Fall Farming Update

We caught up with the farmers who care for our land, animals, and produce – here’s what’s been happening on campus this September:

Pastures

550 of the Farm’s 1,400 acres are pastures and fields that support our dairy herd, beef cattle, sheep, chickens, and pigs. Our Brown Swiss cows are grazing on pasture all day during the first weeks of Autumn. As the temperatures fall in October, they’ll spend more time inside the barn to keep comfortable and get their fill of hay and silage. The haying season has officially come to an end: we made over 4,000 bales, which is plenty of feed for the winter months!

Market Garden

We’re continuing to harvest vegetables and fruits from all of the Market Garden’s seven certified organic acres, including broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, fennel, kohlrabi, peppers, tomatillos, greens, and turnips. We’re also digging root vegetables from the ground (beets, carrots, potatoes, etc.), and have been harvesting and setting aside storage crops like onions, garlic, and winter squash for the colder months.

Woodlands

400 green-certified acres across the campus provide maple syrup, mushrooms, and wild edibles, which are all highlighted on our restaurant menu. As the cooler autumn days set in, we’re wildcrafting lobster mushrooms, hen of the wood mushrooms, wild bay leaves, and sweet ferns to bring the unique flavors of the landscape to our menu. Our forestry team will be expanding the number of taps in our sugarbush once the leaves have dropped and the forest is easier to negotiate.