Doing Good: Bless’d Blossom

May 25, 2026

By Sustainable Solano

Bless’d Blossom owner Hannah Hartley inspects trellised cucumbers / Photo credit: Lan Ngo

Hannah Hartley’s face lights up as she gestures at the trees and soil around her and talks about regenerative farming, growing, and sharing the harvest and love of the Earth with her community.

“It’s a perfect design. From the soil community to the local community,” she said.

Hannah runs Bless’d Blossom, a regenerative market garden now in its third year on 1 acre she leases at Be Love Farm in Vacaville. The business brings together her love of farming, of growing healthy, nutrient dense, novel produce, and educating and serving others. It is a reflection of the connection she wants to have with the health of the soil and stewarding its care for the future while feeding people.

“For me, farming has always been a lifestyle — having the passion to cultivate garden veggies, and to pick them fresh at the utmost ripest moment for those around me and myself have been a cornerstone of my life,” she said. “It has naturally evolved into my career.”

Sustainable Solano is naming Bless’d Blossom as the recipient of our 2026 Doing Good business award. Hannah’s commitment to Earth Care and community makes her stand out. As does her beautiful heirloom produce and edible blooms.

Hannah specializes in greenhouse growing — pruning plants to grow vigorously, and trellising vertically to make the most of a small space and increase yield. In a 100-foot greenhouse, she can fit eight rows of tomatoes. That equates to more than 600 heirloom tomato plants towering more than 12 feet high. She envisions a future with market gardens built on the foundation of healthy soil in each city, which could revolutionize the food system.

Hannah has sold at farmers markets and farm stands. She also sells directly to many private chefs and local chefs who know the value of local food and seasonal menus, including Backdoor Bistro’s Chef Lindsey Chelini. This season, she has been selling most of her produce to the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. The Food Bank has a grant that helps it pay her organic prices. She picks the food the same day it’s delivered and it stays in Solano County to go to people who need it. That grant has been a huge boon, but it ends in June, and she’s not expecting that it will be available again. Hannah is hoping to have a flower/vegetable Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscription soon. She can be found @blessdblossom on Instagram for updates.

Hannah harvests from the Bless’d Blossom market garden / Photo credit: Lan Ngo

Her market garden continues the regenerative farming revolution that Be Love Farm was founded on by original owners Matthew and Terces Engelhart. Regenerative farming places more physical demands on farmers, though once established can yield more through balanced, healthy systems. Hannah notes that weeding by hand is a constant “labor of love” in the regenerative garden. But there are parts that are simple that everyone could be doing as well. Hannah said cover crops are her favorite regenerative practice because they add life back to the soil and help it to flourish.

Hannah met her partner, Terry Ryan, when he was her most loyal customer at the Vacaville farmers market. Their paths aligned, and it turned out he was a regenerative shepherd, tending a flock of St. Croix heritage sheep, grazing them for fire prevention and soil health.

“He is an endless wellspring of inspiration,” Hannah said. “His honorable stewardship of the land and most tender nurturing of the creatures have deepened my understanding in devotion, and in regeneration and animal integration, to such a profound level I did not know was possible.”

At the end of Hannah’s garden season, her partner’s flock grazes on the cover crop, nourishing themselves as well as the garden — and the community of microbial and fungal life under the soil.

As she talks, Hannah returns to community, which has supported her career over the years. A love of gardening and growing started when she was a child in her mother’s backyard garden, lovingly built by her father. The setting allowed both plants and young Hannah to flourish. Her mother instilled a lasting love of nature, while her father encouraged her that any dream was possible if she put her heart and soul into it.

She said her older brother, Holden, instilled in her “the strength to persevere” mentally and physically. She didn’t realize just how much she would need that fortitude: on a midsummer day trellising up another tomato in the 110-degree greenhouse, or going another week of working nonstop during the busiest parts of the season.

And she has Jon, a friend whom she calls her “regenerative farm angel”, who volunteers to help her and offers encouraging enthusiasm on the hardest of work days and guidance on regenerative farming.

Bless’d Blossom greenhouse gardening / Photo credit: Lan Ngo

When she first approached Be Love Farm about leasing an acre, owners Rachelle and Loren Ditmore encouraged her to grow not out of necessity, but out of love. The Ditmores have since moved, but Hannah keeps that connection. She is building a regenerative flower farm in Yuba City, where she will grow flowers for Rachelle’s nonprofit, “City of Refuge,” a shelter providing housing and services for women and children.

