Adfia Bristol, owner of YES MA! Backyard Farm, plows a field in preparation for seeding. (Photo courtesy of Bristol)

By Mead Gill - #SupportBlackBusiness

Caribbean hands sifting through Washington soil represent the cultural intersection at YES MA! Backyard Farm, a small family farm in Puyallup. Owner Adfia Bristol grows high-quality produce and crafts bold, flavor-packed creations like onion jams infused with Caribbean spices and Guyanese hot pepper sauce.

As dynamic as YES MA!’s products are, the farm is more than just food, taking pride in honoring heritage and the flavors that bring people home. As a Women-led, Black-owned farm, YES MA! is vital in developing the community’s understanding of what it means to be a small-scale farmer in Pierce County while growing and creating food with intention.

Bristol washes lacinato kale with her children at YES MA! Backyard Farm. (Photo courtesy of Bristol)

A Family-Inspired Farming Style

Bristol’s take on farming celebrates her Caribbean roots through the produce she grows and the products she cooks. Her deep understanding of Caribbean cuisine has bridged the gap between her passion for farming and sense of home.

“[Farming] is something I believe is in my veins,” Bristol said, describing YES MA! as an homage to her mother and grandmother, who grew fruits and vegetables in their backyard garden. Bristol’s great-grandmother was a farmer in Guyana, contributing to Bristol’s devotion to Caribbean farming and produce.

Working as a culinary teacher in addition to farming helped Bristol develop her own recipes, utilizing the fruits and vegetables she grew to make Caribbean-inspired dishes and products that serve as a reminder of her family and culture.

“Family is very, very essential to everything I do and just the flavors of home make me feel I’m there with them when they are far away,” Bristol said.

“What I grow and what I manufacture is that sense of home, and that is what I try to bring to my farm,” Bristol said. (Photo courtesy of Bristol)

The Need for Cultural Diversity in the Food System

Originally from New York, Bristol followed her knack for culinary arts to Seattle, where she noticed a lack of Caribbean produce and goods on the grocery store shelves. She took it upon herself to help fill the gap and expose Seattle to the beauty and essence of Caribbean cuisine.

“I believe everyone should build pride in their culture and bring that value to the world, because it is something to offer,” Bristol said.

After starting YES MA! full-time last summer, Bristol continued to establish her name in Seattle markets, never straying from her value of cultural diversity in local food systems.

“The Caribbean is basically a mixture of cultures. So you have Asian, East India, and African, and Natives that's coming together. And so that's what I love about what I grow. It connects people,” Bristol said.

YES MA! rents land from Harvest Piece County, a conservation program that leases quarter to half-acre plots of land to small-scale farmers. Just as Bristol brings Guyanese culture to her operation, other farmers she works next to bring their own unique cultural backgrounds, aligning with Bristol’s value of agricultural diversity.

“There is a good network that we work together as another family unit, to produce as much as we can,” Bristol said when describing her farming community. These connections provide Bristol with a flourishing network to learn from and collaborate with as they work toward their individual goals.

But YES MA! goes beyond just representation in food markets. Bristol views her specialty produce to develop deep emotional connection and joy between consumers and cultures from all over the world, interweaving traditional food with an appreciation for the land that it comes from.

The Hibiscus Roselle

While YES MA! grows a myriad of gorgeous fruits and vegetables like lacinato kale, watermelon, and Ethiopian eggplant, the hibiscus roselle is their signature crop.

“In our logo, there's the hibiscus roselle. And so that's my crop of focus, and I try to use every bit of it,” Bristol said, explaining that she uses the roselle leaves to make achar, a pickled condiment she described as bold, spicy, and tangy.

Historically achar originated in South India and Indonesia, eventually finding its way to the Caribbean melting pot. The roselle used for the achar represents the cultural diversity of the Caribbean that Bristol puts front and center in her mission toward cultural connectivity through food.

“The drop in temperature here in Washington, I've never seen anything like that in my life,” Bristol said. (Photo courtesy of Bristol)

Adapting to Western Washington Weather

Growing Caribbean produce has required extensive trial and error, with many products like okra proving to be a challenge for a small-scale farm to cultivate successfully due to erratic Pacific Northwest weather.

“The drop in temperature here in Washington, I've never seen anything like that in my life,” Bristol said. Even her achar recipe, which is typically made from green mangos in Guyana, is altered to best fit the Northern climate that cannot sustain the produce from home.

To overcome the environmental obstacles, Bristol learns from the successes and failures of veteran farmers who have endured the unpredictable climate in Western Washington. She is gearing up to install two more permanent greenhouses, which she predicts will help her specialty crops acclimate year-round.

Bristol harvests zucchini at YES MA! Backyard Farm. (Photo courtesy of Bristol)

Increasing Exposure for a Fruitful Future

Bristol’s goals for the future of YES MA! focus on expanding the outreach of her produce and products by getting involved with more markets and collaborative opportunities outside of her regular repertoire.

“We want to kind of spread out as much as we can; Tacoma, Pierce County, and then a King County market,” Bristol said. “The goal is, in a few years, to take some of those products and wholesale them.”

YES MA!’s new farmers market circuit for 2025 is still being decided after a successful year selling in Capitol Hill, SeaTac, and the Proctor District. With the support of a curious community, Bristol will continue to expand her values as a farmer to new markets and neighborhoods.

Although her experience as a small-scale farmer in Puyallup may vary from farmers across the state, her love and dedication to food, family, and culture is a universal inspiration.

“What I grow and what I manufacture is that sense of home, and that is what I try to bring to my farm,” Bristol said.

YES MA! Backyard Farm

15403 Bowman Hilton Street

Puyallup, WA 98372

Instagram: @yesma_backyardfarm

Facebook: YES MA Backyard Farm

Email: adfia@yesmabackyardfarm.com

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