The 47th Street Farmer

Photos: Naftoli Goldgrab

It was a warm afternoon in late July and the sun was already beginning to set when I pulled into the gravel parking lot of West Maple Farms in Monsey, New York. At the edge of the parking lot, a farmer’s stand proudly displayed tomatoes, cucumbers, garlic, and squash, all offset by neat rows of crops. The scene seemed more reminiscent of rural Pennsylvania than central suburban Monsey.

As I stepped out of my car, I heard the growl of an approaching engine, and then a John Deere Gator pulled up next to me, kicking up dust. In the driver’s seat, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, with sunburnt skin and muddy khakis, was the man I had come to meet.

“You’re late,” Zev Oster said with a smile. “Get in.”

Zev is the owner and driving force behind the farm, and he seems as comfortable on the land as Old MacDonald himself. But full-time farming is actually a relatively recent development for Zev, who spent more than 20 years working in the Diamond District on 47th Street in New York City.