There are 35 farms on the CFSA Piedmont Farm Tour. Here are the ones you should visit
Going on the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association’s Piedmont Farm Tour can take a little homework.
With 35 farms spread across several counties, there are only a handful of farms one can realistically visit in its two days April 22-23.
If people are interested in livestock, they can focus on that. If they’re curious about mushroom logs or nontraditional approaches, like raising pigs in a forest environment, they can focus on that.
But the main reason people go on the self-guided Piedmont Farm Tour, now in its 22nd year, is the one thing that ties these 35 stops together.
“A lot of people take the tour because they want to meet farmers,” says Leah Joyner, education coordinator with the CFSA.
The full tour runs from 2 to 6 p.m. but this year’s tour features one change: seven dedicated “kick-off farms” open early at noon. The idea is to give families with young children an option of starting early, but it also serves to extend the tour hours from four hours each day to six.
Another characteristic tying these 35 far-flung farms together is an alignment to CFSA’s values.
“To join the tour, we ask them to articulate what their contribution to sustainability is,” Joyner said.
This can mean dedication to soil health and water conservation, limited chemical use, seed-saving or dedication to animal welfare. Some, but not all, are organic farms.
In the interests of helping tour-goers with their homework, we sat down with Joyner and came up with a list of features people may be looking for in a farm – like microgreens or baby animals. All 35 farms on the tour are included at least once in our lists, if not several times. Consult the CFSA website (carolinafarmstewards.org) for the locations of farms listed here.
Farms that grow farmers
W.C. Breeze Family Farm: At this incubator farm, aspiring market farmers can lease growing space.
The Student Farm at CCCC
Transplanting Traditions Community Farm: Here, 38 Burmese refugee families grow crops common to North Carolina as well as Burma.
Beyond chickens and cows
Sunset Ridge Buffalo Farm: As of last year, the bison is the national mammal of the United States.
Caney Creek Farm: Check out its rare Ossabaw Island hogs.
Fickle Creek Farm: Great Pyrenees guard dogs protect the livestock.
Stoney Mountain Farm: Llamas guard the sheep (No, we are not making this up).
Farms with restaurant partners
Cane Creek Farm: Partnered with Left Bank Butchery in Saxapahaw.
Braeburn Farm: Sells to Left Bank and the Eddy Pub.
Rocky Run Farm: Owned by Eddy Pub executive chef Isaiah Allen.
Reverence Farms
Peaceful River Farm
Coon Rock Farm: Owners own Piedmont Restaurant in Durham.
Farms with things you can eat and drink
(Note: This will be true for many other farms not listed in this category.)
Ran-Lew Dairy: Try their milk!
PlowGirl Farm: Dingo Dog Brewing Company, a nonprofit brewery on the premises, raises funds to help shelter animals.
Two Chicks Farm: Specializing in fermented products, Two Chicks makes pickles, kimchee and sauerkraut, but also kiefer.
Fickle Creek Farm
In Good Heart Farm
Minka Farm
Perry-Winkle Farm: Pizza!
Farms with baby animals
Cane Creek Farm: Baby pigs!
Minka Farm
Celebrity Dairy: Baby goats!
Cedar Grove Windy Hill Farm: Goslings!
Dawnbreaker Farms
Farms specializing in microgreens
Four Leaf Farm
Open Door Farm: Joyner recommends their spicy microgreens mix
Copeland Springs Farm
Farms with high tunnels, hoop houses, interesting greenhouses
Nourishing Acres
Open Door Farm: Their caterpillar tunnels are a small, DIY version of a high tunnel.
Coon Rock Farm
Two Chicks Farm
Four Leaf Farm: This one has a movable high tunnel.
W.C. Breeze Family Farm
Dancing Pines Farm
Perry-Winkle Farm
Granite Springs Farm
Screech Owl Greenhouses: While not a high tunnel, this stop has a heated greenhouse.
Flat River Farm and Nursery
Beekeeping
Flat River Nursery and Farm
Nourishing Acres
Cedar Grove Windy Hill
PlowGirl Farm
Transplanting Traditions Community Farm
The Student Farm at CCCC
Biofarm: This one’s more of a pollinator habitat than an apiary.
Newcomers
Stoney Mountain Farm
Nourishing Acres
Dawnbreaker Farms
Okfuskee Farm
In Good Heart Farm
Copeland Springs Farm
Veteran farms
These farms have been on the tour for a decade or more (some have been on all 22 tours).
Perry-Winkle Farm
Turtle Run
Millarckee Farm: This farm has been growing organic vegetables for 37 years.
Dancing Pines Farm
Fickle Creek Farm
Celebrity Dairy
The Student Farm at CCCC
Flat River Nursery and Farm
Farms growing mushrooms
PlowGirl Farm: You can adopt a mushroom log here.
RambleHill Farm
Cedar Grove Windy Hill Farm
Granite Springs Farm: This one will have mushroom fruiting kits for sale.
Copeland Springs Farm
Kickoff farms
These farms open at noon both days.
Stoney Mountain Farm
Sunset Ridge Buffalo Farm
Minka Farm
Woodcrest Farm
Peaceful River Farm
Reverence Farms
Braeburn Farm
Yesteryear elements
Woodcrest Farm: There will be blacksmithing demos at its working blacksmith shop.
Turtle Run: The restored pioneer cabin on this plot is 200 years old.
Ran-Lew Dairy Milk Company: Ran-Lew is a century farm, meaning it has been in the same family at least 100 years.
Farms where you can spend the night
Visit carolinafarmstewards.org/piedmont-farm-tour-farm-stays for contact information or Airbnb links.
Braeburn Farm
Cane Creek Farm
Cedar Grove Windy Hill Farm
Celebrity Dairy
Coon Rock Farm
Fickle Creek Farm
Minka Farm
Woodcrest Farm
Carolina Farm Stewardship Association’s Piedmont Farm Tour
A self-guided tour of 35 area farms
When: 2-6 p.m. April 22 and 23 (some farms open at noon)
Cost: $30 per car, purchased in advance (for all farms, both days) or $35 day of. Farms can be visited individually for $10 apiece.
This story was originally published April 14, 2017 at 11:50 AM with the headline "There are 35 farms on the CFSA Piedmont Farm Tour. Here are the ones you should visit."