Helen Chandler has been farming diverse vegetables for market for 16 years. In 2017, she started running Lake Divide Farm, a 54-acre certified organic farm in Jackson County, Michigan. She produces a variety of vegetables for sale at Eastern Market in Detroit and various wholesale outlets, with brassicas as core crops. Alongside the vegetable business, Chandler has long envisioned for something more: habitat for native insects, plants and wildlife, and a way to contribute to Michigan's growing need for native seeds. In 2025, she began turning that vision into a working part of her farm.
"The stewardship component of farming is central to my interest in growing food. I hope to understand the viability of growing, collecting and selling native flower seed while also running a vegetable business," said Helen.
Chandler's goals were both ecological and practical. She wanted to contribute to Michigan's growing demand for native seeds, create habitats for pollinators and wildlife, and test whether native seed production could become a viable addition as an additional income stream to her vegetable operation.
Site selection
Lake Divide Farm encompasses 36 tillable acres, about half of which are actively managed for vegetable production. The remaining half rotates through cover crops and fallow periods. When selecting sites for the native plantings, Chandler focused on areas that were less ideal for vegetable production but still easy to maintain.
Two areas of the farm were selected for the project. Site 1 had been part of the vegetable rotation, but it was too slow to dry in spring and carried a history of Alternaria leaf spot, a common fungal disease that causes problems for brassicas but not for native plants. Site 2 was a narrow, short field that was difficult to work efficiently with a tractor. Both sites had sandy loam soils, minimal sloping, and easy access for irrigation and monitoring—ideal qualities for the native plants. Soil tests from 2023 revealed no issues that influenced the site decisions.
Site preparation
Site preparation was one of the most labor-intensive parts of the project, but also the most important. Chandler wanted the native plantings to establish cleanly without adding weeding pressure during the vegetable season; therefore she invested heavily in weed control and soil preparation upfront.
Site 1 was in vegetable production in 2024, followed by a long fallow period until July 2025, which helped reduce weed pressure. Chandler disced the area in early July and plowed later that month, followed by additional discing, bed forming and rototilling. In late September, final preparations were done—a final cycle of bed forming and rototilling, ground cloth and irrigation. Most of the ground cloth came with pre-burned holes, lessening the preparation time. Irrigation lines included three lines of drip irrigation with eight emitters under the fabric for each bed. Plugs were installed just two days later.
Site 2 underwent a full year of preparation, beginning with a fall plow in 2024. In May 2025, Chandler disced and plowed the area, followed by two additional disc passes. Buckwheat cover crops were then planted in June. In July, the site bed was formed and rototilled to incorporate nutrients, and the aisles were cultivated. Chandler then grew cabbage and radish on the site from July through November, using the crop cycle to suppress weeds and build soil structure.
Weather held in her favor, as she was able to get an additional discing and mowing period before winter. Spring 2026 will bring final bed preparations—additional bed forming, rototilling and laying of ground cover to fully inhibit weeds before planting Lupine perennis transplants.
Ground cover considerations
Chandler evaluated several options for weed suppression—bare ground, organic mulch and ground cloth—and ultimately chose ground cloth because it required the least ongoing maintenance. Bare ground would have demanded regular cultivation and weeding, and straw mulch would still have required hand-weeding along with annual reapplication. The ground cloth may still require hand weeding twice per year, but only immediately around the plant.
She used 4-foot-wide ground cloth with pre-burned holes spaced at 10 inches, arranged in three rows per bed. For species that needed wider spacing, holes were burned using a handheld torch and premeasured pipe. The beds were raised 5.5 feet on center to improve drainage and spring soil warming and had flat aisles.
© Helen ChandlerInstalling plugs in the raised beds
The pre-burned ground cloth, however, was only available in 4-foot widths, leaving the aisles uncovered and cloth edges exposed to the wind. Chandler covered the aisles with pre-used ground cloth she already had on hand, and held the bed cloth in place with sandbags, though strong fall winds still pulled the cloth loose. Re-aligning the cloth holes with the plants became a recurring frustration. In hindsight, she determined the wider cloth would have been worth the extra time it would have taken to burn all the holes by hand, simply for the improved anchoring and full aisle coverage.
All preparations were completed with standard farm equipment: an 8-foot Alis Chalmers disc, a 4-foot Taylor Way rototiller, and a Buckeye bed former. No specialized tools were necessary.
Plant selection
Chandler's plant list was shaped by both the ecological goals and practical considerations of her farm's needs. She consulted Native Connections, Michigan Wildflower Farm and Wildtype Nursery, to aid her in evaluating each species.
Because the sites had a broad range of habitat conditions, she was not heavily limited by site compatibility, though Chandler did avoid shade-loving plants that would not thrive in the open fields.
The final species list included Sundial lupine; yellow coneflower; Canada anenome; rose mallow; wild geranium and bottle gentian.
Chandler approached the establishment of native plants with a clear focus on maximizing survival and working within the limits of available resources. For lupine, limited seed supply made early success especially important, so she chose to grow them as transplants rather than direct seeding. The seeds were stored in a refrigerated environment until late winter, then scarified in early March and placed between damp paper towels in the fridge to encourage germination. By mid-March, they were transferred into small seed trays with a layered growing medium, and by April they were potted into deeper containers to support root development. Transplanting into the field was scheduled for early June, giving the plants time to establish under controlled conditions first.
Ratibida followed a slightly different path. Originally intended for fall planting, the timeline
© Helen Chandler shifted, and Chandler adapted by planning a greenhouse start instead. Most seeds will be germinated and grown into transplants before being moved to the field, although she is also considering some direct seeding during a cold early spring window. Like the lupine, these seeds are being held in cold, moist storage to maintain viability and prepare them for germination.
Right: Plugs stored in a greenhouse prior to planting
For plug-grown species, Chandler relied on greenhouse storage in the weeks leading up to planting, watering as needed to maintain healthy growth. Planting density varied depending on the species, with closer spacing for smaller plants like Anemone canadensis and Geranium maculatum, and wider spacing for larger species such as Hibiscus moscheutos. In cases where multiple seedlings occupied a single cell, she chose to divide them before planting, even though this sometimes caused root damage. This tradeoff allowed for better distribution of plants across the beds.
The system was designed from the start to require minimal upkeep during the busy vegetable season. Maintenance is expected to focus mainly on keeping irrigation systems working, securing ground cover, and occasional hand weeding. Chandler anticipates that plants established from plugs will begin producing seed by 2026, while those grown directly from seed may take until mid-2027. Harvesting will be done by hand, with seeds stored in paper bags until she determines the most effective long-term storage environment. These seeds are intended for resale through regional native plant networks.
Reflecting on the project, Chandler found the process both rewarding and demanding. It required more time and attention than expected, but the outcomes justified the effort. She highlighted the importance of connecting with experienced native plant growers, noting that their guidance played a key role in both getting started and solving challenges along the way. The experience reinforced the value of choosing sites that align with daily workflow, investing in thorough preparation upfront, and designing systems that reduce ongoing labor. Flexibility also proved essential, as plans needed to shift in response to real conditions.
Overall, the project demonstrates that native plant production can be integrated into existing vegetable farms without major disruption. With thoughtful planning and a willingness to adapt, even small-scale efforts can provide meaningful learning opportunities and contribute to broader ecological and economic goals.
Source: Michigan State University
