ASPERS, Pa. — Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding honored the Wenk family’s Three Springs Fruit Farm, which has been in their family for 100 years, as a Pennsylvania Century Farm. He praised the Wenks for their efforts to diversify as they seek to capitalize on shifting consumer demands for new products and generate new sources of revenue that have not only sustained the operation for a century, but positioned it for future prosperity.
“Pennsylvania leads the nation in land permanently preserved for agricultural production, and the Wenk family stands as a model of preserving not only land and resources, but tradition,” said Sec. Redding. “What’s more, they effectively stay rooted in family farming while diversifying what they produce, adopting progressive, sustainable management practices, keeping abreast of science and innovating to respond to consumer trends.”
Three Springs Fruit Farm in Adams County was founded in 1901 and one of four preserved farms owned by the family. It is a seventh-generation family farm growing fresh tree fruit, berries, tomatoes and vegetables. The farm, first preserved more than 20 years ago, demonstrates a commitment to progressive, sustainable growing practices and land management in Pennsylvania.
The overwhelming majority of Three Springs Fruit Farm’s farmed acreage is preserved farmland. Adams County is home to 170 preserved farms and more than 22,000 preserved acres of farmland.
There are 2,343 farms across the state recognized through Pennsylvania’s Century and Bicentennial Farm Program. This includes 2,160 Century Farms and 183 Bicentennial Farms.
To be eligible for the program, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 consecutive years. A family member must live on the farm on a permanent basis, and the farm must include at least 10 acres of the original holding or gross more than $1,000 annually from the sale of farm products. The Bicentennial Farm Program follows the same guidelines but requires 200 consecutive years of ownership.
The history of each farm is filed in the archives of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Each farm is presented with a sign to display for passersby to recognize their farm as part of the program.
For more information on Pennsylvania Century and Bicentennial Farms, or for an application, visit agriculture.pa.gov and search Century Farm or Bicentennial Farm.
— Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture