Nestled in the hills and villages north of New York City lies the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, a non-profit farm and education center dedicated to spreading knowledge about sustainable agriculture. Utilizing an innovative farming operation centered around local crops and sustainable practices, the center runs a number of educational programs for surrounding communities, including increasing numbers of New York schools. These programs seek to bring people into contact with ‘real food’ through initiatives such as involving children in farm chores to show them where their food comes from, running cooking classes for adults to teach them how to engage with their own nourishment, and teaching workshops on winter gardening techniques. The center is also involved in the social and political dialogue surrounding sustainable, local food, hosting lectures and discussions on issues pertinent to advancing the local food movement.

Stone Barns began as part of the Rockefeller estate in Pocantico Hills, NY. In the 1970s, Peggy Rockefeller became involved in farming and sought to use the property for this purpose. In 2001, the buildings and property were given to the Stone Barns Restoration Corporation, which, along with a founding gift from David Rockefeller, eventually established the Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in 2004. This year was its fifth growing season, and the center is going strong.

Innovative Methods

The heart of Stone Barns is its innovative four-season farm greenhouse. The greenhouse is one of the largest of its kind, covering about half an acre. It is a completely organic operation (though not certified, Stone Barns’ growing methods exceed USDA organic standards) and utilizes some clever techniques to enable it to grow vegetables all year round. I had the opportunity to take a tour of the greenhouse, where I was shown how they manage to produce such bounty even during the winter.

The first thing that struck me was the size of the greenhouse, and the rows and rows of fresh greens in rich soil, all indoors. At the time I was there, there were around fifty different crops being cultivated, and throughout the year 200 different varieties of produce are grown. The crops are all grown in-ground, in soil that is carefully managed and fertilized with compost from the resident restaurant and the livestock on the farm. The greenhouse roof automatically opens and closes in response to sunlight and rain, allowing the farmers to control irrigation and temperature, thus enabling the farm to benefit from the temperature and moisture control of a greenhouse without sacrificing exposure to unfiltered sunlight, fresh air, and rich soil so important to vegetable nutrition. The greenhouse is minimally heated and uses the heat generated by a small composting bin to keep its energy requirements low.

In addition to the main greenhouse, there are several smaller, portable greenhouses that enable the farmers to rotate crops on new soil, as well as open fields and terraces for herbs, flowers, and other produce. This innovative farming system, coupled with winter gardening techniques such as leaving root vegetables in the soil to sweeten over the cold months, enables Stone Barns to demonstrate how local agriculture can in fact provide sustenance throughout the year while maintaining a dedication to seasonal and locally appropriate produce and livestock. One of the common arguments against a local food system is that it leaves communities without certain produce during the winter. By growing crops all year round, Stone Barns can help convince people that local agriculture is not only socially desirable, but culturally and economically viable as well.

Community Involvement at Stone Barns

One of the greatest things about Stone Barns is its commitment to integrating local agriculture into a larger system of sustainable living. An example of this is how the farm utilizes waste from a resident restaurant. Blue Hill at Stone Barns and Blue Hill Café, located within Stone Barns Center, purchase many of the ingredients for their menus from the farm. Waste from the restaurant goes to compost, which is returned to the fields.  Stone Barns also sells food to two other local restaurants, which demonstrates to a large extent the economic viability of sustainable production

Stone Barns does give a lot to the surrounding community, but it also relies heavily on community involvement. In addition to the work done by the permanent staff, the center is supported by a relatively large number of volunteers. The center places a high priority on developing young farmers, and so includes many apprentices and interns learning the crafts of agriculture. Stone Barns also invites school groups from the local communities, as well as New York City, to help out around the farm; they contribute with work on chores like egg collecting or gardening, and in return they get the opportunity to learn about where their food comes from and how its production impacts the environment. And what kid doesn’t love the chance to work with farm animals?

The livestock at Stone Barns include chickens, geese, sheep, turkeys, pigs, and cows. All the animals have access to pasture and sunshine. In a pasture on a hill behind the greenhouse, two flocks of turkeys swarmed me and my photographer, gobbling and displaying their gorgeous feathers. The nearby woods were home to some pigs happily rooting for acorns, and the sheep were milling about in a barn with their sheep dog. There were chickens both in their barn and milling about in the lanes between the other animals’ shelters. Like the greenhouse, the livestock facilities were modern and innovative – unobtrusive electric fences, movable feeding stations—without being industrial. The impression I got was one of happy, healthy animals living and growing as nature intended with the aid of clever, non-intrusive human oversight.

Sustainable Efficiency

While certainly not a high-production farm, Stone Barns is not just for show either, and that is what makes it such a wonderful educational setting. Children can be exposed to a real, working farm, and learn about ways to sustainably raise livestock and vegetables without the experience being sugar-coated. Adults interested in gardening or producing their own food have a place where they can exchange ideas and learn techniques that are actually applicable, rather than being simply picturesque. The ability to show a workable solution to the broken food industry is invaluable. There were no red barn houses, and most of the rows of greens were indoors. This is a real farm, and efficiency is important. But neither were there crowds of sick, immune-suppressed animals or plants dripping in pesticides. Efficiency and economically feasible production can go hand in hand with sustainable, environmentally responsible management, and that is probably the greatest lesson to be taken from Stone Barns.

Buildings photo courtesy of Annabel Braithwaite for Belathée Photography.

Greenhouse and turkey photos courtesy of Charles Allen.