Offering Quality Produce to Northern Michigan 35 Weeks a Year
Z&N Farm is a five-generation farm, run by Nicole and Zachary Mezeske. With over a decade of experience in growing food and building community, we want to support our community by making quality produce accessible and thoughtfully caring for our land.
When you buy from our farm, know that your purchase helps us bring fresh produce to our neighbors, local schools, restaurants, markets, and food pantries, while supporting us in preserving and expanding our family farm’s legacy.
We follow organic practices because we believe the health of the land and the health of our community are connected.
While we are not organically-certified, we use many organic processes in our operation – focusing on soil health, biodiversity, and responsible stewardship.
Watering
We adapt our watering methods, from drip irrigation to overhead watering, based on what’s best for the crops we’re growing at that time. Utilizing a combination of under- and above-ground irrigation, a water reel, and drip tape, our goal is to water efficiently while minimizing weeds.
Managing Pests & Disease
To keep pest and disease damage under control, we use a process of careful seasonal crop rotation. This helps prevent pests from building up year after year. We are also constantly on the lookout for signs of disease to catch any issues before they get too bad. When necessary to prevent devastation, we treat our crops using OMRI-certified biologics used to target specific pests.
Thoughtfully Cultivating
We cultivate our fields by tractor and keep weeds in check using an eco-weeder, flame weeder and our trusty hands!
Seed Sourcing
We source non-GMO and organic seeds whenever possible.
Building Soil
Soil is the heart of the farm, providing so much of what our crops need to thrive. We use organic fertilizers, mineral amendments, compost, and cover crops to keep our soil healthy and thriving.
If you’re ever interested in learning more about our growing practices, feel free to ask us!
Our Team
Zachary Mezeske
Zac was born and raised in Bear Lake, and farming runs through every branch of his family tree. He spent most of his life with his hands in the dirt, learning to grow alongside his dad — whose garden once overlooked the very field that is now Z&N Farm. That ground has been in his family for five generations, and keeping it alive and productive is something he takes personally.
Zac brings over a decade of experience with natural and organic growing methods, including composting, vermicomposting, soil amendments, crop rotation, and organic pest management.
Nicole Mezeske
Nicole came to farming through people. With a Bachelor's in Political Science and a Master's in Social Work from Cal Poly Humboldt, and over a decade of experience in community service and public relations, she spent years working at the intersection of healthy communities and the systems that either support or undermine them. That work kept pointing to the same thing: access to good food changes everything. The farm became the most direct way she knew to do something about it.
On Z&N Farm, she focuses on community building, relationships, and making sure the work they do here reaches the people who need it most. Her poetry collection, Heart Soil, is an extension of that same work — using writing as a way to bridge the gap between what happens on the land and why it matters.