Feast for the Senses

The weather was perfect. Well, perfect for Alaskans: sunny, 68 degrees and very few mosquitoes. The 50 guests arriving in pairs at Wild Rose Highlands crested the hill and saw lush green grass, a long white table between the fenced garden and the peony bushes, glassware glinting in the sun. Bohemian bouquets provided splashes of color. At the far edge of the clearing, signs of progress—bare earth and a clutch of rakes leaning against a log bench where attendees could enjoy their wine and a panoramic view of the Matanuska River in the valley below.  

What guests didn't see was the flurry of activity beforehand and the jumble of canopy tents and poles stashed beside a massive brush pile at the edge of the picturesque clearing.

Dallas Wildeve, a florist who co-owns the Highlands with her partner Chris Rose, laughed recalling the shaky start. "It was a bit disastrous before … We had a tented area. I made floral chandeliers that were hanging. Then a giant windstorm came and just obliterated it. But it was perfect! We got to sit outside in the perfect weather." Floral chandeliers were remade into centerpieces.

Developing the Sutton, Alaska, farmland while also managing their businesses—Dallas owns Bloomsbury Blooms and Chris is executive director of Renewable Energy Alaska Project, both based in Anchorage—is a more-than-full-time gig that's heightened the couple's adaptability and reminds them, regularly, that they're not in charge of the weather.

But for one evening in late August, they lucked out.

"This is a special place for us," said Chris, once all the guests were seated around the table. "We spent a lot of time figuring out what we're going to grow here. This was all forest five years ago … Right now, we're all sitting on about 30 feet of soil. It's an amazing place. You can see how fast stuff grows here, without a lot of help." As soon as dinner was over, he continued, they'd be planting more grass by the bluff.

"This is, in part, a way forward for us to get water," he said. Some of the proceeds from the dinner would be used to dig a well on the Highlands property.

Four years ago, Dallas and Chris began clearing land, building a road and putting in their first plants—flowers for Dallas's business, vegetables for their own use and to share with friends. And, for four years, they've been hand watering everything.

"Our house is five miles away," said Dallas in a follow-up conversation after the event. At their home, she added, they're fortunate to have an excellent well. "We have a big pickup truck, Mr. T (he's turquoise), and there's a big tank that goes in the back of him. We fill it with water [from our well] and then we drive it five miles to the garden. There's a holding tank there. We empty it by gravity and that takes about three hours." Once the holding tank is full, they use a hose connected to the tank, also gravity-powered, to fill holding containers in the garden. "Then almost all of our watering is done by dipping watering cans and hand watering."

She's "so ready" for an upgrade. A well will make drip irrigation possible and allow them to plant significantly more on their property.

Both Dallas and Chris are committed to developing Alaska's capacity to produce local food. Right now, Chris said, Alaskans import the majority of their food from Outside.

"Food security is a big issue," he said. "I work on energy security, but they're connected, because food is our energy. In 1955, Alaskans imported 55 percent of their food. Now we import over 90 percent of our food. That's going the wrong direction."

A farm-to-table dinner is their way of showcasing what's possible. Local pork from Mat Valley Meats. Salad greens, beets and potatoes from Arctic Organics and Stockwell Farms. Carrots for the carrot soup from their own garden 30 feet away. Apples from the trees outside their house. And, of course, flowers—from Wild Rose Highlands and beautiful dahlias from The Persistent Gardener, Rob Wells.

Owning a floral business has given Dallas the opportunity to feel more connected to the seasons and more in tune with what's available locally.

"Everything I make has something local in it, regardless of the time of year. If it's December, I go out and get some spruce branches and include them," she said. " If you can pick it from here, you don't have to ship it; it's a better choice. Just like food."

Before guests dipped their spoons in the carrot soup or slathered ginger butter on their fresh rolls, made by the evening's chef, Deb Seaton of Side Street Espresso, they all raised their glasses to the dinner's contributors—the farmers, the prep team working behind the garden shed without electricity or running water, the servers and the Alaska businesses who had all pitched in to make the moment unforgettable. Lawyers, pastry chefs, sustainable energy experts, chocolatiers, therapists and writers clinked glasses and murmured about their luck at being in this place, with this weather and this food.

"Maybe next year we'll be having dinners out on the bluff, right next to that view," said Chris.

This article was first published in 61°North – The Food Issue. Contact the editor, Jamie Gonzales, at jgonzales@alaskadispatch.com.