By Krysta Post At Gwenyn Hill the arrival of Spring is marked by the return of Sandhill Cranes and Red Winged Blackbirds perching on the remains of last year’s prairie blooms. Along Bryn Drive, patches of Mayapple and the ephemeral White Trillium flourish in sunlight before the tree canopy develops overhead. Dormant crops like garlic...
Farming as a Web of Relationships
Gwenyn Hill Farm began hosting apprentices through the state-wide Organic Vegetable Farm Manager Apprenticeship program in 2021. We are proud to support these apprentices as they learn about everything it takes to run an organic vegetable farm operation. Here at Gwenyn Hill, this means balancing ecological stewardship with the day-to-day economic and operational realities of running a...
Selecting Seedlings
By Liz Lyon With the arrival of May, peak planting season is almost upon us in Southeastern Wisconsin. Here at Gwenyn Hill Farm, we are proud to grow Certified Organic seedlings that are pollinator-friendly, organically raised, and selected for flavor and productivity. Our annual seedling sale gives us a chance to offer Certified Organic seedlings...
The “O” Word
It was a spirited discussion around the lunch table at Gwenyn Hill Farm that got me thinking. There were four of us, all working on a certified organic farm, yet there were four opinions about the value of the certified organic label. Over my decades in farming, I’ve taken an unwavering stance on the label’s...
Sustainability at Gwenyn Hill Farm
August 31, 2021 By Ryan Heinen When asked what is the greatest skill I have for being a farmer, I thought about my experience grazing cows, growing organic crops, and knowledge gained during my dairy grazing apprenticeship. These are important and necessary skills for being a good farmer. However, I feel the greatest is my...
Gwenyn Hill’s Native Prairie; More than a Pretty Face
August 13, 2021 By Linda Halley In 2019, Ryan Heinen, Gwenyn Hill’s Land and Livestock Manager, seeded ten acres of native grasses and forbs, replacing a relatively poor stand of alfalfa hay. Most of the field lies along Bryn Drive and is very visible from the road. For two years it looked rough and ratty....
The Red Devons at Gwenyn Hill
August 13, 2021 By Linda Halley and Ryan Heinen The Red Devon calves are arriving at Gwenyn Hill Farm. They are a sturdy 70 pounds at birth, ready, within minutes, to test out their legs and look for their first milk. They are born on pasture and won’t get familiar with the inside of a...
Thank You
by Linda Halley | Having felt robbed by the pandemic of Thanksgiving, and fearing Christmas was shaping up to be the same, I settled down to a deep winter dinner, made by me, for me. On the longest night of the year, though alone in the house, I would feel surrounded by my friends who...
Deep Winter Inspiration About our Food System
By Linda Halley with Birke Baehr | Nearly a decade ago I ran across a TED talk that brightened my day like no other. Like most TED talks it was informative and well presented. What was unique was that the speaker was only 11 years old and he was talking about the food system. He was...
Woods, More Than Just a Shady Place
By Linda Halley | For the past couple of generations, woodlots have been a neglected part of most Wisconsin farms. Woodlots were once a valuable farm resource, used as shady summer pasture and a source for heating fuel and building materials. Farmers cleared the richest land for crops and open pastures but often left trees...
Maple Water
By Linda Halley | Gwenyn Hill Farm is blessed with maples; mostly red, some sugar, and an occasional silver maple. Ryan Heinen, Gwenyn Hill’s Land and Livestock Manager, and I put out a few taps this past week, We located them in easy-to-reach places along the road and in my yard. Sap runs best when...
Following Nature’s Example
by Ryan Heinen, Land and Livestock Manager | It’s February in Wisconsin and more snow is predicted in the forecast. Lots of conventional farms have their livestock closed up in the barn. But here on Gwenyn Hill Farm the cattle are still out on the pastures, breathing the crisp fresh air and enjoying ample room to...
Opportunities and Optimism at the University of Wisconsin
by Erin Silva | The broad negative impacts of the way in which we produce food are becoming increasingly evident. Regularly we see news headlines reporting on pollinator decline, contamination of our ground and surface waters, and the negative health impacts of the American diet. Further, the people and communities that are producing our food are...
Links of Interest
by Linda Halley | It was nearly a year ago when Gwenyn Hill posted its first blog. It felt a little like speaking up into the night sky. How far would the words travel? Would anyone hear (or read) them? Nevertheless, we posted, and committed to continue posting regularly. Some posts are of the mundane variety,...
Who’s Milking the Dairy Cows?
by Ryan Heinen | In America’s Dairyland and across the country, the sight of milk cows grazing in pasture has become uncommon. The exception is certified organic dairy farms, where grazing must provide at least 30% of a cow’s feed during the grazing season. This summer you may have noticed the small herd of milk cows...
A Barn Is Reborn
by Linda Halley, General Manager | For eighteen months, a shady hillside along Bryn Drive has been bare. A lone silo remains, a testament to the fact that a dairy barn once stood there. In the next few weeks the barn will rise again, thanks to a couple of unassuming brothers, Tad and Craig Van Valin....
Strength in Diversity
by Linda Halley, General Manager | When the heavens opened up on August 16 and kept it up until September 3rd, farmers knew the season had taken a turn. Half of the summer’s precipitation fell the second half of August, much of it coming fast and furiously. Equally bad were the heavy, stagnant air and cloud...
Using Livestock to Make Healthy Soils
by Ryan Heinen, Land & Livestock Manager | If you have driven by the farm recently you may have noticed a small herd of cows grazing near the old dairy barn. Over the next months and into 2019 we will be in the process of building livestock flocks and herds of sheep and cattle. Their job...
Winged Allies
By Linda Halley | From the backyard of the farmhouse you can spot an amazing number of our farm’s wild allies, without which it would be hard to farm organically. Each has its role to play. The monarchs are bobbing in pairs over the tall, shaggy weeds, among them the monarch-favorite, milkweed. By fall, the...
Farming by Hand
By Laurel Blomquist | A couple of weeks ago, I discussed several of the machines we use at planting time to help us do our work. We certainly get a lot more done with these machines, as they work much faster than we could by hand. The truth is, though, that most of our work...