Chickens play a role in the whole of the farm environment. Delaware, Speckled Sussex, and Partridge Rocks are the heritage breeds of chickens inhabiting our mobile coops. These coops are moved about the farm. This allows the chickens to roam about feeding on a varied diet, including pests that are not beneficial to garden plantings, which lends extraordinary flavor to their eggs.
Sheep have been part of the experience at Blackberry Farm for the past several years, but have been raised in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains since the turn of the last century. One old timer in West Millers Cove tells tale of the days before World War I when sheep were run from down in the cove to the balds or non-wooded fields high up in the mountains such as Gregory’s Bald, the path for which runs through the aptly named Sheep Pen Gap.
Livestock are an important part of the farm not just for what they produce, but for the role they play in the ecosystem of the farm. At Blackberry Farm, there are sheep that produce milk, wool, and meat; pigs that make succulent pork, sausage, salumi and hams; and chickens that lay eggs with golden yolks. These livestock also contribute by regenerating pasture, fertilizing, controlling pests, aerating compost, and consuming the by-products of cheese making and food production. In short, the various livestock found on the farm are revered for their contribution, both what we enjoy at the table and the integral role they play in the farm as a whole.
Blackberry Farm employs over three hundred team members to orchestrate every facet of your stay. Some of these team members are not human. Yet, like every member, they have a particular role that contributes to making the whole operation work. The role of our Llamas, George, Little Joe, Ben and Hoss, is to protect the sheep from predators. Their service is exemplary and their role as part of the farm is undeniable.