| Sunday May 17, 2020 2:00 PM - Sunday May 17, 2020 6:00 PM | $25.00 - $35.00 |
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Event
Rotational Grazing at Sky View Farm: Meat CSA and Small-Scale Dairy
Are you looking to improve your pasture management and learn more about rotational grazing? Join us at Sky View Farm for a tour and discussion of how rotational grazing provides their livestock with healthy forage while minimizing inputs and improving soil health. By rotating dense herds through temporary paddocks within a pasture, livestock will eat a variety of forage, are more robust, and can sequester considerable amounts of carbon in the soil. During this event attendees will walk along the pastures with Will and Amelia, and along the way we will stop to speak about:
-Rotating multiple species through pasture, including: chickens, turkeys, cows and pigs.
-Picking the right shelter and fencing systems.
-Choosing stocking density for different species.
-How to develop a grazing plan.
-We will conclude with a visit to their recently added small-scale raw milk dairy.
Sky View Farm comprises 50 acres of hilly fields and forest in the town of Sheffield, Massachusetts. The land has been in the Conklin family for more than 100 years. Owners Will and Amelia Conklin have been working since 2012 to reclaim pastures that were part of the Conklin family dairy farm that closed in 1986. They raise poultry, cows, and pigs year-round in order to provide meat for their CSA program and local restaurants. Milking 1-3 cows, they opened a small dairy in the spring of 2019, bottling raw milk for direct sale to customers. Sky View Farm is also home to a small-scale sawmill operation that provides local building materials for carpentry projects, garden beds, fencing, and furniture.
Instructors:
Amelia Conklin realized her love for the small-town farming life while serving in the agricultural sector of the Peace Corps in Paraguay. Upon completion of the program she moved back to her hometown in Sheffield to work on her family's farm. She branched out on her own in 2012 with a cow but no land. Shortly after she met Will who had land but no cows. The newest version of Sky View Farm was born.
Will Conklin always felt drawn to stewarding his grandfather's land, and returned after many years of working, studying, and traveling elsewhere. In 2007 he committed to being full-time and officially inherited the land from his father.
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LocationSky View Farm (View)
203 Galvin Farm Trail
Sheffield, MA 01257
United States
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