Great Outdoors
Friends of Holcomb Farm
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There are no slow seasons at Holcomb Farm, but summertime does offer the chance to share the fruits of our labors in a number of ways.
Granby Drummer (https://granbydrummer.com/category/grow/page/63/)
There are no slow seasons at Holcomb Farm, but summertime does offer the chance to share the fruits of our labors in a number of ways.
Summer has been moving by fast this year, and I hope everyone has been enjoying farm fresh fruits and veggies and grilling out as much as possible. I have been frequenting Holcomb Farm and The Garlic Farm to get the flavorful ingredients for wonderful tomato salads and vegetable dishes.
Besides the horses, laying hens were our first foray into livestock. They are for lots of people.
The Friends of Holcomb Farm celebrated at its Annual Members’ meeting with a ribbon cutting at the refurbished CSA barn, a pie contest, ice cream and reports of another successful year for the nonprofit. With a mission to protect Tudor and Laura Holcomb’s gift of this farm to the Town of Granby, the board reported on successful farming programs, growing Fresh Access partnerships to provide fresh produce to people otherwise without access, and ongoing land stewardship to provide greater public access to the meadows and trails.
Friends of Holcomb Farm board member Eric Lukingbeal came up with an idea to enliven the annual meeting: hold a pie contest.
For most of the year on the farm, our family is able to do all of the work by ourselves. We feed animals, start and clean-up gardens, fix fences and build sheds for 12 months a year.
With the support of a State of Connecticut Small Farm Viability Grant, funds raised by the Friends of Holcomb Farm, and—most critically—hundreds of hours of volunteer time, renovation of the CSA Barn is well underway and on schedule for completion in advance of the annual opening of the Holcomb Farm CSA and Farm Store.
Pigs are incredibly prolific. Mamma Pigs come into heat at all times of the year (unlike goat or sheep that are bred seasonally) and, since she gives birth in under four months (three months, three weeks and three days), she can be bred twice a year.
Planting has begun, and sales of CSA summer shares are well underway. Thanks to careful nurturing of the soil (as well as new equipment), Farmer Joe reports increasing productivity is making even more CSA shares available, so it’s not too late to sign up.