She hopes these women can find peaceful restoration amongst the flowers, recognizing “there is still an abundance of beauty, grace and life to be lived. That there is still so much goodness all around us, to be savored and shared.” Hannah has found that divinity of goodness is most accessible in the natural world and most specially in the tender unfolding of the garden; this is her favorite part to share from the garden with her fellow community members.

She continues to have support from Be Love farm’s current owners, Rob and Zina Kirtlink, who have made her feel like a part of the family. Hannah also holds gratitude for her neighbors on Bucktown Lane, who took such tender care in her daunting early years of becoming a small business owner and farming regeneratively.

“They have always consistently shown up to my beginning farm stands and markets, poured so much life-affirming encouragement over me, and they purchased from me (even when I knew they were purchasing too many vegetables to be able to eat themselves!” she said. They check in on her to see what she needs. They are the epitome of what it means to “support your local farmer.”

Hannah grew up in Vacaville, but spent years traveling and overseas, with many of those spent with World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF), a program where participants learn to farm sustainably and provide their labor in exchange for room and board. She felt called home in recent years, and now is putting down roots.

“The lifestyle of farming calls for you to be grounded,” she said. Planting a tree is a long-term commitment. “These plants demand your devotion.”

She has a degree in childhood education, and she can see a future where she’s pairing that love for learning and teaching with her passion for farming. She has future-focused approach and wants to instill that love, and the joy at watching that first sprout shoulder its way out of the earth, in the next generation of farmers. She feels it is her responsibility to not only share her knowledge and joys from the garden, but to also pass on the soil to the next farmer, in better condition than she found it. That is why she remains committed to regenerative farming.

“It’s so profound to ponder the garden,” she said. “The miracle of the garden and life itself.”

Doing Good

The Doing Good business recognition program spotlights Solano businesses that stand out in their efforts to support people and planet. Sustainable Solano’s work is informed by the practice of permaculture to form healthy ecosystems. The three ethics of permaculture are Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share. In business, this can mean authentic sustainability practices, how companies care for their employees, and giving back to the community. Our program recognizes businesses that excel in any of these three areas.

Know a business that is Doing Good in Solano County? Let us know by submitting a nomination form here.

Doing Good: Thistle

Jun 26, 2025

By Sustainable Solano

Shiri and Ash at the Thistle facility in Vacaville

When Ashwin Cheriyan and Shiri Avnery set out to start a business in 2013, their goal was to address the health of people and planet through providing convenient, healthy, fresh food that has a lower environmental footprint. They accomplished that goal through the creation of Thistle, today a Vacaville-based business that provides 500,000 plant-forward meals a month to customers up and down the West Coast and expanded in 2022 to include operations on the East Coast.

“If you choose a product that, by existing, is doing good, as you grow, so does your impact in a positive way,” Shiri said.

But the company’s focus on taking care of people is not only based on the food they eat – it also applies to the culture of Thistle and how it takes care of its roughly 800 employees and wider community.

It is for these reasons that Sustainable Solano is naming Thistle as a recipient of our Doing Good business recognition award. Thistle is an example of a local business that exemplifies the permaculture principles that guide Sustainable Solano’s work and that we want to recognize in others: Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share, or taking care of the planet, taking care of employees and supporting local communities.

The company’s commitment to Earth Care starts with the food. Shiri said that 80-90% of the climate impact of food-based businesses is from the food itself — from the way ingredients are grown, processed, and transported. That’s why Thistle creates meals with a lower carbon footprint by focusing on plants and sourcing meats that have less impact, such as chicken. There is no beef or dairy in their meals.

Beyond meal design, the company sources sustainably and strives toward reducing its impact in its operations through carbon offsets for customer deliveries, reducing food waste, and focusing on reusable delivery packaging.

Thistle started in 2013 as an off-hours endeavor for Ash and Shiri, who started out with a cold-pressed juice business and made the numbers work by renting space at night in an establishment that had the right equipment. By running a 6 pm to 6 am graveyard shift, they could use the otherwise idle equipment to create their products and grow their brand. They started having third parties produce food items for them, but quickly realized that in order to have the control they were looking for over nutrition, affordability and quality, they needed to move that work in-house.

In 2015, they started renting space in Berkeley, grew into space in Oakland, then more space in Berkeley, and then were looking to grow even more. They also changed their business model, shifting from being an on-demand meals business, which generated a lot of food waste, to a subscription model that allowed them to predict demand better.

