dinner at the farm. Visit the Tierra Vegetables website and follow them on Instagram (@tierra_vegetables) to stay up to date on future fundraising events.