D2D on the Farm: Sprout Creek
APRIL 4,2019 GLOBAL FOOD, SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE 6 MIN READ
D2D on the Farm, Food Production
THE DIRT
Sprout Creek Farm is dedicated to education and sustainability. Their mission is to teach the community about agricultural and environmental sustainability through their closed-looped farming method and their use of livestock in rotational grazing.
Sprout Creek: An Overview of History and Methods
Take a journey with us to an idyllic green countryside with old tractors and red farmhouses, vintage signs, and chirping baby chicks. Recently, Dirt-to-Dinner had the pleasure of visiting Sprout Creek Farm. Set on 200 acres in the historic and picturesque Hudson Valley, this non-profit working farm not only raises free-range cows, sheep, goats, turkeys, guinea fowl, chickens, and pigs but also sells internationally award-winning cheeses and farm-produced meats, eggs, and vegetables.
Relocation & Regeneration
After relocating the farm from the campus of Sacred Heart in Greenwich, Connecticut to the countryside in Dutchess County, Marist College stepped in last year to take over operations and funding. This has allowed the farm staff to focus its efforts on revitalizing the landscape while Marist looks to integrate the farm into the school’s curriculum. As Marist President David Yellen noted, “Sprout Creek Farm provides the College with a tremendous opportunity to establish programs for our students and faculty.”
Sprout Creek implements a closed-loop farming system, which means that from the cattle to the compost, the farm produces food and recycles waste right on the farm. In addition, the livestock plays the starring role in a rotational grazing method for land regeneration. Farm Manager Cameron Pedigo explained this means that each animal on the farm plays a role in a rest, recovery, grazing rotational structure, with the goal of restoring soil health and promoting vegetation growth.
“I look at the farm as an opportunity to mimic nature. If we can better understand our soil, our land, and our animals, we can better utilize them in synchronicity to work together as an ecosystem to sustain one another.”– Cameron Pedigo, Sprout Creek Farm Manager
The Role of Livestock in Rotational Farming
Cows, goats, pigs, and chickens are the backbone of this farming technique. Each one plays a unique role in this circular system. Their waste and footprints help native plants grow and attract bees, birds and other pollinators for vegetation regrowth season after season.
Cows and Goats. Cows and goats are the primary grazers and browsers.
“As the cows graze through the pastures they turn the grass into 50 pounds of manure,” explains Cameron, “the manure, in turn, fertilizes the soil, creating a healthier pasture for grass to grow.”
In this system, the cows are limited to small paddocks and are moved daily. The animals are moved through the pasture at the right moment in the grass’s lifecycle to maximize nutrients for the animals and prevent overgrazing. This also gives time for the vegetation to recover and regrow.
“Cows benefit from this practice because they eat more nutrient dense grass which results in higher proteins and fats in their milk — perfect for cheese!”, says Cameron.
In addition, the weight of cows enables their hooves to penetrate the soil at just the right depth to aid in aeration. This improves water penetration, which decreases runoff, and helps plant roots take hold for regrowth. By allowing the pasture time to grow back, more carbon is sequestrated in the soil, which results in healthy and productive soil.
Chickens. Chickens are used as foragers.
After the cows graze, chickens are brought through the pasture in cozy mobile homes built out of repurposed lumber and farm materials. As Cameron explains, “These chicken coops can be relocated easily to manage the grazing patterns, and also target nutrient-deficient pastures.”
The chickens scratch the surface of the soil and spread the cow manure, which aids in revitalizing the soil. Additionally, they kill weeds, eat insects that threaten crops, and create and spread their own fertilizer. All while laying eggs that the farm can sell to its community!
Chickens are farm manager Cameron Pedigo’s favorite farm animal. “They have fascinating personalities, and are major contributors to the ecosystem of our farm, outside of just laying eggs.”
Pigs. Pigs are a real workhorse for this farm.
In an effort to utilize every inch of farmland, Cameron put the pigs to work to clear the brush. It gave us a whole new appreciation for pigs! We watched them degrade an area that was covered with deep-rooted dead trees and invasive brush cover.
“You can see first-hand the work the pigs did on the brush-covered plot, and the manual labor they saved the farm staff,” says Cameron.
These snorty, playful animals are deep grazers. They deeply forage the land, digging and furrowing for roots, which act much like a till would.
Sustainability Spans the Farm
Sustainability on the farm carries through to the farm kitchen, as well. Sprout Creek’s resident Chef, Shawn, described his day-to-day work on the farm, as well as the summer camps that Sprout Creek operates for children and teens.
Shawn explained that by taking campers out to the garden and discussing what is ripe for picking or what herbs can be used to season different dishes, he hopes to inspire children to understand all that the land can give us. Chef Shawn then shows his students creative ways to use those ingredients to provide nourishment. “By learning to compost the waste from the kitchen and the animals, children see that organic matter enriches the soil to produce healthier vegetables,” he says.
Generating Revenue on the Farm
In addition to their livestock, the farm has an on-site creamery. You can watch the process of making award-winning cheeses and visit their market!
Though they outsource their butchery to a local partner, you can buy their delicious specialty meats to pair with their delectable cheeses. We brought home some juicy, tender pork chops and ground beef, which made for the perfect pairing at a recent wine night.
Outside of their cheese-making and meat curation, Chef Shawn and his team offer a variety of cooking and baking courses. After trying their delicious homemade cookies, the D2D team may benefit from taking a class or two!
THE BOTTOM LINE
Educate. Cultivate. Aspire. Through their farming techniques, camps & educational programs, cooking classes and more, Sprout Creek is on the forefront of demonstrating how sustainable farming can be beneficial to the land and to your health. We can’t wait to go back!
