Tenacious Acres
Connecting Environmental Stewardship to the equestrian Art
Tenacious Acres Restorative Agriculture is our outreach program geared toward growing specialty crops and educating the community in restorative gardening techniques. Our approach incorporates the use of endangered breeds of goats and poultry, such as the San Clemente Island Goat, Tufted Roman Geese, and Buff Orpington Ducks. We’ll be selling dried herbs and other farm products, and we’re in the process of developing online course and in-person workshops. Many of these courses will be available at a discount for those who struggle with food security, and produce that isn’t sold will be donated to local food banks.
Part of caring for the horses includes caring for their environment. We are passionate about holistic farm management, using partner animals and gardens for enrichment and property management. Our San Clemente Island Goats assist with weed control and forest management, and our poultry eat nuisance bugs and pests. The horses also play an important part, creating a carbon sink in the soil through their waste. Our goal is to be as green as possible in the near future, and we are establishing solar power at our new facility and looking for other ways to “go green.” However, we also believe that a working farm can be beautiful and picturesque, and we hope to capture this efficient beauty in our facility’s set-up. We have several projects in the works, including new gardens, agroforestry, and river-friendly agriculture. Stay tuned for more updates!
Join us for our regular farm tours to learn more about what we’re doing! These farm tours support our programs and overall mission.
Conservation
working in harmony with nature
Our property is uniquely situated on the northern edge of the Hickory Nut Gorge and is edged by Lower Flat Creek and the Rocky Broad River. This area, situated around the Rocky Broad River, contains many unique plant and animal species, including Eastern Hemlock trees, the Hickory Nut Gorge green salamander, mountain laurel, and more. We are still discovering what calls our property home, but so far, we have found red salamanders, Eastern Hemlock trees, mountain laurel, wild turkeys, beavers, and many unidentified herbs and plants. We are passionate about conserving these native species and wish to work with and around them so that they may continue to thrive.
THE SAN CLEMENTE ISLAND GOAT:
A critically endangered breed.
We are honored to be stewards of the rare San Clemente Island Goat, a critically endangered breed from off the cost of California. The San Clemente Island Goat was discovered on San Clemente Island, though their origins are not completely certain. They have since been removed from the island and are maintained by a small number of passionate breeders around the country. This special breed is a smaller, more deer-like breed with a quiet temperament and beautiful colors. While they are like the Mustang of the goat world, they produce excellent milk with high butterfat content. Their fiber is now now being studied for cashmere quality. Our goats help us maintain the property through “goatscaping.” While they have horns, they are very diligent and sweet-tempered. The bucks famously have large, twisting horns, a gentle disposition, and a much less stinky odor than other breeds. Our flock consists of several different bloodlines, including Rivetti, New Hampshire, and Ahrensberg. We hope to explore some of their different purposes, such as milk and cashmere production. We expect to have kids available in early 2023!
Our Poultry:
Geese, Ducks, chickens, and more.
Our poultry program is currently on hold until 2023 while we establish our new facilities in Black Mountain. However, we hope to reinstate our poultry flocks with critically endangered breeds and other beautiful birds to help with pest management and to provide farm-fresh eggs.