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Hi, we’re Jim and Casey, owners of Cloudscape Hill Farmstead in Dowling!
It was our love of nature that united us, even before we were married. We both dreamed of a healthier and more self-sufficient life together in the country and, shortly after our wedding in late 2019, we were fortunate enough to acquire the property that has become Cloudscape Hill. We love living and working here with our three border collies!
The property needed a lot of love and the work began in spring 2020 when we brought a small flock of sheep in to help the fields and soil come back to life. We planted the first 10 fruit trees in 2021 and expanded in 2022 to what is now a 53 tree orchard with apple, pear, peach, plum, and cherry trees. Our first gardens were also planted in 2022 and enlarged in 2023.
Before coming to Michigan, Jim had lived several years in Europe and fell in love with the French landscape with the seemingly endless fields of lavender in the Provence region, so we decided to plant 1200 lavender plants at Cloudscape Hill in 2023 and another 325 in 2024. We plan on planting at least another 1200 in 2025 (and again in 2026). The sandy, well-drained soil here in Michigan is ideal for lavender!
Nestled next to a wooded hill among rolling hay fields, Cloudscape Hill feels like a hidden haven, where time slows down and nature takes center stage. The farm’s rustic charm is evident in its faded red barn, and the other weathered, hand-built structures from 1872, which lend an authentic, lived-in feel to the landscape. The rows of vibrant purple lavender now stretch across the fields, their fragrance drifting on the breeze. While the property is well tended again, there’s also still a beautiful and essential feel of wildness to it that we have come to love. The northward slope of the hill is scattered by volunteer medicinal plants and new saplings, the edges of the fields are softened by overgrown grasses that sway in the wind, and other native and beneficial plants have volunteered here and there in the orchard rows. Overall, Cloudscape Hill exudes a sense of peaceful imperfection, where the land’s partially untamed beauty and the various weathered and rustic structures enhance the warmth and authenticity of the tranquil retreat.
We began the production of our artisinal lavender products in 2023. While we continue the orcharding and gardening, our focus for the coming years is on lavender, lavender products, and the development of our natural wellness programs.
Casey holds a B.S. in nutrition and Jim finished his Ph.D. in Depth Psychology in 2021 with his dissertation on ecopsychology. Our work at Cloudscape Hill draws on both of these fields of knowledge and is deeply ecotherapeutic for us and, we hope, for our customers.