Frank and Cindy Gillan manage 100 acres of the beautiful Retreat Farm in Rapidan, VA. When the Gillans came to the farm almost 12 years ago, they started with a small vegetable garden. Today, that garden has grown into a five acre plot that produces a variety of fruits and vegetables, and the Gillans are raising about 100 Karakul sheep, 25 Piedmontese cows, 60 chickens and a few pigs.
Working Farms & Food
Farmland and forests produce the necessities of life and provide essential natural services. In PEC’s nine county area, over 180,000 acres of farmland and 140,000 acres of forests are protected through private, voluntary land conservation.
Waterpenny Farm: Sustainable Farming Offers a Sustainable Lifestyle
Rachel Bynum and Eric Plaksin of Waterpenny Farm in Sperryville, V.A., were drawn to farming for a number of reasons, but, for Bynum, the lifestyle of small-scale farming was a major factor in her career decision. Rachel majored in environmental studies in college, and was first exposed to sustainable farming in a class.
The Wine Kitchen
A few years ago, Jason Miller and Michael Mercer noticed a hole in Leesburg’s restaurant scene. The quaint town was surrounded by farms and vineyards, and yet there was no farm-to-table restaurant — no restaurant that seemed dedicated to relying on local food sources.
Potomac Vegetable Farm
The vision of “the American farm” has long been that of the family farm — a plot of land that is worked and managed by a family, and then passed down from generation to generation. Today, however, that is often not the case — and Potomac Vegetable Farms (PVF) is living, growing proof.
Saving the Farm
How conservation can help working farmers achieve their goals
David and Terry Ingram are father-son farmers who recently donated conservation easements on their farms in Brandy Station, in Culpeper County.
Brandy Station is a great place for farming, with rich soils and moderate slopes. In fact, a full two thirds of Culpeper County ranks as farmland of statewide importance.