Our Farm
We bought our 10 acre parcel in May 2017. After walking the property Brendan succinctly said to Kris “this is the one!” and the rest is history. We are the second family to own this house, and over the last few years we have slowly reimagined this space, adding several animals, heaps of construction projects, and personal touches. The bungalow, our vacation rental, was a canning shed for the previous owner.
Our Orchard
The 210 apple and pear trees in the orchard behind the barn were hand planted by us beginning in January 2019. All of the varieties are ideal for our climate and have a long history of being used in Cider and Perry (the pear equivalent). The orchard is a very long term project for us — all of the trees are standard sized, meaning they will be larger, hardier, and live longer than the more modern dwarfing varieties popular in commercial planting. At over 25 feet tall at maturity, they will shade the wide rows over their 100 year lifespan, creating localized cooling and undergrowth that will stay greener longer. Regenerative agriculture is a central part of our mission. Find out more about the cidery.
Our Animals
Most of the animals on our farm play an important role in regenerative farming. The sheep create lay-in place manure to improve the soil, while keeping the grass low; the miniature horses are more gentle on the tree cages and can stay longer in the orchard as the summer starts to dry things out (plus they’re too short to reach the fruit); the ducks and the chickens provide insect population control, the farm cats regularly catch gophers and voles; and the dogs attempt to keep everyone safe and in good spirits. Learn more about the animals.
Harcourt Farms 