OUR GROWING PRACTICES
Verdant Hollow is an Animal Welfare Approved farm using regenerative organic practices to produce seasonal vegetables, certified grass fed lamb, goat milk, pasture raised pork and eggs. Since acquiring the property in 2016 our main focus has been restoring the 225 acre ecosystem of pasture, hardwood forest, and garden space through a long term permaculture design created for us by Peter Bane and Keith Johnson. This methodology not only restores the land, but also provides our family and community with an edible bounty.
certified organic
Our pasture, gardens, and laying flock are USDA Certified Organic through MOSA, so you can rest assured that we are following all organic practices for both our chickens and our garden.
regenerative
We believe in taking things a step further than organic, focusing on how we can use a system with both livestock and produce beds to restore the soils on our property. Many of the decisions on the farm are based on the question “what impact will this have 5, 10, 20, 100 years from now?” This includes decisions regarding everything from land and livestock management to the sustainability of the farm and labor conditions. Our baseline for land management is organic/chemical free with an emphasis on restoring the ecosystem of the farm through multi species livestock rotation and no till practices in the garden, pasture, and hayfields. We run hogs and goats in our woods to help combat the invasive species. Chickens and sheep are rotated on our perennial pastures to support the soil and root systems in those areas. These practices are not only supportive of a diverse and thriving ecosystem, but also produce nutrient dense and delicious protein from happy livestock.
In addition most of the farm is powered from 60 solar panels on our main barn. We also keep our “flerd” watered with rainwater collected into repurposed IBC totes from our rooftops.
PERMACULTURE
Our systems integrate permaculture practices to restore the ecosystem on our 225 acre property which includes pasture, hardwood forests and garden spaces.