The Story So Far
I grew up in farming and fishing country on Eastern Long Island, NY. After a few years of professional cooking and writing about restaurants, I became a full-time writer, reporter, photographer and editor. From 1991-2020, I was a public defender in New York City and Washington, DC.
Eventually, I became a regular volunteer at Arcadia in Virginia. Arcadia is centered around food insecurity and includes a 40-acre farm. Working at the farm suggested a livelihood change.
Walking across the fields in Millerton, between Shekomeko and Smithfield, I fell as much in love with land as one could. The views were awesome. That the fields sloped gently to the south suggested that they would drain and warm quicker. A thick stand of spruce separated the fields from the house. Plus, part of my family emigrated from Ireland to a spot a few miles south of here (Dover Plains) in the 19th century.
By the way, 6 Acre Farm’s name reflects a desire to be straightforward. Apologies for any lack of creativity.
Environmentally Positive
6 Acre Farm is improving the environment.
All of the farm’s electric needs are met through solar power. In late 2022, a solar installation producing 25 mega-watts of electricity per year went on-line. That is enough to meet all the needs of the farm and the farm house. . Additional electricity is sent to the grid.
Four of the farm’s six acres are filled with old-growth spruce, which are up to 100 feet tall. There are 589 of them and together they store approximately 112,000 pounds of carbon. From the atmosphere annually, they absorb about 28,000 pounds of carbon.
The systems of the house were retrofitted in 2022 to take advantage of the solar production, resulting alone in 12,000 pounds less carbon going into the atmosphere.
Since our produce is only sold locally and grown organically, customers are preventing the environmental degradation which occurs when other produce is shipped hundreds and thousands of miles, sprayed with artificial insecticide or grown with the help of unnatural fertilizer.
The farm is not perfect. For example, in 2023, 28.7 gallons of gasoline were used to power the 2-wheel tractor. However, while this may blunt our environmental score, any negativity is abundantly offset. And, the tractor will eventually be electric.
Buy One, Give One
Selling produce through a farmer’s market and restaurants allows 6 Acre Farm to give away a substantial amount. We believe that good food and flowers should be available to everyone. In 2023, 6 Acre Farm donated over 1,500 pounds of food to the North East Community Center’s foodbank (Millerton, NY) and Share the Bounty (low-cost farmstand in Amenia, NY).
For every vegetable and flower sold, 6 Acre Farm donates one to organizations working to address food insecurity in the area. As noted in HV Life magazine, we aspire to be “The Bombas of Small Farms in Dutchess County.”
Meet our team
Our comprehensive suite of professionals caters to a diverse team, ranging from seasoned architects to renowned engineers.
Jon Willmott
Founder and Lead Farmer
Molly
Chief Taste Tester
Brennan Willmott-McMahon
Field Hand
Theresa Willmott-McMahon
Head of Marketing