customer spotlight

Deep Creek Green

Debbie Erdman and Andreas Luder began creating their home on a beautiful span of property overlooking Paradise Valley south of Livingston, Montana about twenty years ago. The tremendous views of the Absaroka and Gallatin Mountains define the valley below and remind me of my love affair with the Big Sky Country and its open spaces. They have stretched their living space to the out of doors which in turn has expanded into a successful business, Deep Creek Green.  

       They’re an interesting couple: Debbie worked seventeen years as a gynecologist while Andreas did genetic research for seven years. Andreas embraced gardening full-time in 1991 and Debbie retired from doctoring nine years later. 

       Together, Debbie and Andreas landscaped home and yard with wild and ornamental flowers and shrubs, shelter belts to cut the wind, a pond above their home that irrigates half of their one hundred acres and a large vegetable garden on a more sheltered bench below. Their first greenhouse was built in 1987; three more solar greenhouses would follow over the years.

“Ron skillfully created a beautiful fireplace for the couple from local sandstone blocks; after proper firing, the rock’s mass radiates heat for three days. The massive fireplace is a functional yet lovely centerpiece in their home and they have used it well – keeping Paradise Valley winds and Old Man Winter at bay.”

It all starts in the Swiss Alps

       Debbie, passionate about growing perennial and annual flowers, created colorful wreaths from her garden’s dried flowers for several years. In addition to vegetable farming, Andreas has a knack for engineering feats such as greenhouse and irrigation systems. Their business is a marriage of their interests; it is exciting to behold what Debbie and Andreas are cooking up next at Deep Creek Green, now in their eighth year. 

       Our story of Tulikivi masonry heaters and Deep Creek Green begins in Swiss Alps in the 1950’s. Andreas has fond memories of the Kachelofen or tile oven in his family’s summer cabin. The Kachelofen stood between kitchen and living area; the fire was fed in the kitchen while the bakeoven door opened into the living area. Common throughout Europe three hundred years ago, masonry fireplace design varied according to the local stone available. 
       Debbie and Andreas first contacted Ron Pihl for his stone masonry talents, but were delighted to discover that he was also building Finnish fireplaces similar to the tile oven of Andreas’ boyhood cabin. Back in 1983, Ron skillfully created a beautiful fireplace for the couple from local sandstone blocks; after proper firing, the rock’s mass radiates heat for three days. The massive fireplace is a functional yet lovely centerpiece in their home and they have used it well – keeping Paradise Valley winds and Old Man Winter at bay. 
       After turning to growing plants full-time, projects really began to bloom on their land. Andreas and Debbie, tired of converting their guest house to business space, decided to construct what they call a ‘headquarters’ building for Deep Creek Green. The 7000 square foot building is grand to behold: from the exposed beams overhead to the fine details of hand-forged iron railings to the showcase greenhouse on its southern end rejoicing with nursery starts and ancient rosemary bushes. It has a commercial kitchen, two walk-in coolers and a large central room for customer conferences or floral arranging. 

Tulikivi 2700

       Happy customers always come back. After twenty years of comfortable heat to woo them back to Ron Pihl and WarmStone, the choice was simple for Andreas and Debbie: they wanted a masonry fireplace for Deep Creek Green’s new building. Ron was now building Tulikivi soapstone fireplaces for people across the West. They are the epitome of functionality and beauty and suited Deep Creek Green’s needs just fine. 

       Andreas compared their home’s Finnish Fireplace with their business’ Tulikivi masonry heater and noted how quickly the soapstone of the Tulikivi heats up and radiates warmth. The Finnish Fireplace took three days to warm fully due to its six inch chunks of stone, while in just three hours the Tulikivi is ready for baking. The Tulikivi gently radiates heat for up to 24 hours from one firing. 

       The Tulikivi TTU2700/5 looks great in their headquarters kitchen and is bakeoven equipped. Ron and I prepared and baked eight gourmet pizzas with Plant Growing Business Chooses Tulikivi Customer’s Corner gusto, garlic and greenhouse herbs in the Tulikivi during a recent “Wrap” party. Debbie and Andreas hosted a bash for people who designed and contributed to the construction of their new building. 

“They would like their new building to host a variety of educational programs that emphasize the importance of sustainable agriculture, the joy of flower or herb gardens and how to create from them. They are owners of a Tulikivi because in keeping with that vision, they want to be an example and resource of self-reliance for people and offer them a warm, cozy place to learn.”

Friends and baking in your Tulikivi

       That Saturday afternoon in March the masonry fireplace was still quite warm to the touch due to its firing the evening before. Ron built a fire directly in the Tulikivi’s bake oven because of this residual heat and used dry, small diameterwood; he stoked it up three times and then let it soak. With a quick rake of the coals to the rear of the bakeoven, cascading them to firebox below, the Tulikivi was ready for our creations of dough, herbed sauce and vegetable and protein accoutrements. 

       Ron normally uses an oven thermometer to test the oven, but had forgotten it. Not to worry. He simply sprinkled a little cornmeal on the bake oven floor and it quickly blackened – it needed to ‘soak’ awhile longer. This resting period evens out the heat for better baking. Interestingly, once the soaking period is finished, the temperature is not that critical. Ron said he turns out a great Tulikivi pizza with a bakeoven temperature anywhere between 275 and 500 degrees Fahrenheit – only the baking time varies. We had our eight pizzas baked in less than two hours – one at a time! Debbie and Andreas look forward to baking a variety of delectable breads in their bakeoven, a practice until now that was undertaken in their home’s conventional oven. 

       Debbie commented that her most important Tulikivi benefit “…was the serenity and peace one has sitting in front of the fire when it’s cold. It’s a spiritual thing really – so happy and so warm…” Andreas added “I can imagine Debbie setting up a work space nearby.” Their two dogs were already curled up in front of its radiant comfort as we talked, but the Tulikivi’s benefits and warmth will also spread to employees and customers. 

       Debbie and Andreas shared with me their vision for Deep Creek Green. In addition to the daily operations of growing plants, they would like their new building to host a variety of educational programs that emphasize the importance of sustainable agriculture, the joy of flower or herb gardens and how to create from them. They are owners of a Tulikivi because in keeping with that vision, they want to be an example and resource of self-reliance for people and offer them a warm, cozy place to learn.

Karen Reinhart has published books and articles about the natural and cultural history of Yellowstone National Park and the surrounding area since 1999. She has written articles for Warmstone Fireplaces and Designs since 2001.