by Emma Reynolds

Castle Hot Springs has a fierce commitment to sustainable farming, fresh ingredients and providing guests with the best-quality food and experiences. Embodying each of these values is their on-property three-acre farm, run by resident Farm Director Ian Beger, where they cultivate the majority of the vegetables and herbs used in dishes and drinks at Harvest Restaurant and Bar 1896.f

Beger first joined Castle Hot Springs four years ago as a farm consultant, and he knew he could transform the initiative into something truly interesting and unique.

“I first came on to help design and implement the farm program, and then I fell in love with the place, the people and what we were doing and decided to come on full time and start a farm department,” Beger says.

Castle Hot Springs’ sustainable farming department employs six farmers who oversee the farm’s three acres plus a new Agave farm. Beger, who is a fifth-generation Arizonian, and the team have trialed more than a thousand varieties of crops during his four years and consistently grow vegetable staples including tomatoes, all of the greens for the restaurants, carrots, herbs, specialty produce and more. The goal is to provide 80% of the produce needed for our Harvest Restaurant.

While Beger says there’s no such thing as a typical day, he usually wakes up around 4:30 a.m. to get started on the farm. During his day, he is out in the field harvesting and also prepping the beds for the next planting, or planting and cultivating seedlings for future harvests.

We address every single row and every single crop that we have,” he says. “I will make sure to do a walkthrough, just to put my eyes on everything. That’s how we make decisions on what work needs to happen the following week to maintain the farm.” The farmers also conduct the guest farm tours. On such a diverse farm there is something different happening every day.

A major part of Beger’s job is collaborating with the resort’s chef, and he works with them to help plan what to grow for the seasonal, farm-to-table-driven menus at Harvest Restaurant and Bar 1896. He is very well-versed in the food industry — Beger had previously started his own farm, Brother Nature Farm, and grew food for high-end restaurants in Scottsdale and Phoenix. This experience gave him a great foundation to understand what sustainable restaurants and chefs need.

“Whenever we look at what to grow, I’ll talk to the chefs and the bartenders, who we work with very closely, to see what they want and what they’ll be using, and then we try to choose the varieties that are going to work best for our specific grow climate and for our needs,” Beger says. Part of the process includes seed research to determine what will yield the right flavors.

While he certainly has a passion for planting his mainstay vegetables, herbs, specialty produce and even agave, what he loves most about his role is the ability to experiment with new varieties.

Tomatoes, which are grown in a dedicated tomato greenhouse on property are a star of the harvest. Each generation of tomato is different, and Beger seeks to create the most flavorful tomatoes possible by cross-pollinating his favorite varieties.  The Lucid Tiger is our Hybrid tomato. We are currently trying to stabilize seed and are on our 4th generation. The name of which has not been determined as it is not yet true to seed. After 40 generations it then becomes an heirloom.

Beger also loves to educate guests on the importance of sustainable farming at the resort and considers it another highlight of his role. “We try to show them how something grows and what it tastes like when it comes out of the field, and even come into the dining room to explain what is on their plate.” The Farm products are used extensively in the cocktail program, and even support some custom products used during spa treatments.