Horsepower Farm Tour August 23rd

Penobscot, Maine - The Blue Hill Co-op and Blue Hill Heritage Trust’s final farm tour of the summer will be held on Saturday, August 23 from 2:00-4:00 pm at Horsepower Farm, located on 90 Horsepower Farm Road off of Rt. 15 in Penobscot.

Blue Hill Heritage Trust (BHHT) holds an agricultural easement on the property, protecting the land forever. The MOFGA-certified organic farm is run by three generations of the Birdsall family. Paul Birdsall was a founding member of BHHT and its Farmland Forever program. He placed the 383-acre farm into conservation easement with the Trust in 1997.

The farm tour is free, family-friendly, and open to the public. More BHHT programs are listed on their website, bluehillheritagetrust.org.

The Trust currently owns or holds conservation easements on almost 7,000 acres of land throughout the Blue Hill Peninsula, including about 2,000 acres of farmland.

Tour Quill’s End Farm

Penobscot, Maine - The public is invited to tour Quill’s End Farm in Penobscot on Friday, July 18 from 1:30-3:30 p.m. as part of the summer farm tour series organized by Blue Hill Heritage Trust and the Blue Hill Co-op.  Participants will have the opportunity to explore this family farm on which the Trust holds a conservation easement.

Quill’s End Farm is a 105-acre farm located at 192 Front Ridge Rd. (Rt. 15) in Penobscot.  Owners Heather and Phil Retberg and their three children raise grass-fed beef and lamb, pastured pork, and duck using rotational grazing methods.  They also sell raw milk and eggs.  Products are available at their farm store or through Farm Drop and the Deer Isle buying club.

This program is free and family-friendly.  Please wear sturdy, close-toed shoes for the tour.  Pre-register by contacting Eileen at 374-5118 or eileen@bluehillheritagetrust.org.  More programs are listed on the BHHT website: bluehillheritagetrust.org.

The Trust has conserved and stewards over 6,900 acres of land throughout the Blue Hill Peninsula, including 2,000 acres of farmland.  The Co-op is a community market and café offering a wide range of fresh local and organic produce, dairy, meat, bread, beer and wine, baked goods, health and beauty products, specialty and bulk items.  Find more online at bluehill.coop or call them at 374-2165.

Horsepowered Farming

Penobscot, Maine - The Birdsall Family will be offering a tour of their farm in Penobscot on Saturday,
September 14 from 2:00-4:00 p.m.  Three generations of the Birdsall family operate Horsepower Farm, located on 90 Horsepower Farm Road off of Rt. 15.

Horsepower Farm is diversified, raising a wide variety of organic vegetables, dry beans, storage crops, sheep, chickens, and summer pigs.  Their Suffolk Punch draft horses are the main source of power for field and woods work.

As farmers, their goals are “to teach more sustainable methods, to reduce the footprint that we leave on the Earth, and to help ensure a healthy future for our children, grandchildren and those around us.”

Blue Hill Heritage Trust (BHHT) holds an agricultural easement on the property, protecting the land forever.  Paul Birdsall was a founding board member of BHHT and the Farmland Forever program; he placed the 383-acre farm into conservation easement with the Trust in 1997.

Horsepower products are available at their farm store, at the Blue Hill Farmer’s Market, and at the Blue Hill Co-op.

This farm tour is part of a series that is sponsored by Blue Hill Heritage Trust and the Blue Hill Co-op.  It is free, family-friendly, and open to the public.  For more info or to register, contact Eileen at 374-5118 or eileen@bluehillheritagetrust.org.  More programs are listed on the BHHT website: bluehillheritagetrust.org.

The Trust currently owns or holds conservation easements on 6,293 acres of land throughout the Blue Hill Peninsula, including 2,024 acres of farmland.  The Co-op is a community market and café offering a wide range of fresh local and organic produce, dairy, meat, baked goods, health and beauty products and bulk items.  Find more online at bluehill.coop or call them at 374-2165.

Plenty of Green at Blue-Zee Farm Tour

Penobscot, Maine - Learn about greenhouses and organic growing at Blue-Zee Farm in Penobscot on Saturday, July 13 from 2:00-4:00 p.m.  This farm tour is one of six in a series that is sponsored this summer by Blue Hill Heritage Trust and the Blue Hill Co-op.

Blue-Zee Farm is a MOFGA-Certified Organic mixed vegetable and blueberry farm owned and operated by Mark and Renata Scarano, along with some help from little daughter Julia.  Protected from development, the 100-acre farm on Front Ridge Road is in an agricultural easement as part of Blue Hill Heritage Trust’s “Farmland Forever” project.  The Scaranos add, “Our aim at Blue-Zee Farm is to cultivate and foster a viable working farm for our family and countless future generations to come.”

This event is free, family-friendly, and open to the public.  Pre-register by Friday the 12th by contacting Eileen at 374-5118 or eileen@bluehillheritagetrust.org.  More farm tours and other scheduled programs are listed on their website: bluehillheritagetrust.org

The Trust currently owns or holds conservation easements on 6,266 acres of land throughout the Blue Hill Peninsula, including over 2,000 acres of farmland.  The Blue Hill Co-op is a community market and café offering a wide range of fresh local and organic produce, dairy, meat, bread, beer and wine, baked goods, health and beauty products and bulk items.  Find more online at bluehill.coop or call them at 374-2165.