Category: Connecticut

Horsing Around The Farm

by kellymineryhamdan, posted in Art-Sculpture, Pottery, Painting, Glass......, Connecticut, New England

Giddy Up Granby Painted Horse Parade, 2006

Granby has always been regarded as the unofficial “Horse capital of Connecticut” Giddy Up To Granby is the name of Granby’s painted horse project.

Holcomb Farm, West Granby, CT

The Legacy of Tudor and Laura Holcomb

Much of the land in West Granby that is now called The Holcomb Farm was farmed by the Holcomb Family for more than 200 years, from the mid-1700s until 1990. Early on, generations of Holcombs operated portions of the land on Simsbury Road as “Broad Hill Farm,” referencing the hill that rises from the West Branch of the Salmon Brook to the farm’s northwest.

In the 1900s, siblings Tudor and Laura Holcomb operated the farm, concentrating on shade tobacco and a prize dairy herd. The Holcombs tended the land well and operated a vibrant and innovative farm. In 1976, Tudor and Laura gifted the farm to the University of Connecticut. It was to be used to “further programs of the University’s Connecticut College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, including protection of wildlife, the improvement of farming operations, arboretum purposes, development of crops, research involving animals and birds, and the like.”

In 1990, the farm was passed from the University of Connecticut to the Town of Granby; and it is owned by the Town today. The nonprofit Friends of Holcomb Farm — a group of dedicated volunteers — operates a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program and a Farm Store here. They also manage the Fresh Access program (a charity that provides healthy produce to those in need); maintain more than 10 miles of woodland and meadow trails, including an educational arboretum that we call the Tree Trail; and host classes, outdoor activities, and educational lectures. Today’s farm is a model of sustainability, where we take care of the land, the wildlife, our customers, and each other.

Holcomb Farm, 1756

by kellymineryhamdan, posted in Barns, Connecticut, New England

West Granby, CT

Isaiah 28:24

When a farmer plows for planting, does he plow continually? Does he keep on breaking up and working the soil?

Holcomb Farm

Holcomb Farm is a 312-acre working historic farm located in the heart of West Granby, Connecticut. It is comprised of:

  • A nonprofit, mixed-vegetable production farm that produces abundant, delicious produce without chemical fertilizers or pesticides. We grow on 26 acres of Town-owned property for a 450 member Summer CSA, 100 member Winter CSA, wholesale customers, our farm store, and our food donation program, called Fresh Access.  We use only chemical- and GMO-free methods and sign the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Connecticut’s Farmer’s Pledge.
  • 10+ miles of trails that are open to the public, from dawn to dusk. Our trails connect to McLean Game Refuge and Granby Land Trust trails, and wind their way through the beautiful, varied terrain of rural West Granby, in the foothills of the Berkshires. Learn more.
  • The Holcomb Tree Trail, where nearly 100 trees are labeled with their common and botanical names; and interpretive signs teach readers more about the trees and the landscape. Learn more.
  • A beautiful banquet facility for life’s special events. All private bookings are handled through the Town of Granby’s Parks and Recreation Department.
  • A community gathering place in a historic New England setting.
  • A nonprofit organization that does good work in Hartford County. Through Fresh Access, we donated more than 15 tons of fresh produce to people in need in 2022. In addition, through the Friends of Holcomb Farm and our CSA, we host periodic events that celebrate healthy living, almost always free-of-charge, and open to all.

The farm is operated collaboratively by the Town of Granby and a Board of Directors composed of local citizens.