That’s how they landed in Vacaville in September 2020. Since making that move, Thistle has grown West Coast operations three times in size, with a peak volume of 135,000 meals a week coming out of that facility.

They said they selected Vacaville because it was business-friendly and still close enough for people they employed in Berkeley and Oakland to commute. It also provided great access to regional farms and was strategically located for delivering meals to the north and south.

“When the food is fresh and perishable, that time matters,” Shiri said.

Jordan, Ash and Shiri in the Vacaville warehouse

The business prides itself on sourcing seasonally with a rotating weekly menu refreshed each season, which means that a large warehouse is full of shelf-stable ingredients, such as grains and spices, but there is only a small refrigerated space for holding produce because it is quickly turned into meals and distributed by the end of each week. Thistle goes through about 37,000 pounds of greens each month.

Today, Thistle does everything from procurement to preparation to delivery of the meals it creates. This is an opportunity to find ways to streamline processes, to make sure the quality and customer experience is positive, and to build the culture of the business around the people who do the work.

“The food we make — it doesn’t work well with robots. We’re here locally and depend on people to do the bulk of our work,” said Jordan Lichman, Vacaville director of plant operations. He said the company has programs to ensure that people are trained well, and have opportunities to grow and stay with the company. This focus on employees addresses People Care.

Everyone who works at Thistle is an employee, from the staff who prepare and package the meals to about 500 part-time employees who drive them to delivery hubs as far as Seattle and San Diego on the West Coast and that final mile to the doorstep. Thistle has around 230 employees at the Vacaville facility, another 140 on the East Coast, and about 75 corporate employees.

Ash said this imparts a level of care and pride in the work and the brand that cannot be overstated.

“None of this happens without great people who really care,” he said.

They will host “family dinners” where Jordan and plant leadership cook a meal for everyone, and host monthly listening sessions. There are quarterly staff recognition events. Thistle creates a space where employees can speak their minds and share from their experiences in ways that help to improve the business.

Employees package meals for delivery

Employees also have opportunities for advancement within the company. The day-to-day work can be learned, but the values of curiosity, hard work, reliability and teamwork are what make people essential to the business, Ash said. Thistle’s job is then to give them the skills they need to advance to the next level. An employee who starts with Thistle and is promoted from within knows the culture best and how things are done at Thistle, which carries over into their leadership and then training of new employees.

And some of the benefits for employees also translate into benefits for the environment and community through Fair Share. Thistle tries to minimize food waste, but slightly overproduces meals each week as part of quality assurance or sometimes has products that have gone past their “best by” date. Extra meals are offered up to employees to take home and distributed through community partners such the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. For products that are no longer able to go into the meals, whether withered greens or expired lentils, those are given as high-quality animal feed to The Lucky Ones Ranch, a nonprofit animal sanctuary in Vacaville.

There are challenges. There is a desire to source local, organic, regenerative produce when possible, but sometimes there are barriers – in particular balancing the high cost of ingredients with the desire to keep the finished meals affordable, as well as smaller local farmers having less infrastructure in place to wash and prep produce for large businesses such as Thistle. The business does source most produce within 150 miles of its facility.

There is also the challenge of delivering food in single-use plastic containers. Shiri said they have tried alternatives, but none have held up for freshness. As the company continues to explore options, they have partnered with rePurpose Global to try to offset their plastic footprint by funding the recovery and ethical processing of nature-and ocean-bound plastic. They also package in 100% recyclable PET plastic that is made from 15% post-consumer materials and manufactured with 15% solar energy, and they take back and reuse the cooler bags and ice packs used to deliver the meals.

“It’s progress, not perfection,” Shiri said. Small steps and continuous improvement make a difference, and over time, it adds up to a lot.

Ash recalls in the early days wondering if donating excess made that much of a difference, since it was only a few meals when Thistle was small and growing.

“Taking that step is important,” he said. “Don’t be shy about taking a small action that can do a little bit of good.”

Doing Good

The Doing Good business recognition program spotlights Solano businesses that stand out in their efforts to support people and planet. Sustainable Solano’s work is informed by the practice of permaculture to form healthy ecosystems. The three ethics of permaculture are Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share. In business, this can mean authentic sustainability practices, how companies care for their employees, and giving back to the community. Our program recognizes businesses that excel in any of these three areas.

