Spring Cove Ranch, owned and operated by the Art and Stacy Butler family in Bliss for over a century, continues to etch its name in Idaho’s agricultural history.

“Commercial watermelon farms in Idaho? Doesn’t that contradict some basic law of nature? I thought commercial watermelons were all grown in California,” says the native Idahoan. Well, this isn’t true anymore. 

What you notice first on the north side of Interstate 84 running through Bliss are grain bins with “The Andersons” logo displayed. And you see large golden, pyramid-shaped piles of wheat fronted by 110-car rail units. It’s an impressive site, but there’s a lot more you don’t see.

“This was a worn-out dairy when I came 10 years ago,” says Eric Evans of Evans Dairy near Castleford. “It originally had a double-four parlor with grain feeder but was built for Holsteins.” Eric wanted to milk Jerseys, and the cow size difference required some remodeling anyway, so he remodeled the parlor to work as a double-nine.