Join Kestrel Land Trust for a mini-tour of Barstow’s Dairy Farm with Denise Barstow to learn how they care for their cows and for the land. The latest in our “Learning with the Land” series!
Welcome, rain! We’ve so needed and missed you! The cows are glad for the reprieve of summer heat and have noticeably spent more time this week snoozing in the barn or out on pasture in the mild temps. We are thrilled to see our girls so comfortable and happy. It has been a hot summer, … Read more
Last week I finished up my TerraCorps (AmeriCorps) year of service at Kestrel Land Trust. It was a year full of accomplishments and learning as I worked with underserved populations in the Valley, conducted programming to promote the preservation of open space, and helped with a project that will ultimately protect more farmland and farms … Read more
Kestrel Land Trust | Blog Denise Barstow just completed her year-long service year as Kestrel’s Community Engagement and Regional Conservation Coordinator through the TerraCorps AmeriCorps program. She also works at Barstow’s Longview Farm in Hadley, owned by her family for 7 generations. In 2014, when my dad and uncle called a family meeting to discuss … Read more
There are many good reasons to eat local, in season food: Local food is fresh and nutritious! It connects us with nature’s cycles and with the place we call home. Local food travels fewer miles from the fields to your kitchen table which means lower emissions, energy, and fuel usage. The purchase of local food … Read more
By FRANCIE LIN For the Gazette Published: 6/12/2020 3:25:20 PM Interview with Steven Barstow II, dairy farmer Who lives in the same house as you? Caroline Barstow (large animal veterinarian), Nelson Barstow (19 months), OVH (cat), Moose (the farm dog) How are you juggling all your responsibilities during this time? Although much has been turned upside down in … Read more
June is Dairy Month! A time to celebrate local dairy: milk, cheese, ice cream and more! ‘Celebrating’, however, looks a bit different in the age of COVID-19. With incredibly low milk prices, lost markets with the closure of restaurants, schools, and institutions, and the added stress of social distancing, new farm training protocols, and so.much.sanitizing, … Read more
June is Dairy Month! A time to celebrate local dairy: milk, cheese, ice cream and more! ‘Celebrating’, however, looks a bit different in the age of COVID-19. With incredibly low milk prices, lost markets with the closure of restaurants, schools, and institutions, and the added stress of social distancing, new farm training protocols, and so.much.sanitizing, … Read more
By NOAH BAUSTIN For the Gazette Published: 5/23/2020 Pasture Day is Denise Barstow’s favorite time on the farm. The event is an annual celebration of spring at Barstow’s Longview Farm in Hadley. In a normal year, hundreds of people gather on the farm to watch the heifers celebrate their first taste of fresh grass in … Read more
By SCOTT MERZBACH Daily Hampshire Gazette Published: 5/12/2020 HADLEY — Taking tentative and seemingly nervous steps, six heifers had a new experience awaiting them Tuesday morning as they jumped from a trailer into the pasture where they will be spending the next few months. Only moments after their hooves hit the grass, though, the young … Read more