Know a business that is Doing Good in Solano County? Let us know by submitting a nomination form here.

Doing Good: Morningsun Herb Farm

Jun 26, 2025

By Sustainable Solano

Rose at Morningsun Herb Farm in Vacaville

Tucked away on 3 vibrant acres in Vacaville, Morningsun Herb Farm has been a beloved part of the community for over 30 years. What began as a personal love of growing herbs blossomed into a thriving nursery and farm thanks to the vision and dedication of founder Rose Loveall.

“I never thought I would have a business,” Rose reflects. Before starting Morningsun, she spent years growing plants for the U.S. Forest Service in Placerville. At the time, she was limited to cultivating just five species, but her heart was set on growing hundreds. That dream took root when she stumbled across a magazine article about a small herb business, sparking the idea that she could do the same on her own terms. ​​

Today, Morningsun offers over 800 varieties of culinary, medicinal, and fragrant herbs, as well as drought-tolerant perennials, heirloom vegetable starts, and fruit trees. The nursery has become known for its extraordinary selection of hard-to-find and specialty plants, many of which are propagated from seed and cuttings collected right on the property. For Rose, one of the greatest joys is when a customer lights up after discovering a plant they’ve been searching for, sometimes for years.

Sustainable Solano is naming Morningsun Herb Farm as a recipient of our Doing Good business award program. Their commitment to Earth Care and Fair Share is evident in every corner of the farm.

“We go out into our own garden, collect our seed, and do our own cuttings,” Rose explains. “A lot of the plants we sell we’ve seen from start to finish.”

The farm’s beautiful demonstration gardens serve as a source of mother plants — mature plants that provide cuttings to grow the next generation. Even the plants and seeds that don’t sell find purpose through donation to schools and organizations in the community or composting. “It’s all circular,” she says. The compost and used soil are either returned to the land or shared with other farms, reinforcing a system where nothing goes to waste.

One of the things that makes Morningsun so valuable is its ability to support a spectrum of needs including therapeutic experiences. During the early days of the pandemic, the farm offered a chance for people to safely experience the beauty of the natural world. The lush gardens invite visitors to linger and breathe. “We were a place where people could come and bring their families,” Rose said.

Beyond the farm and nursery, Rose also dedicates a significant portion of her time to land advocacy. As an active member of the Pleasants Valley Agriculture Association, she works to protect Vacaville’s rich agricultural heritage. “We are so close to the Bay Area, we see ourselves getting eaten up by development,” she said. As housing and commercial projects sprawl outward, farms like Morningsun face increasing pressure.

During our visit, Rose led us to a gleaming copper still named “La Bruja”, Spanish for “the witch.” This traditional distillation machine is used to transform fresh flowers into pure essential oils, and on this particular day, it was filled with fragrant lavender. The harvest came from friend and neighboring farmer Alexis Koefoed of Soul Food Farm. Rose and Alexis run Hierbas y Flores as a collaborative venture focused on lavender oil and products. The two laughed about getting “lavender drunk” while removing the flowers from the machine. Even the byproduct of the distillation process, hydrosol, doesn’t go to waste. This aromatic floral water can be used in natural skincare products, room sprays, and therapeutic blends. Another example of how the circular system that sustains Morningsun also nurtures relationships between local farmers.

When asked what advice she’d give to others that want to make their businesses more sustainable, Rose emphasized the importance of autonomy for her employees. “I really trust my employees. They get to rebuild gardens and change things around. They know better than me who does what job the best. … If you have employees, it’s better to give them a lot more freedom.”

Doing Good

The Doing Good business recognition program spotlights Solano businesses that stand out in their efforts to support people and planet. Sustainable Solano’s work is informed by the practice of permaculture to form healthy ecosystems. The three ethics of permaculture are Earth Care, People Care and Fair Share. In business, this can mean authentic sustainability practices, how companies care for their employees, and giving back to the community. Our program recognizes businesses that excel in any of these three areas.

Know a business that is Doing Good in Solano County? Let us know by submitting a nomination form here.

Celebration Gratitude from Sustainable Solano

Sep 30, 2024

By Sustainable Solano

Attendees could view a timeline of SuSol’s 25-year history (Photo credit (all): Luke George)

We would like to extend a warm thank you to everyone who attended our 25th Anniversary celebration! Your presence truly made the evening special, and it was wonderful to see so many familiar faces and meet new friends who share our passion for the mission of our organization.

