Our Story
Locust Hollow is currently managed by Julia Inslee, whose parents (in 1977) purchased a rundown Colonial stone farmhouse, a couple of collapsing barns, and several barren acres of land. Over the next couple of decades they transformed the property; replacing windows & doors, adding a porch & greenhouse, replacing floors, rebuilding an addition, resurrecting the barn, planting gardens & trees, and adding livestock to the landscape. Their original intention was to have a farmstead, be as self-sustanable as possible, produce their own food, and be off the grid (for a number of years the electricity was all supplied by a windmill).
Around 2010, Julia decided to turn the old farmstead into a farm business. An interest in dairy sheep sprang from visits to Italy, so the existing herd of Coriedales & Cheviots began to shift to East Friesians. Slowly, the infrastructure for a dairy took shape: a milking parlor & a cheese kitchen were constructed; licenses acquired & the art of cheesemaking learned.
Julia (and her mother Frances) are pleased to welcome you to the farm, to meet the animals, learn about fiber and cheese, and enjoy this little piece of Chester County farming history.
Animal wellfare
We respect the lives and service that our animals give to us, striving to always make them comfortable and content. All animals have access to shelter and sanitary living areas. We follow the natural seasonal cycle of the sheep: they breed Sept-Oct, lamb in Feb.-March, and lactate Feb-Sept. Lambs are kept with ewes for 6-8 weeks, at which point they are ready to be weaned. When ewes are ready to retire, they are given away to live out their lives as lawn mowers.
Sustainability
We continuously attempt improvements towards environmental health: planting of trees, shrubs and flowers to provide food for birds and insects, as well as shade, and soil cover; rotational grazing; collection of rain water for various uses; composting; whey & food waste fed to animals; and manure spread as soil amendment.
​
We will continue to try new ideas to reduce our footprint and improve the land we work with.
Diet & Health
All of our animals (ruminants and poultry) are raised outdoors with room to roam, forage and graze. Sheep are raised on a mostly hay (conventionally grown) and grass diet, supplemented with spent grain from a local brewery and feed (both organic and conventional). Poultry are raised on organic feed and some spent brewery grain. Antibiotics are only used in rare cases of serious infection. In those instances, withdrawal times are strictly adhered.
packaging
We are committed to reducing waste and the use of plastic. Over 50% of the packaging used for our dairy products is now either biodegradable or compostable. The majority of our bags are now made with recycled paper. We also use returnable glass jars when possible.