Our Natural Farming Practices

Dairy Cows

Our cows live on pasture and eat grass and only grass!

Our dairy cows obviously produce their own calves, which are fed milk from their mama. As they get older and start eating grass, they're called a "heifer". They remain a heifer for about 2 years until they're ready to get pregnant and start producing milk.

We want our cows to have the best health. And to us, this all starts in the soil. 

The healthier the soil, the healthier the plants, the healthier the cows, the healthier food for you! This is why we farm regeneratively. To us, that means that the animals fertilize the land with their sweet manure, prepping it for the next season. We also welcome biodiversity in our fields. The more life, the more we know the soil is healthy. 

Our dairy cows outside as much as the weather allows. They eating fresh grass in the warmer months and dry grass in the colder months.

Laying Hens

Our laying hens live outside with a mobile coop!

We move them to fresh pasture every day or so, and we do this as much as the weather allows. We love seeing our hens running around and foraging for bugs and seeds and greens. In the winter, when it's too cold, the hens go in the barn.

In addition to what they forage, our hens are also given free access to a corn & soy free feed.

The eggs are hand collected. They are generally unwashed (unless there's gunk on them that needs to be wiped off).

Chickens

Our chickens are moved daily!

As peeps (baby chicks), they start out in the brooder where we can monitor the temperature. Once they are 3-4 weeks old, they are moved out to the pasture and placed in a portable chicken pen.

These broilers (term for meat chickens) are then moved daily to fresh grass.

This requires a lot of physical labor, but it's worth it. We don’t use a single piece of equipment, so it is a quiet and stress free move for the broilers.

Since chickens require a supplemental feed, we also give them a high quality, corn & soy free feed. We feel this combination of high quality grain, fresh pasture, and humane treatment results in amazing flavor and texture.

Beef Cattle

Salad Bar Beef! "What’s salad bar beef?" you might ask. Let me explain.

What comes to your mind when you think of a salad bar... "healthy", "greens'', ''sprouts",''low fat", "high protein"? That’s how we raise beef! We rotate our cattle daily on a fresh paddock with diverse grasses. This allows the cows to have their choice of grass for the day.

The end result is meat that is higher in Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids and lower in saturated fats, which result in numerous health benefits.

There are quite a few benefits for the soil and ecosystem when using MIG ("management intensive grazing"), moving the cows across the meadows, simulating the way bison grazed the western prairies. Benefits like, evenly grazed paddocks, longer rest periods allowing the grass to recover faster, and more drought resistance.

With MIG, the cows spread their droppings evenly across the pasture, this in turn increases microbe activity in our soil. It’s a two fold blessing; first, healing the land, and second, very lean, yet tender meat that is absolutely delicious!

Pork

Forest raised pork? No, this isn’t the conventional way to raise pork, but a rewarding one nonetheless.

Hogs are God given roto-tillers, so why deny them this liberty by putting them on concrete floors in a crowded barn? Instead, we allow the hogs free range of the forest and brushy sections of the farm. There they can graze on wild berries and dig for roots.

Unlike cattle, hogs are not a rumen and need a grain supplement. For this we chose to use NON-GMO grain from Sunrise Farms in Stuarts Draft Va. As can be expected, with top quality care and feed, our pork is high quality! It is juicy and flavorful. I am sure you will not be disappointed with it.

Turkeys

Our turkeys are on pasture 100% of the time.

They are a standard white breed. We get them as little babies in the spring, and then live outside in the fresh air and sunshine their whole life. They are moved with portable net fencing to fresh pasture as needed, which is usually every few days.

Our turkeys forage for lots of plants, seeds, and bugs in the growing pasture. In addition to what they forage, they're given a corn & soy free feed. 

We harvest turkey every fall, which makes it a very special protein for us.