A special thank you to Assemblymember Lori Wilson, and the representatives for Congressmen Mike Thompson and John Garamendi for attending our event. We are grateful for the state Legislature recognition, Congressional commendation, and recognition from Wanda Williams with the Board of Supervisors. Your support means the world to us and helps us continue our work!

Assemblymember Lori Wilson recognizes SuSol / Attendees enjoy a farm-to-table dinner from Chef Lindsey Chelini

It was fantastic to witness everyone coming together, sharing their insights, and contributing to our vision board. Your ideas and perspectives are invaluable as we shape the future of our programs. Look for a blog in November where we will share some of the insights we received from attendees, how they intersect with our current work and where they guide us to look in our future work.

We’d love for you to stay involved! Whether it’s attending future events or making a donation to keep this work going, your support is crucial in helping us continue our mission. Every little bit counts and makes a difference.

SuSol staff and a Youth Leadership Council alum discuss programs with attendees

Thank you once again for being part of our journey. We’re excited to move forward together, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds!

SuSol Celebrates its 25th Year with Milestone Event

Jul 1, 2024

By Sustainable Solano

This year marks a significant milestone for Sustainable Solano as we celebrate 25 years of fostering sustainability, resilience, and community well-being in Solano County. To commemorate this achievement, we invite you to join us Sept. 21 for an unforgettable evening in the picturesque Suisun Valley. Set amidst a beautiful vineyard, our anniversary celebration promises to be a night of reflection, celebration, and forward-looking vision. We will take time to share memories from the past 25 years and talk about our impacts in community resilience, local food, green infrastructure, and youth empowerment.

The equinox, with its perfect balance of light and dark, provides an auspicious backdrop for our event. This time of equilibrium is ideal for making important decisions about the future, and it is symbolic of the balanced and sustainable future we envision for Solano County. As we gather on this special night, we will take time to recognize the collective efforts and special people that have brought us to this point. Most importantly, we will look forward to the next seeds being planted for resilience in Solano County and invite you to be involved in shaping our work ahead. We’ll officially launch our new business recognition initiative, Doing Good, which will provide an opportunity to spotlight local businesses that are making a positive impact on our environment and community.

The evening will feature a farm-to-table dinner prepared by local Chef Lindsey Chelini of BackDoor Bistro, showcasing the best of our region’s bounty. Each dish will highlight fresh, locally sourced ingredients, emphasizing our commitment to sustainable agriculture and community health. Paired with local wines from Backroad Vines, the meal will be a culinary journey celebrating the flavors and richness of our county.

Mark your calendars for Sept. 21 and get ready for an evening of great food, inspiring conversations and dancing. We look forward to celebrating with you and charting the course for our next 25 years.

General tickets will be available in August. Tables of 8 will be offered by request. Keep an eye out for more details!

Help us Shape Our New Doing Good Business Awards Program!

Jan 26, 2024

By Sustainable Solano

Image source: PermaculturePrinciples.com

We know that there are Solano County-based businesses that make a difference in their communities, and this year, Sustainable Solano plans to launch an awards program to recognize those businesses that stand out in their efforts to support people and planet.

And we’d like your help!

The Inspiration

Sustainable Solano has spent 25 years working to strengthen our communities through urban agriculture and community gardens, supporting the local food system, building community conversations and action around environmental and climate resilience, and youth engagement and empowerment.

Our work is informed by the practice of permaculture, which at its base level applies to creating environments that support a healthy, thriving ecosystem. This can apply to landscapes, but also to people, communities and businesses.

We are inspired to recognize businesses that, in their own ways, embrace the three ethics of permaculture: Earth Care, People Care, and Fair Share.

For businesses, we see these ethics materializing in different ways:

  • Earth Care — A dedication to authentic sustainability practices that comes from direct intent, rather than greenwashing or government mandate
  • People Care — A dedication to outstanding treatment of employees, both in policy and in action.
  • Fair Share — A dedication to giving back to employees or the community.

How You Can Help

We want an advisory committee that will help to guide what this program looks like in our community. We want input from business leaders on how to define meaningful efforts in these three areas, and how to judge which nominees are head and shoulders above the rest. Ultimately, an advisory board will review and select the recipients. 

Help us to envision and shape a program that recognizes, celebrates and supports Solano County businesses that are striving to do good!

Want to help? Contact us at info@sustainablesolano.org. We will start the planning process in early March.