Chris Buck found the ideal spot for growing oysters on Virginia’s lower Eastern Shore at Cherrystone Creek, where the Chesapeake Bay meets the Atlantic.
“Geography is an important factor,” said Buck, who founded Ruby Salts Oyster Co. in 2010. “I had the good fortune to come across a piece of intertidal bottom suitable for growing oysters. They take on the flavor of where they’re grown, and the Chesapeake Bay is an amazing resource with a wide salinity range.”
Buck is among oyster growers featured a Virginia Farm Bureau report last week.
Wind, tide cycles and heavy rainfall can alter salinity levels.
“But we’re able to stay pretty consistent at the mouth of the bay,” Buck said. “So our waters are not as susceptible to fluctuations.”
Celebrating Virginia’s No. 1 rank in oyster production on the East Coast, Gov. Glenn Youngkin proclaimed November to be Virginia Oyster Month. The state is home to eight different oyster regions, each with its own taste, history and heritage, originally harv...