708 Goodrich Four Corners, Norwich, VT
Hogwashfarm.com
Artist: Allison Dobrowski
Products: Grass-fed lamb, heritage breed GMO-free pork, pasture-raised GMO-free holiday turkeys, organic eggs
Where to buy: On-farm store, on-farm CSA, Norwich Farmers Market
Norwich, VT
Animal products can be an important source of local food in cold climates like ours. Leslie O’Hara of Hogwash Farm in Norwich, VT, is working on providing them in a way that is gentle on the earth.
Leslie explains the benefits of pasture-raised animals. “Grazers add nutrients back into the pasture. The sun grows the plants, the animals eat the plants, and as they move around they add manure and trample it into the soil a bit. Then we move them to a different area.” This is called rotational grazing, which is a process that can build soil health and draw down carbon. Getting nibbled actually stimulates plant growth. As long as they are not grazed too low, and have time to recover, grazed grasses will grow more vigorously, expanding their root systems downward and secreting more carbon into the soil — improving its ability to handle extreme weather.
Hogwash Farm hasn’t experienced bad flooding issues. When it rains hard, the water absorbs quickly. “I think that has to do with protecting our edgeways and trying to not overgraze the pastures so they stay resilient,” said Leslie.
Raising her animals on pasture also gives them a happy life. They are eating and exercising freely, which Leslie says translates into nutritionally superior meat and eggs. Leslie shared, “That’s why I’m farming – to raise animals and have happy animals as part of my life. Raising them outside is the healthy way to do it for them and the world around me. To do it well is the way to keep our little farm happy.”
“Responsibly managed livestock herds are nothing but beneficial to the land they graze. Rotational grazing encourages plant growth which encourages soil resilience.”