About the Farm
Little Saint Farm was started in 2020 as a collaboration between the owners of the Little Saint restaurant in Downtown Healdsburg, and farmers Samantha Winter and Nina Fitch.
Together, they developed plans for a hyperlocal farm that would provide an abundance of fresh vegetables, fruits, and cut flowers to star as the centerpieces of the plant-based dishes and the restaurant’s floral moments.
Out came the neglected grape vines, and in came compost, cover crops, woodchips and more to begin the process of revitalizing and reinvigorating the soil. Worms and soil microbes began to show up, and all the vegetables grown in this minimal-tillage system have been rich in flavor and dense in nutrients.
Less than 3 miles as the Heron flies from the Little Saint restaurant, Little Saint Farm sits on 8 acres immediately west of the Russian River. You can find our produce and flowers featured in dishes at Little Saint, through our CSA Box program, or our Farmstand outside Little Saint on Saturdays.
Our Team
Samantha Winter, Farm Director
When Samantha was in elementary school, she implemented side-by-side trials to determine the best brand of bagged compost. She didn’t start farming in earnest, however, until she was 22 and experienced what a real, fresh sweet pepper tasted like. There was no turning back, and it’s been her passion ever since to facilitate the creation of rich sensory experiences that can be shared with others.
Her passion for delectable delights not only feeds her soul, but also pushes forward her commitment to ecological farming. She strives to treat the earth right, respect nature, and leave our farms more resilient than we found them.
When she’s not farming, she’s likely found cooking epic meals and snuggling her floppy cat. She is a morning person and is rarely spotted in the wild after 8pm!
Nina Fitch, Floral Director
Growing up, becoming a farmer was never something that Nina considered. She had always dreamed of becoming some kind of scientist, but her field of interest constantly changed from biology, to botany, to oceanography, and finally to getting bachelor’s and master’s degrees in geology. Her draw to the sciences was centered around a passion for learning about how the natural systems in the world around her worked. However, in addition to her analytical side she has also always been a very creative person who loves cooking, painting, and floral design. When she finally stumbled upon the path of agriculture she realized that she found a place where her analytical and creative interests could work in harmony.
She got her start in agriculture after quitting her job at an environmental consulting firm and setting out with her partner on a six month trip to Nepal and Southeast Asia. On that trip, they exchanged work for room and board at farms in Nepal, Thailand, and Malaysia. She found the work exhilarating and fulfilling, especially when she could learn from her hosts how to cook traditional foods with the food grown on the lands they worked.
Upon returning from that trip, they moved to Sonoma County and she took a job working for Singing Frogs Farm. It was at Singing Frogs Farm that she met and became close friends with Samantha. Over the years of their friendship they dreamed of someday running a farm of their own. Little Saint Farm is the manifestation of that dream!
LJ Maingard, Programs Manager
LJ was born in a rural village amidst the stunning Cape Point Nature Reserve at the turning tip of Africa. Growing up in such close relationship with the powerful, palpably omnipotent land of Africa, LJ garnered an immense respect for all Beings.
After high-school, LJ graduated top of their class in Culinary Artistry and departed South Africa as a chef, in search of a new home.
California turned out to be that home, and LJ remembers the very first time they cooked with veg that had been grown a mere 20 feet from the kitchen; the depth of aroma emanating from the pan was more potent than any before.
So began a quest of open-ended curiosity, questioning humanity’s relationships with the plethora of forces we meet in our lives; ourselves, each other, the animal, plant and Spirit realms and how these all interconnect.
LJ is constantly amazed by the life lessons they glean from participating in the numinous science of farming.