As you may know, in 2016, we were thrilled to achieve two of our dreams when the County of York (from whom the Horn Farm Center leases the farm property) agreed to extend the terms of our lease to 99 years and they also placed the 189-acre Horn Farm property in a farmland preservation program.

Also in 2016, we completed our first Land Use Management Plan which we affectionately call the LUMP. Our goal was to conduct a comprehensive inventory and gain additional knowledge about the property as it currently operates while identifying obstacles and opportunities for land use. This will allow the Horn Farm Center to allocate resources appropriately while determining multiple uses for the available land.

We spent hours walking the property and compiling data. The LUMP is a working document with a written narrative as well as maps like the one above which shows current uses of various sections of the farm. The written document includes site-specific information about:
1. Climate
2. Landform
3. Water
4. Access/Circulation (roads)
5. Vegetation and Wildlife
6. Microclimate
7. Buildings and Infrastructure
8. Zones of Use
9. Aesthetics/Experience of Place

For 2017, Horn Farm Center Executive Director Alyson Earl was named a York Federal Fellow. Her proposed project was to conduct a year-long investigation of the best examples of regenerative agriculture in the eastern United States. This project was funded by a grant from the York County Community Foundation’s York Federal Fellows Program. The Fellows Program offers outstanding nonprofit executive leaders the opportunity to spend a year developing professionally while expanding their leadership skills.

From June 23 through July 2, Alyson will be in Vermont attending a hands-on, skills-based permaculture design course focused on building resiliency and regeneration on a commercial-scale farm site roughly the size of the Horn Farm property. She is looking forward to returning with practical ideas to share about developing ways to meet human needs while participating in our ecosystems in mutually beneficial ways.

In addition to being an incubator for new farmers and beekeepers, to holding classes and workshops, to hosting 102 community garden plots, and growing delicious, fresh produce, we also consider ourselves multigenerational stewards of this land. The Horn Farm Center Board of Directors is about to enter another strategic planning process with our grandchildren’s grandchildren’s grandchildren in mind. Small changes today can make a big difference tomorrow.

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