On Thursday, March 19th, members of the Sanford Middle School Environmental Club traveled to Wolfe's Neck Farm for a hands-on look at sustainable farming.
The tour began with a walk from the main lodge to the dairy farm area, taking in the ocean views and open fields along the way.
Right away, the baby cows stole the show. Students learned that calves on the farm are separated by gender, with females given names and males assigned numbers. The reason? The females stay on to join the dairy herd, while the males eventually move on. There's even a fun naming tradition: when a calf is born, its name begins with the same letter as its mother's. So if mom is named Jasmine, her calf might be called Jane.
From there, the group made their way to the milking room, where they watched the entire milking process from start to finish, including how the equipment works, how the milk is cleaned and collected, and how the operation runs so smoothly that the cows know their own spots and walk right to them each day. After leaving the dairy barn, students watched the calves being fed using a "Milk Bar," a device designed to mimic nursing from their mothers.
The tour wrapped up with a visit to a greenhouse, where several beds of seeds were already beginning to sprout, and then to the petting barn. There, students mingled with goats, sheep, chickens, and a resident barn cat, all accompanied by the cheerful chirping of sparrows and starlings nesting among the rafters.
The club would like to extend a huge thank you to Mr. Mastraccio for covering the entry fees to Wolfe's Neck Farm, and to Mr. Peterman for providing the van and gas for the trip. None of it would have been possible without their generosity!