About Dancing Bear Farm
Dancing Bear Farm is a working farm in Claremont, New Hampshire.
We grow fruit and vegetables, make maple syrup, raise pigs, chickens, and Thanksgiving turkeys, cultivate shiitake mushrooms, and coexist, mostly peacefully, with a small herd of goats.
But we’re more than just a farm! We’re also a place to learn and connect.
Our summer camps and vacation camps, after school classes, toddler programs and more provide a place for Upper Valley kids to really connect with each other and with nature through hands-on learning, real farm chores, and fun activities that foster a sense of belonging and a lifelong appreciation for nature, food, and community.
How We Farm
Our farming systems are rooted in the following goals:
Increasing food security for ourselves and our community
Giving back more to the land than we take
Establishing systems to demonstrate that it is possible to meet each above goal without detracting from the other.
We practice Silvopasture, which is the intentional integration of livestock, pasture, and trees resulting in a healthier and more productive system overall.
At Dancing Bear Farm we are adding trees to our pastures—though silvopasture can also refer to integrating livestock into an existing forest.
The trees we are planting provide shade and food for livestock as well as fruit and nuts for us. Some of our species include Mulberry (berries, edible leaves), Hazelnut and Chestnut (nuts), and Serviceberry and Aronia (berries).
Our animals will be moved to a fresh section of pasture each day, so that they can graze and forage alongside the tree alleys. The trees provide the animals with shade and the animals provide the trees with fertilization.
