Project Status
We have been planning and researching this project for a number of years. We are really excited about sharing this opportunity with our community. It is an evolving project, so we've broken it into more manageable phases.
Buying the Land & Building the House
We started this process is the Spring of 2012 with hopes of having our farm up and running for the 2013 growing season. Unfortunately, we encountered a number of unforeseen delays and challenges along the way, and couldn't move in until the Spring of 2014. We are finally settled in and looking forward to moving ahead with our plan.
We started this process is the Spring of 2012 with hopes of having our farm up and running for the 2013 growing season. Unfortunately, we encountered a number of unforeseen delays and challenges along the way, and couldn't move in until the Spring of 2014. We are finally settled in and looking forward to moving ahead with our plan.
Establishing Our Trial Garden
The 2015 growing season will be our 3rd at this location. During the last several years, we've experimented with a variety of growing techniques and successfully raised over 100 varieties of fruits and vegetables. We've also kept detailed notes and collected data on our harvests to help make the transition to growing on a larger scale.
The 2015 growing season will be our 3rd at this location. During the last several years, we've experimented with a variety of growing techniques and successfully raised over 100 varieties of fruits and vegetables. We've also kept detailed notes and collected data on our harvests to help make the transition to growing on a larger scale.
Our Laying Flock
Our current flock consists of 17 hens and 1 rooster. We have a diverse mix of breeds including: Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Barred Rock, Dominique, Delaware, Ameracauna, Buff Oprington, Black Sex-Link, White Leghorn and Olive-Egger. Our chickens are an important part of the farm, providing us with fertilizer and insect control, in addition to their eggs. Our chickens free range during the day, and are provided with supplemental organic layer feed as needed. We intend to plant their ranging area with a variety of crops to eliminate/reduce our use of supplemental feed. Our coop was designed to hold an additional 20-25 birds, so we can expand our flock in the future.
Our current flock consists of 17 hens and 1 rooster. We have a diverse mix of breeds including: Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Barred Rock, Dominique, Delaware, Ameracauna, Buff Oprington, Black Sex-Link, White Leghorn and Olive-Egger. Our chickens are an important part of the farm, providing us with fertilizer and insect control, in addition to their eggs. Our chickens free range during the day, and are provided with supplemental organic layer feed as needed. We intend to plant their ranging area with a variety of crops to eliminate/reduce our use of supplemental feed. Our coop was designed to hold an additional 20-25 birds, so we can expand our flock in the future.
Native Plantings
This fall, we completed our first native planting; a 1/4 acre area of native grasses and wildflowers selected to stabilize some sloped areas of the property. Our goal is to utilize native plants throughout the farm for landscaping and restoration purposes.
This fall, we completed our first native planting; a 1/4 acre area of native grasses and wildflowers selected to stabilize some sloped areas of the property. Our goal is to utilize native plants throughout the farm for landscaping and restoration purposes.
Prepping the CSA Area
This fall, we cleared a 1/2 acre area and planted it with a mix of cover crops. These cover crops will be used as a green manure, and turned into the soil in the spring, prior to planting. We can raise enough vegetables in this space for 12-15 families. By utilizing an adjacent area, we can double our production capacity if needed.
This fall, we cleared a 1/2 acre area and planted it with a mix of cover crops. These cover crops will be used as a green manure, and turned into the soil in the spring, prior to planting. We can raise enough vegetables in this space for 12-15 families. By utilizing an adjacent area, we can double our production capacity if needed.
Starting the CSA
We plan to have our CSA up and running in the Spring of 2015. This is our major area of focus for the coming year, since it will allow us to model our sustainability efforts and provide some educational opportunities, while helping our community reconnect with real food. We plan to offer 50+ varieties of vegetables and fruits. We need to install fencing and irrigation, and set up seed starting and cold storage space, in order to ensure a quality product and positive experience for our members. This phase is the focus of our current Indiegogo campaign. For more details on CSA farming, check out our page What is a CSA?.
We plan to have our CSA up and running in the Spring of 2015. This is our major area of focus for the coming year, since it will allow us to model our sustainability efforts and provide some educational opportunities, while helping our community reconnect with real food. We plan to offer 50+ varieties of vegetables and fruits. We need to install fencing and irrigation, and set up seed starting and cold storage space, in order to ensure a quality product and positive experience for our members. This phase is the focus of our current Indiegogo campaign. For more details on CSA farming, check out our page What is a CSA?.
Educational Programs
We plan to roll out some basic educational outreach in tandem with our CSA program. More complex programs requiring additional equipment and infrastructure will be implemented as resources become available. For more details on what we've got planned, check out our Education at Keelboat Farms page.
We plan to roll out some basic educational outreach in tandem with our CSA program. More complex programs requiring additional equipment and infrastructure will be implemented as resources become available. For more details on what we've got planned, check out our Education at Keelboat Farms page.
Habitat Restoration
Our property contains a 5 acre area that was logged and strip-mined in the past. The property has been unused for the last few decades, and several invasive species have taken over and done considerable damage. Our plan is to remove these invasive species, along with any dead/dying trees, and replant native species in their place. The goal is to model what the property was like before the area was developed. We hope to begin this phase of our project in the Fall/Winter of 2015, after the CSA season wraps up. For a more detailed look at this section of our farm, see the Virtual Tour of Our Farm page.
Our property contains a 5 acre area that was logged and strip-mined in the past. The property has been unused for the last few decades, and several invasive species have taken over and done considerable damage. Our plan is to remove these invasive species, along with any dead/dying trees, and replant native species in their place. The goal is to model what the property was like before the area was developed. We hope to begin this phase of our project in the Fall/Winter of 2015, after the CSA season wraps up. For a more detailed look at this section of our farm, see the Virtual Tour of Our Farm page.
Our goal is to harvest 300 crates of vegetables and deliver them to people in our community during the 2015 growing season. We are running an Indiegogo crowd funding campaign through the end of the year to help us reach our goal.
