Butterworks Farm - Other Products

Butterworks Farm

Butterworks Crops

Cows, grain crops, and grassland all contribute to what we call the "whole farm organism". We haven't purchased an animal from another farm since 1981 when we bought four young Jersey calves to join our six "family cows". Today we have 45 milkers and another 50 younger animals- heifers and dry cows. We grow 100% of the feed these cows consume. One hundred acres are devoted to alfalfa, grass hay, and occasional grazing. Permanent pastures comprise about 25 acres of some of our rougher, hillier terrain. The remaining 250 acres of land we use is devoted to grain crops for our livestock and human consumption.

Grains

Grain corn, barley, oats, soybeans, and Canadian field peas are raised for the cows' grain ration. These feed grains are stored in outdoor grain silos and overhead bins in a wooden granary. The cows' grain consists of a mix of equal parts corn and barley. This is ground weekly with a hammer mill. Small amounts of ground roasted soybeans are also fed as a protein supplement. We are the only organic dairy in New England that is totally self-sufficient in grain production.

Grains for human consumption make-up a much smaller, but equally important part of our agricultural endeavor. When we first purchased our farm in 1976 our initial goal was to grow our own bread wheat and mill it into flour for our own bread. We successfully grew our first crop of wheat in 1977 and have been taking care of our wheat needs ever since. Since then we have added soft white winter wheat (for pastry flour) to our list of crops grown. We sell the pastry and bread flours here at the farm and to several Vermont food co-ops and health food stores.

Other products for human consumption include:

Sunflowers

These black oil seed sunflowers are grown in 30 inch rows much like corn. They are harvested late in the fall when the seed moisture has dropped below ten per cent. Seeds are cleaned, bagged, and then taken to Canada for pressing at a small scale organic oil seed pressing farm.

Sunflower oil is available in glass liters and half-liters as well as bulk.

Dry Beans

These crops are also planted in rows and cultivated like corn. Planting takes place in late May- early June when the ground is good and warm. Harvest is in mid September. Available beans include soldier beans, Maine yellow eye, marfax, Jacob's cattle, black turtle, and light red kidney.

Buckwheat

Buckwheat is mostly raised for seed but can be hulled and ground for flour.

Potential new crops for the 2002 growing season include canola and yellow mustard seed.

All of our crops are grown in a rotation which strives to improve the soil and the earth. Light feeders like cereal grains always follow the higher fertility demanding heavy feeding crops like corn. Grasses and legumes are always part of the sequence to improve soil structure, return nitrogen to the soil, and to make hay for the cows. These same sods or grass lands are eventually plowed again for corn. The decomposing sod will actually provide a steady supply of nitrogen to a growing crop of corn. Soybeans, dry beans, alfalfa, and clover are all "legumes" which means they can remove nitrogen from the air and "fix" it back in the soil. These plants all have their places in our crop rotation. Crop diversity and good earth stewardship are definitely part of our milieu.

If you would like any more information about our cropping practices or products please get in touch with us by telephone. Click here for the address and number of the farm.