Moonrise Meadows Farm in Maple Falls, Washington
At the edge of the Cascade foothills in Maple Falls, Washington, Emily Erikson-Mills stewards twenty acres of glacial valley and cedar forest now known as Moonrise Meadows Farm. The land bordering Canada was once home to the Nooksack people, and later cleared by settlers. It holds a layered past in every shovel of soil, from the silty loam, to the fire-scarred charcoal, to the ancient riverbed beneath the surface. Here, beside a seasonal spring-fed creek, Emily cultivates medicinal herbs and a vision of agriculture rooted in restoration rather than extraction.
Drawing inspiration from Masanobu Fukuoka and a CSA farmer’s impassioned call for local food systems, she established Moonrise Meadows in 2023 with her husband, a tiny house, and a belief that honest work could be revolutionary. Coming of age in a time and economy that is defined by disconnection from land, food, and labor, Emily instills a farming philosophy that embodies ecological coherence. To tend to the terrain this way is to defy and resist a system that rewards monocultures and industrial agriculture over small-scale farms with pliant earth and live soil.
Today, the farm operates on regenerative principles, guided by organic practices and a habitat for biodiversity. Lavender, calendula, mugwort, chamomile, and native black hawthorn reflect both artistry and intention. For Emily, farming is a long-term commitment to resilience and repair. “You must do something to make the world more beautiful,” she says, quoting Miss Rumphius. Beauty and utility are not opposites, care can be economically viable, and a farm can be both a source of livelihood and a fresh spring of meaning.
