How it all began
Back in 2011 the Leelanau Conservancy was able to protect this historic farm from development. It was owned and operated for years by a colorful character named Sonny Swanson. As a result of their conservation efforts, the Swanson Preserve was established, an accomplishment of significant ecological value due to the 2,000 feet of lake frontage. Most of the preserve is a wetland, but the farmland was also protected under a Conservation Easement, resulting in Sonny's Farm. Ben Brown began farming the property in 2011 under a 3-year lease with an option to buy. Click here for more information.
Sonny's Farm is now the home of Haymaker Poultry Co., the business Ben operated on rented land prior to the move in 2011. After a successful 3-year lease Ben decided to purchase the farm in the winter of 2014 and he couldn't be more excited to steward the land long-term. In the years to come he will be bringing the run-down farmstead back to life slowly, but surely. The soils are improving and each season he learns more about creating a regenerative agriculture.
Sonny's Farm is now the home of Haymaker Poultry Co., the business Ben operated on rented land prior to the move in 2011. After a successful 3-year lease Ben decided to purchase the farm in the winter of 2014 and he couldn't be more excited to steward the land long-term. In the years to come he will be bringing the run-down farmstead back to life slowly, but surely. The soils are improving and each season he learns more about creating a regenerative agriculture.
Farming Practices
We want our farming practices to be in harmony with all the fields, forests, wetlands, and wildlife that surround the farm. All of the management decisions are made with this goal in mind. We do not use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides (synthetic or organic). While third party certification is valuable to some consumers, we rely instead on transparency and communication as tools to keep people aware of how their food is grown. Direct marketing allows people to visit the farm and engage in a conversation about our practices. We feel strongly about avoiding the use of GMO's (genetically modified organisms).
Instead of relying on conventional or chemical measures of avoiding crop loss due to pests and pathogens, we use tools such as crop rotation, a diversity of crop varieties, cover cropping, companion planting, proper timing and planning, and a focus on not just providing N-P-K, but also the proper minerals and secondary nutrients that make for a healthy plant.
We also employ cultural and mechanical methods of coping with pests and weeds such as tractor mounted cultivators and discs and floating row covers (Remay). We like to encourage some 'weeds' in the field, which provide habitat for beneficial insects and protection from the wind and sun. Since incorporating flowers into the operation we have seen a huge increase in the pollinators present and pest outbreaks have hardly been as issue. A strong colony of bats and swallows are an added bio-control. We employ bees on the farm for pollination/honey by working with a local beekeeper and providing a chemical free environment for them to inhabit.
We certainly have our challenges growing vegetables- the sandy soils, which are low in organic matter have been a primary challenge. We are fortunate to have many animals on the farm producing manure, which is the ultimate fertilizer, especially when aged into compost. In 2014 the farm is installing several Hugelkultur beds as part of a solution to the dry summers and sandy soil.
A well managed diet along with clean, comfortable housing, and low-stress handling allow us to avoid the use of routine antibiotics and hormone treatments with our animals. If you would like to learn more about how pastured meats differ from animals raised indoors, visit Jo Robinson's website, Eat Wild.
Instead of relying on conventional or chemical measures of avoiding crop loss due to pests and pathogens, we use tools such as crop rotation, a diversity of crop varieties, cover cropping, companion planting, proper timing and planning, and a focus on not just providing N-P-K, but also the proper minerals and secondary nutrients that make for a healthy plant.
We also employ cultural and mechanical methods of coping with pests and weeds such as tractor mounted cultivators and discs and floating row covers (Remay). We like to encourage some 'weeds' in the field, which provide habitat for beneficial insects and protection from the wind and sun. Since incorporating flowers into the operation we have seen a huge increase in the pollinators present and pest outbreaks have hardly been as issue. A strong colony of bats and swallows are an added bio-control. We employ bees on the farm for pollination/honey by working with a local beekeeper and providing a chemical free environment for them to inhabit.
We certainly have our challenges growing vegetables- the sandy soils, which are low in organic matter have been a primary challenge. We are fortunate to have many animals on the farm producing manure, which is the ultimate fertilizer, especially when aged into compost. In 2014 the farm is installing several Hugelkultur beds as part of a solution to the dry summers and sandy soil.
A well managed diet along with clean, comfortable housing, and low-stress handling allow us to avoid the use of routine antibiotics and hormone treatments with our animals. If you would like to learn more about how pastured meats differ from animals raised indoors, visit Jo Robinson's website, Eat Wild.
About Ben
Ben was able to experience many different types of agriculture before landing here in Leelanau. Being raised in the suburbs of Chicago, it wasn't until graduating high school that his interest in farming began. Working 'under the wing' of several farmers as an apprentice is where he gained most of his knowledge. He has worked on farms as far off as Nanegalito, Ecuador and as close as the cherry orchards of Old Mission Peninsula, MI. One of the more influential experiences was working with Roy Brubaker at Village Acres Farm in Mifflintown, PA.
Ben went on to obtain a degree in Ecological Agriculture from the University of Vermont. Following graduation, he started and managed a small CSA in South Hero, VT before moving back to the Mid-west. He was also able to learn the trade of high-tensile fence construction while in VT, working closely with the state's plethora of dairy farmers to install livestock fencing under the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) and Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) .
In the midst of creating his business Haymaker Poultry Co. on rented land, the opportunity to lease what is now Sonny's Farm presented itself. In 2011 his proposal was selected by the Leelanau Conservancy. Ben and his wife Yarrow and their 4-year old daughter Selah now live on the farm and are working to restore the old farmhouse together.
Some of Ben's interests and hobbies include: rare breed livestock, small scale dairy, permaculture, small/tiny houses, timber-frame construction, hiking, draft horses, oxen, and mules, cooking, seed saving, rocket stoves, living simple and remembering good planets are hard to find.
Ben went on to obtain a degree in Ecological Agriculture from the University of Vermont. Following graduation, he started and managed a small CSA in South Hero, VT before moving back to the Mid-west. He was also able to learn the trade of high-tensile fence construction while in VT, working closely with the state's plethora of dairy farmers to install livestock fencing under the Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) and Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) .
In the midst of creating his business Haymaker Poultry Co. on rented land, the opportunity to lease what is now Sonny's Farm presented itself. In 2011 his proposal was selected by the Leelanau Conservancy. Ben and his wife Yarrow and their 4-year old daughter Selah now live on the farm and are working to restore the old farmhouse together.
Some of Ben's interests and hobbies include: rare breed livestock, small scale dairy, permaculture, small/tiny houses, timber-frame construction, hiking, draft horses, oxen, and mules, cooking, seed saving, rocket stoves, living simple and remembering good planets are hard to find.
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