PETERSHAM — Residents are invited to attend a meeting this Sunday to discuss food security and “brainstorm potential ideas of how to develop and use the Rice’s Roots Farm on East Street for some form of community farming,” according to a release about the event.

The meeting will take place on Nov. 5 at 4 p.m. at Petersham Town Hall.

Larry Buell, one of the organizers of the event, said that “now that this farm of 228 acres has come on the market, I’m working to turn it into some form of community-supported agriculture.”

Buell added that a private party could buy the land, but due to a conservation restriction—put in place by Mt. Grace Land Conservation Trust and East Quabbin Land Trust—development would be limited to one house, an in-law apartment and growing food. Buell said said that because the farm is protected agricultural land, neither of those land trusts can assist in the purchase, due to ongoing efforts to preserve and protect other properties in the region.

“Someone could buy it,” said Buell, “put a ‘McMansion’ on it, raise Morgan horses and golden retrievers and call the operation a farm. But we need to grow good food.”

The farm, according to Buell, dates back to circa 1760, making it one of the oldest farms in Petersham. The land is not currently being used.

“The intention of our citizens groups is to explore forms of cooperative land ownership, business management, and food growing centered on the Rice’s Roots property,” the release states. “The 37 acres of open land and 191 acres of managed forest are presently held in strict local Conservation Restrictions (CR) to assure agricultural use, nature conservation and limited development. Our local group…is committed to following all the requirements of those restrictions.”

Potential future uses

Several local farmers who would like to use the property are hoping it could be purchased by a nonprofit corporation, which could provide 99-year ground leases to those who want to farm the land, said Buell.

One local farmer interested in utilizing Rice Root Farm is Andre Pierre. The release quotes Pierre as saying, “I believe in the importance of sustainable community agriculture. My interest and intention is to grow and distribute healthy local food to our community and our region via at the Friday Market and through direct sales to families, co-ops and businesses.”

Buell said he has received pledges totaling nearly $200,000. The purchase price of the land is $500,000.

“Originally, the farm went on the market in April 2022 for $850,000 and it did not get much interest. So, I’ve been working for two years to make that happen,” he said.

A potential auxiliary use is for educational programs. Buell is the founder of the University of the Wild in Petersham, which has a program to offer credits through UMass and the Learning to Learn University for farmers of any age to learn new techniques. He added that modern farming has three components, one of which is climate-smart agriculture.

“Even in Petersham and Athol and Orange, we are now being affected,” Buell said. “We used to have our first frost around the 16th of September; we haven’t really had a frost until (Monday night). With droughts and floods, we’re really into the climate mode. So, the first thing is climate-smart agriculture.”

Buell said food security is another local agricultural issue that needs to be addressed, adding that most of the food consumed in Petersham’s approximately 450 homes originates in the San Joaquin Valley of California.

“I study politics and the environment enough to know that could come to an end,” he said. “So, we’re not just doing this for next year, we’re talking about the long term.”

The third component, said Buell, is education, particularly on what defines ‘good food.’

“Obesity in our nation is through the roof,” he said. “We have to teach people how to live healthier and live locally.”

For more information, contact Larry Buell at Larry@UofWild.org, or call 978-855-1420.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.