Graywall hosts Presidents' Day tour

Little Joe and Xena, driven by John Valli from Allegra Farm, offer wagon rides at the Presidents' Day tour at Graywall Farms. Photos by Melanie Savage.

For the third year in a row, Graywall Farms in Lebanon hosted the Farmer’s Cow annual Presidents’ Day farm tour. Unlike last year, when guests were treated to rides on a horse-drawn sleigh (you will recall, we got three feet of snow during the month of January), this year’s event benefited from balmy, dry weather. Visitors were still treated to rides, but this time they were on a wheeled wagon provided by Allegra Farm in East Haddam, with John Valli driving a team comprised of Percherons Little Joe and Xena.

As usual, tours were provided of the farm, which milks a total of approximately 400 cows. “This is your opportunity to see where Farmer’s Cow milk comes from,” said Robin Chesmer, co-owner of Graywall, along with his son, Lincoln. Chesmer introduced a tour run by Paul Miller, owner of Fairvue Farms in Woodstock.

Comprised of a total of six farms (in addition to Fairvue and Graywall, members are Hytone in Coventry, Mapleleaf in Hebron, Cushman in North Franklin and Fort Hill in Thompson), the Farmer’s Cow is in its seventh year of operation. Farmer’s Cow produces milk, half and half, eggs and seasonal beverages. Its newest product, Up Early Coffee, will soon be available in Big Y, Stop and Shop and other participating retailers. Provided by a local processor, the coffee is produced by a Rainforest Alliance. “It fits with our mantra of environmentally responsible and locally produced,” said Lincoln, “and it goes well with our half and half and milk.”

Visitors participating in Miller’s tour (Chesmer estimated that this year’s event surpassed the 2011 attendance count of 500 people) had many questions about the farm. Among them was, “What are those red lights hanging from the roof of the cow barn?” Miller explained that the lights were an effort to control the amount of light exposure to the herd. “Cows need to sleep eight to 12 hours per day,” he said. Red lights are an attempt to allow workers to see while performing necessary tasks without disturbing the cows’ rest. “We tried it on our farm and I didn’t think it worked too well,” said Miller, explaining that workers complained that the red bulbs didn’t provide enough light to see by.

Look for The Farmer’s Cow at the Hebron Maple Fest, taking place this year on March 10 and 11. Go to www.thefarmerscow.com for more information.