Sylvester Manor shares 1st bounty with community
Island's ‘rural character' reinvented as original homestead goes organic
2 comments below
Shelter Island's agricultural heritage is making a comeback at the place it all started — Sylvester Manor.
The first harvest of organic vegetables grown in Windmill Field along Manwaring Road was picked up Saturday by shareholders as a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program at the Island's original colonial plantation had a successful take-off. Mustard greens, bok choy lettuce, snap peas, garlic scapes, parsley, spinach and five kinds of kale were “delivered fresh and on time,” Town Supervisor Jim Dougherty announced at Tuesday's Town Board work session. He described the return of viable agriculture to the Island as “very significant.”
Supervisor Dougherty added that Suffolk County, which along with the Town of Shelter Island is being asked to purchase development rights for much of the 243-acre property, is “very excited about the Sylvester Manor doings.” As parts of the property return to being “bona fide agricultural lands,” he added, financial support will become available.
Overseeing the organic farm is Bennett Konesni, who described himself as a farmer and musician with a passion for food. He is also the 15th generation in his family to live at the manor, the great nephew of the late Andrew Fiske.
In Town Hall, Mr. Konesni displayed photographs of the bounty collected for the first produce pick-up at Sylvester Manor, which has had “a long history of food production.”
“There was a time when my ancestors were standing on this ground with their first crop,” he said. The agricultural history of the manor spans centuries, ranging from Native American crops to food sent to support Sylvester family interests in Barbados to an era of selling farm products to New York and cities on the other side of Long Island Sound.
“This amazing history of food” includes the achievements of Mr. Konesni's great-great grandfather Eben Norton Horsford, who developed baking powder and other cooking chemicals. The circa-1810 windmill, relocated to the property in 1926, also played a role by grinding wheat into flour for Islanders and others.
Mr. Konesni hopes that grant money will help fund a $100,000 to $300,000 restoration of the mill. A trial plot of wheat has already been planted on the farm.
Other plans for the future include:
• Plowing and planting the former farmland on the back 22 acres along Manhanset Road.
• Using goats to remove bittersweet in lightly wooded areas to create more agricultural land.
• Adding eggs to CSA shares as the 65 chickens on the farm start laying in the weeks ahead.
• Irrigating with a small well (less than 45 gallons per minute) using dryland water conservation techniques. Mr. Konesni noted that with the recent rains, “so far this year we haven't had to irrigate.”
• Creating roughly 30 acres of pasture for livestock. “I'm a meat lover,” he said, adding, “Peder Larsen is trying to get me to buy some of his cows.” He hopes to make cheese and re-introduce the European tradition of pasturing pigs in forested areas.
• Dedicating a total of 80 acres to sustainable agriculture.
In addition to government partners in development rights preservation, which is also being assisted by the Peconic Land Trust, Mr. Konesni thanked other groups and individuals. The Garden Club of Shelter Island is leading an effort to maintain and restore the formal garden on the manor grounds. The Shelter Island Historical Society will be holding its One Enchanted Evening gala at the manor. Organic farming groups have also assisted and Mr. Konesni is reaping the rewards of “a lot of outreach and a lot of collaboration,” he said.
He also thanked former Supervisor Al Kilb for donating his plow and offering advice and stories about the property. According to Mr. Konesni, Mr. Kilb has advocated for the Sylvester Manor farm to county officials, calling the effort “one of the last great chances to get farming going on Shelter Island.”
Shares in the Sylvester Manor CSA were sold quickly last year at $500 to $800 each for 25 weeks of deliveries; the costs vary depending on the types of products purchased (which can include fresh bread and eggs).
“I hope to be selling you guys some food in the very near future,” Mr. Konesni said, eventually at a farm stand open to all. “If you see us in the fields, give us a honk.”
“This is very, very exciting for all of us,” Mr. Dougherty said. “You have the town's enthusiastic support.”
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2 comments found
additional shares : 7/9/2009
My husband and I live, year round , on Shelter Island, not far from Sylvester Manor. We would love to become shareholders and are curious to find out when and if additional shares will be available for sale. Keep up the great work! Leslie and Jed Feldman
"Organic" : 6/18/2009
Com'on....If you're going to run an organic farm more power to you, but get that pesticide spewing 4 Poster off the land! Don't start out being a hypocrite!
