The following blog is a Got to Be NC Member Spotlight written by marketing specialist Heather Lifsey on Page Farms in Wake County.
Driving down the roads in northwestern Wake County, you see construction in almost every direction. Among all the new buildings is one farm that has been growing crops for over 100 years.
Page Farms has been in the family since 1916. The farm has always had cows and its main crop, at least until 2006, was tobacco. The combination of the tobacco buyout and the building boom helped set the farm on a course to becoming an agritourism destination.
Danny and Bonnie Page and their son, Justin, now raise strawberries, flowers and hay on this century farm.
His grandfather raised cows, pigs and chickens. Flue-cured tobacco was the farm’s main crop, growing on both land the family owned and land they leased. After graduating high school, Danny started working on the farm full-time. While he’s still farming, the farm itself looks different.
The tobacco buyout came in 2005. Tobacco farmers transitioned from growing tobacco that would be auctioned off to growing it under contract for a set price. Danny grew tobacco one more year but couldn’t compete with the farmers down east. That competition in the fields, combined with competition on the roads and loss of farmland had the family looking to diversify.
“Every field we tended (rented) has been sold,” explained Justin. Landowners sold their land for high prices, moving away. As apartments and houses were built on land that once grew livestock and crops, the roads became crowded. Just trying to move tractors from one field to the next became a challenge.
Today, the family farms only their land. “We wanted to keep the land in the family,” said Justin. “If we weren’t farming, the taxes would be so high we couldn’t afford to keep it.”
The Pages planted their first strawberry crop in 2007. “Two or three friends told me to get into strawberries,” explained Danny. “I didn’t know what I was doing that first year,” but the people came and continue to visit the farm each year. “I credit Doug and Michelle Patterson of Patterson Farms with getting me into agritourism,” added Danny.
Page Farms started with 1 acre of strawberries and now have about 3 ½ acres of berries. Almost 95% of the crop is sold as pick-your-own. Snapdragons are sold by the stem, and those are all pre-cut. There’s even a row of lettuce for customers to cut their own for a spring salad.
“People want an outing and experience”, said Justin.
Spring means strawberries, flowers and field trips. The public can pick berries and flowers. Schools can book field trips. Students take a hayride (except for Wake County Schools, which doesn’t allow students on hayrides) across the entire farm. The trip includes a program in the cow barn, the playground and a visit to the strawberry field for a lesson on berries and a chance to pick their own. Danny and Justin use visual aids created by the North Carolina Strawberry Association to help teach students the life cycle of a strawberry, which starts with fall transplanting and ends with berry picking time in the spring.
Fall is also a busy time on the farm. Three years ago, they added pumpkins. On weekends, customers pay a flat admission price to enjoy the cows, sheep, goats, corn maze, hay maze and playground. People can enjoy a hayride around the farm, ending at the pumpkin field, choosing to take home a pumpkin for an extra fee. The Snack Shack offers donuts, slushy drinks and other treats.
For someone who claims they didn’t know what they were doing, Danny Page has been recognized as a leader in the strawberry industry. The farm was a stop on the 2025 Southeast Strawberry Expo tour. In 2025 Danny was recognized as “Grower of the Year” by the North Carolina Strawberry Association. Justin currently serves on the association’s board of directors.
The farm is now open for strawberry season. The sixth annual “Page Farms Handmade Market on the Farm” will be held Saturday, May 2, featuring 25 local vendors. You can check the farm’s website or Facebook page for updates throughout the year.