Meet the Farmer

Tom Algiere moved to his 12-acre farm in 2014, settling across the Missouri River from Columbia, just north of Jamestown. He built his house with a focus on sustainability, incorporating passive solar design with 105 square feet of south-facing windows. His farm, Lamplight Valley—named by his daughter who lives nearby on Lamplight Hill—started as a personal project to grow organic food for himself and his family. Over time, Tom expanded his efforts to share his organically grown produce with others.  Powered almost entirely by solar energy, his farm reflects his passion for resource efficiency and self-sufficiency.

On four of his acres, Tom grows elderberries, separating them from neighboring farms' chemicals with 30-foot-wide buffer strips filled with native wildflowers.  He handles the entire process himself, from harvesting and destemming to washing and freezing. After battling the local deer for his crops, Tom’s elderberry patch produces up to 300 pounds in a good season. He chose elderberries for their health benefits and a fond memory of making wild elderberry jam years ago. He also tends a few fig trees and hopes to expand his small orchard.

Tom's farming practices reflect an intuitive commitment to environmental stewardship, though he doesn't necessarily think of it in those terms.  For him, caring for the land is simply a practical necessity–if you want to keep growing healthy food for years to come, you naturally end up taking good care of the land.  He avoids chemicals, practices minimal-till farming, and has built berms to prevent soil erosion. 

Tom retired from selling commercially in 2022, but still enjoys growing produce at Lamplight Valley for himself and his friends.