Ela Family Farms Organic Fruit Picked at the Peak of Flavor Ela Family Farms

Farm News

Shirley Ela in front of the Ela Family Farms office in winter

It was a beautiful, beautiful life.

Regan Choi | Events, Farm News, Uncategorized | No Comments

Shirley's hands are at the root of everything we are as a family and as a farm. We are sad to share the news that she passed away this winter. Her consistent message of, "Be who you are"...

Adopt a tree (or Three!)

christy | Farm News | No Comments

As climate change makes harsh weather events even more impactful, we know no single family can go it alone. Be part of the resilience backstop, supporting organic fresh food in our local supply chain at its roots. 2022 ADOPT-a-TREE Our fresh organic fruit is also available year-round online…

Update on progress of replanting the peach orchards

christy | Events, Farm News | No Comments

Though it will be a few years before we can fully fill in the gaps left by the more than 20 acres of trees which died from the October 2020 radical freeze, we are building back bit by bit. In 2021 we were able to replace almost 7 acres of…

— An Ela Family Tradition —

Ela Family Farms is the first certified 100% organic, fourth-generation orchard in the Rocky Mountain West. Being able to bring you fruit is a joy. We look forward to seeing you next summer and fall at our Farmer’s Markets!

Adopt a Tree (or Three!)

Enjoy our fruits all year long!

Our fresh organic fruit is available year-round online in the forms of Jams or Jellies, Fruit Butters, Applesauces, Dried Fruits, & Artisan Gift Packs.

Other ways to participate

We are looking for ways to share more about where and how your food grows. See the button below – offering live video virtual learning and on-farm experiences this year!

2022 ADOPT-a-TREE

Artisanal Fruit Products

INDIVIDUALIZED Custom Tour

We are serious about Sustainability!

We are a zero food-waste business

We have developed an educated clientele at farmers markets (you!) which buys not only market-grade firsts but also buys the canning-grade imperfect fruit. Any fruit damaged further than that we use in our own commercial kitchen and even those scraps go to a pig farmer up the road. Nothing we harvest is wasted.

We use very minimal off-farm inputs

Our use of off-farm inputs (to nourish the trees) is minimal. We grow cover crops in between the tree rows which adds nutrients to the soil, helps create stability for complex soil ecosystems, and improves water retention in the soil

We use solar power

We supply about 80% of our electricity from our own PV solar panels – the maximum our local utility will allow us to install. And our commercial kitchen’s heat is largely supplied by hot-water solar panels mounted on its roof

We conserve water

Our irrigation system is the most water-conserving possible (entirely drip and micro-sprinkler) while also being almost entirely gravity-powered

We are at or close to carbon-neutral

A leading climate researcher has used our farm as a case study and found us to be at or very close to carbon-neutral

We are community-oriented

We are very involved in community development from local-scale mentoring to serving on state and national boards pertaining to organics, research, and health

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I just bit into my first peach from the farmer's market and it was so good it made me come and write this review. Looking forward to more peaches, plums, pears and apples from Ela's.
Tuesday Samantha Lee

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The best apples I ever ate!!!
Kristy Lichtenfeld

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Went to the farmers market in Old Town Fort Collins today and met these wonderful farmers. ALL of their samples were delicious, it was hard to choose what to buy. We went with the peach plum jam and were NOT disappointed. The greatest part of this experience was the warmness and kindness from the employees. They were friendly, patient, and helpful. We will definitely be customers again in the future.
Kaitlin Farruggia

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Back in about 1990, I bought some absolutely amazing Suncrest peaches (from an Eastern Slope orchard's store) that originally came from Ela Family Farms, and I've been DYING to get my hands on some more - I live in peach country in upstate NY now, but NOBODY has Suncrest peaches! There IS no other peach that measures up to YOUR Suncrest peaches!!! Please, someone at Ela Family Farms, SAVE me from my misery!
Rebecca Sewell

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I purchased 24 peaches online on Sunday, they shipped on Tuesday, and they arrived in Tennessee on Thursday in perfect condition. They are the sweetest, juiciest peaches around, just like I remembered them when I lived in Colorado.
Cindy Anderson Craft