One of Maple Grove’s Last Remaining Farms Located in Heart of City
Maple Grove certainly looks different than it did years ago.
Commercial businesses, shopping districts and residential areas have all shaped the city, making its landscape decidedly more urban than it was in the past.
But in the heart of the city, you’ll find an organic farm that’s holding on to the way life use to be.
The Farm in the City
Near Nottingham Park and the Three Rivers Park District, Ryan and Tanya Denny are raising their four kids.
The Dennys walking on their farmland.
It’s also where you’ll find one of the last traces of farmland in Maple Grove.
“People are extremely interested in it,” said Ryan Denny. “They are just kind of flabbergasted that there’s even a farm out in Maple Grove still.”
The family’s 14.5 acre plot is the largest privately-owned farm in Maple Grove.
City officials tell CCX News that since 2016, the amount of agricultural land in Maple Grove has decreased by more than 20 percent.
One of the outbuildings on the Denny farm.
‘Fly by the seat of your pants’
The family stumbled across the sale listing for the one-of-a-kind property at just the right time.
“It was the midst of COVID, we had a 3-year-old and 1-year-old triplets, so it was one of those — we almost don’t know what we were thinking,” said Tanya Denny. “But it ended up being such a blessing especially during COVID, being able to let the kids go out and play, have space to run around.”
The farm bought a lot of open space, but also some challenges.
As Ryan put it, “This is fly by the seat of your pants.”
The couple didn’t have farming experience when they bought the property.
“I actually work full time in medical device. Ryan has a construction company,” said Tanya.
But family has stepped in to help and the previous owners offered guidance.
“They kind of gave us the run down of you know what to expect,” Ryan said. “There’s a lot of moving parts on this property.”
They’ve learned to live on the land, raise sheep and grow crops.
Currently, they’re harvesting honey.
“There’s a solid couple of weeks where we are potentially covered in honey,” Tanya said.
They are also harvesting maple syrup.
“We kind of still do it the old-fashioned way of hanging the bag,” Tanya said.
Over the years, developers have expressed interest in the property, but the family isn’t selling.
They want to pass it on to their kids and continue its farming legacy.
“We want to be able to hold on to this,” Tanya said. “Really preserve the beauty, the land, keep maybe one glimmer of what Maple Grove use to be.”
The family sells their honey and syrup online and at the Maple Grove Farmer’s Market.
In the future, they hope to expand their honey operation and add livestock like chickens, ducks and maybe a donkey to the farm.
