Figure 8 Farming - Collection
Figure 8 Farming grows specialty vegetables in Paonia for communities across Colorado’s Western Slope. From vibrant greens and heirloom tomatoes to peppers, herbs, mushrooms, squash, and broccolini, every crop is cultivated with the goal of delivering consistently flavorful, nutrient-dense food.
Rooted within the abundant ecosystem of The Living Farm — a multi-generation family farm that has created the space for this garden adventure — Figure 8 Farming works with the land, not against it. Produce is grown year-round under a variety of conditions and distributed to local restaurants, grocery stores, and regional food partners who value freshness and integrity.
How We Grow
Figure 8 Farming uses organic practices, meaning no synthetic chemicals are introduced into the soil, water, or plants. By protecting the soil food web and honoring natural plant growth cycles, the farm produces vegetables that truly pop with flavor — a clear sign of high nutrient density and a thriving ecosystem.
Growing systems include both passively and actively heated greenhouses built by the Gillespie family at The Living Farm, allowing production through Colorado’s high desert winters. To ensure a resilient and abundant season, the farm relies on:
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Succession planting
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Intercropping diverse cultivars
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Generous applications of compost to feed soil microbes
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Careful seasonal planning
The goal is simple: feed as many people as the land can responsibly support.
What “Figure 8” Means
In an era when agriculture is increasingly consolidated into extractive, input-heavy systems, Figure 8 Farming represents something different.
The “figure eight” symbolizes the cyclical flows that sustain the farm: water, nutrients, energy, and capital moving in continuous relationship. Many key inputs come directly from The Living Farm and the greater North Fork Valley. In turn, weeds and plant residues are fed to the chickens and sheep that roam the greenhouses and gardens, returning nutrients to the soil.
Ecological cycles and financial sustainability are balanced together — intertwined like a figure eight — creating a farm system built on reciprocity rather than extraction.
Meet Farmer Trevor
Trevor Donovan is a beginning farmer who has spent the past four years learning the rhythms of market farming in Colorado’s high desert. Originally from Massachusetts and raised outside of agriculture, Trevor found his path through a series of unexpected turns in his early twenties — developing a deep appreciation for nutrient-dense food and responsible land stewardship along the way.
Now stepping fully into his own business, Trevor builds upon the decades of work, wisdom, and mentorship of Lynn and Tom Gillespie at The Living Farm, along with the many farmers and food advocates of the North Fork Valley community.
