About the farm

Hellbender Farm is stewarded by Rickie White, an ecologist and conservation biologist who specializes in southern Appalachian biodiversity.  He is proud to call Ashe County home and has developed a list of great things to see and do in this area.  The farm is named after the famous (infamous?) aquatic hellbender salamander, an iconic species found only in cool, clean mountain streams like Helton Creek which runs beside the farm. 

The farm is run with ecological, cultural, and economic sustainability in mind.  Our goals are to treat the land with respect by ensuring our practices improve biodiversity on and off the farm, treat our neighbors with respect by providing quality goods and fair wages, and treat the culture with respect by highlighting positive historic and modern aspects of our wonderful mountain people and places.

In addition to growing flowers and herbs for sale online, at local stores, and at the High Country Food Hub, we raise a rare breed of sheep called Navajo-churro and have a lovely guard llama named Wyn who protects our sheep from coyotes and feral dogs while serving as our farm's unofficial official mascot.