Products

Pasture- Raised Eggs

We are proud to offer eggs from our 100% pasture-raised chickens. As with the vegetables on our farm, we treat them as nature truly intended. A common misconception is that vegetarian or grass-fed hens produce the healthiest eggs. However, chickens are not naturally vegetarians. There are no animal products or by-products in their feed, but they do forage for bugs and worms. Their feed is free of hormones, antibiotics and steroids. We do not employ any unnatural practices such as beak clipping, wing trimming or forced molting by starvation to manipulate egg production. The hens love to bathe in the dust, dig holes to cool off in in the summer heat and perch on low tree branches. They are able to perform their natural behaviors every single day without limitation. There are no chemicals on the land they roam. They now reside on the second floor of our large barn where they lay their eggs each day. They have a large ramp that leads them right outside to the pasture they share with our 13 cows.

Moonlight Farm Eggs are available weekly at each Farm Share pickup and Farmers Market and on the farm by appointment.

Off 'Cides Veggies

Moonlight Farm produce is never sprayed. No pesticides, herbicides or fungicides will have ever touched your veggies. Nothing but compost, manure and a few key nutrients has ever been in the soil.

Alongside our veggies, we grow a small variety of medicinal and culinary herbs.

Since we don't spray our produce, it will have physical flaws. You may find small holes in the greens, beetle tracks on the cucumbers and cracks on the tomatoes. We want to share with you our yummy tasting, imperfect looking veggies!

We cover our crops with floating row covers called Remay or Agribon. These are large rolls of thin, biodegradable fabric. This helps to minimize damage from airborne and flying pests. We also employ beneficial insects, such as nematodes and ladybugs.

We use crop rotation to help eliminate disease and pest problems that would begin in the soil. If plants in the same family were continuously grown in the same spot, pests and diseases would prey on them season after season.

Landscape fabric and plastic mulch are used to suffocate weeds and help eliminate hiding places for pests.

Plant variety also plays a role. We have experience in growing many different varieties and species. This has given us the opportunity to select the best seeds for our region and our pests.

The most important factor in pest management is high quality, all-natural compost. Healthy crops start with healthy soil. We produce some of our own compost, with a goal of supplying all of it one day.

Organic vs. Off 'Cides

A little known fact about organic farming is that you can still use synthetic pesticides! The word "organic" is actually owned and patented by the USDA and they will fine you for using it if you are not in fact certified. An organic certification takes at least 3 years time, plenty of fees, and government inspections. We are committed to growing produce that surpasses the "organic" label. Unfortunately, at this point in time, we feel the label has become a marketing strategy, and allows farms to charge more money for certified organic products. While not every certified organic farm will use synthetics, they are allowed to. The word has become skewed and no longer means what people believe it to mean. Stick with Moonlight Farm and rest assured that no chemicals whatsoever will have ever touched your precious food.

Pastured Poultry

We began raising broilers (chicken for meat) in our little apple orchard in 2018. We have chosen to raise a few different breeds over the years: Imperials, Royals, Freedom Rangers, and Cornish Rocks. They arrive as day-old chicks and live in our stacked brooder tower for two weeks. When they feather out and no longer require heat, we transfer them to a small cozy pen in the barn for another two weeks. For their final 4-6 weeks, we move them outside to one of their moveable houses. We shut them in at night to keep them safe from predators.

Since 2019,  we have raised a handful of turkeys each year. They roam around with everyone in and around the barn. While we still aren't ready to raise Thanksgiving turkeys, we plan to in the future.

Just like our layer hens, all of our poultry are treated with the utmost respect and lead fulfilling, meaningful lives. They are fed locally grown and milled non-GMO feed from Clover Hill Farm in Hardwick, MA.