We were featured in the February 2015 edition of Martha Stewart Living.
Robert Lower has been interviewed by a number of publications including Sunset Magazine, The New York Times, Vogue, The Desert Sun, and the Los Angeles Times. Martha Stewart Living did one of the best articles. Their photographer, Marcus Nilsson, arrived in the early morning to capture the picture of the date palm before dawn. See more of his work here https://www.marcusnilsson.com/portfolio-01/flying-disc-ranch-martha-stewart-living-h445l We were sent pages upon pages of copy to fact check. The Martha Stewart Living team were impeccable.
Growing and shipping produce since 1979
Robert Lower founded Flying Disc Ranch in the spring of 1979. He started growing dates nearby (leasing palms) in 1974. Robert cleared, plumbed, and planted the ranch from scratch. The rows were desert before 1979. He feels like a pioneer.
Flying Disc Ranch has always been a direct market enterprise. From the beginning, we trucked our produce to food cooperatives in San Diego, Laguna Beach, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, and Portland. When many of the food cooperatives dissolved, we sold to health food stores and buying clubs. When they faded, we started farmers markets (our first was in Riverside, in 1972).
More About Robert
Our Farming Practices
Permaculture
Permaculture
Robert bought his property in 1979 from Ben and Patricia Laflin, of Laflin Date Gardens, one of the original date producers in California. Robert cleared the land, installed irrigation, and planted over 500 palms. The ranch has become a tropical fruit forest interplanted with citrus, aloe vera, figs, guava, and mango. Robert farms using “observation, adaptation, and accident.” He and Christina earned their Certified Permaculture Design certificates in 2010. Anyone who has visited Flying Disc Ranch might appreciate Ben Laflin, Jr.’s quotation: “A well-kept date garden is a majestic sight.” Robert and Christina completed the 2-week Permaculture Design Certificate Course with Brock Dolman of OAEC (Occidental Arts & Ecology Center), Penny Livingstone of RDI (Regenerative Design Institute), and John Valenzuela, with M. Kalani Souza, in Maui in February 2010.
