What is the value in living a life if the life is not truly lived to the fullest? How do we find purpose and fulfillment? What can we do that can make an impact on the world, or at least a little portion of it? Why did we choose a path that little think to venture down? How can we give back to the Earth for all She provides and protect Her for the future?
The questions we ask ourselves
The Farm Story
The farm and land on Northford Road in Wallingford, Connecticut has been in the Cooke family since the early 1700's. Up until the 1990's it operated as a dairy farm and at its peak operated over 1000 acres of land and 400 head of Holstein milkers, dry cows, heifers, calves, and one or two bulls. These days the farm has retained just over 100 acres comprised of hayfields, woodlots, and structures.
Muddy Roots Farm was established in February 2016 and leases from the Cooke family 7-8 acres of pasture and woodland, and 2 barn areas for animal production and processing. The poultry operation is run on 3-4 acres of pasture and the pigs on 2-3 acres of a mix of pasture and forest. The vegetable enterprise currently consists of just over one acre of high tunnel growing and outdoor production, combined. All crops are free of genetic engineering and synthetics and grown using no-till methods to protect and enrich the soil.
Meet Your Farmers
CHRIS WELLINGTON
A Veteran of the United States Marine Corps, Chris grew up playing in 400 acres of town-owned land in Salem, CT. He was up at 4am milking cows for a local dairy farmer after graduating High School. After leaving the Corps in 2007, Chris landscaped before heading to Maine in 2008 to work in Ski Patrol at Sunday River. He returned in the Spring and apprenticed as a farrier (horseshoer) before migrating into stone masonry. In 2010-2011 he worked as a private security contractor in Baghdad and finally ended up back home to attend school.
His interest in farming began in 2015 as his growing interest and immersion in the benefits of homegrown food expanded along with the desire to minimize his carbon footprint.
Chris is the handyman of the farm and it shows in the careful construction of the "chicken tractors" and reconstruction of the brood-house and the Poultry Processing room. Chris attended many seminars and workshops for Veteran Farmers to expand his knowledge of all things farming and network with other like-minded folks.
Chris is in control of processing the poultry and heading the building and maintenance of infrastructure on the farm.
KIRSTEN MARRA
Kirsten grew up on the former Co-Ag/Cooke Farm, the land which Muddy Roots Farm currently leases. Her grandfather and great-great-grandfather were dairy farmers, but even with agriculture in her blood, it wasn't until post-college that she took an interest in farming after continuous visits with her Aunt in Vermont who practices self-sufficiency and neighborly bartering. This lifestyle was intriguing and she was awed with the amount of harvest that could come from a small area and the friendly neighbors who would trade raw milk or honey, for chicken and vegetables.
With this newfound interest in the self-sustainable lifestyle she began with a 12x20 vegetable plot in 2007 growing tomatoes, beans, cucumbers, and squash. Incentivized by the success of feeding her family, that plot expanded year after year. Trial and error was a good teacher and the internet had plenty of resources. As time went on, the interest in crops remained and a new interest came to light in the preservation of native species and learning to attract beneficial insects and animals to the garden to do their part in the management of pests, as well as utilizing natural control methods to combat disease, and also practicing soil regeneration by the use of natural resources.
Kirsten's focus is on crop production and poultry/livestock management. She handles most customer interactions and marketing of the farm products.