Building resilient soils: planning & resources for extreme weather events

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Location: Stony Hill Farm, 899 Stony Hill Road, Wilbraham, MA

Join us for a workshop designed for farmers, land stewards, and growers navigating increasingly unpredictable growing conditions and seeking practical, field-tested ways to build soil health and farm resilience. Hosted at Stony Hill Farm with farmer Alice Colman, participants will learn directly how soil health planning and management reduces production risks and increases resiliency in the face of extreme weather events. The event includes hands-on soil health demonstrations, a guided farm tour, and an opportunity to connect with technical service providers from NOFA/Mass, CISA, the American Farmland Trust and the NRCS about available funding opportunities, technical assistance, and support for developing soil management plans.

Participants will:

• Observe a live, in-field soil health assessment & learn how to evaluate their soils
• Explore funded and implemented practices including reduced tillage, cover cropping, mulching, intercropping, hedgerows, and soil carbon amendment
• Understand how these practices have improved soil structure, reduced bare soil, and increased resilience at Stony Hill Farm
• Learn the step-by-step process for developing a soil health management plan that is based on NRCS planning steps
• Connect with technical assistance providers & funding opportunities, including grants, soil testing services, and organic transition support over a local meal & drinks

Stony Hill Farm is a certified organic, small-scale diversified farm on 35 acres of fields and forest (currently ~1 acre in cultivation) in Wilbraham, MA, founded in 2015 by Alice Colman and Brian Cunningham. They grow a wide variety of vegetables and cut flowers sold through their farm stand and CSA. Their ecosystem-based approach emphasizes diversity as the foundation of resilience. Soil health practices include compost, cover crops, and organic fertilizers, alongside crop rotations, row covers, and beneficial insects to support ecological balance and pest management. These practices are grounded in their on-farm approach to building resilient systems and have been strengthened through technical assistance programs such as American Farmland Trust (AFT), Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA) and NOFA/Mass, which have helped them refine and deepen their soil health and long-term land management strategies.

Caro Roszell works with American Farmland Trust to support farmer networks, provide technical assistance, and advance practical approaches to soil health and climate resilience. With 15 years of experience in environmental nonprofit work and a decade in organic farming, she specializes in farmer education, soil health programming, and farmer-to-farmer learning. Before joining AFT, Caro served as Education Director and Soil Health Projects Manager for NOFA/Mass and currently serves on the Massachusetts Food Policy Council representing the Healthy Soils seat. 

Jeremy Barker-Plotkin joined American Farmland Trust with more than 25 years of experience in organic and regenerative farming, conservation planning, and farm business development. As co-owner and operator of Simple Gifts Farm, a 50-acre integrated vegetable and livestock farm, he has firsthand experience managing diversified production systems, infrastructure development, and direct markets. His work focuses on soil health, organic no-till production, integrated pest management, irrigation and water conservation, and farm business planning. Through AFT, Jeremy supports farmers with soil health planning, conservation implementation, organic transition, and access to technical assistance and funding opportunities. 

Randy Violette is in his fourth season working at Stony Hill Farm where he has been supporting implementation of practices that improve soil health and overall farm resilience. Randy also works for NOFA/Mass as a TOPP Field Engagement and Technical Learning Coordinator. In this role, he develops programming and educational content for farmers and gardeners interested in using organic farming practices.