Megan Kelley and the Kelley Family Homestead farmstand.
Photo credit: Chris Kelley
ENFIELD — The Kelley Family Homestead, a small family homestead on a third of an acre, sells a mixture of native plants, annual vegetable and herb seedlings, and perennial fruit and vegetable plants like berry bushes.
Owner Megan Kelley sells her products from home with a roadside stand right on Trevor Drive in Enfield. “We just started a couple of years ago,” Kelley said. “This is our third season and we’re getting bigger each year. I also signed up for a bunch of the farmers markets here in town for the rest of the season.”
Market Manager Christina Tetreault for the Enfield Farmers Market had been looking for local farmers to bring local fruits, vegetables and plants to the market for the two years she has had her position. She came across the Kelley Family Homestead through their Facebook page and invited them.
“Sunday, June 30, was their first week with us and I was very impressed,” said Tetreault. “Not only did they bring plants, but they educated me and the community about the type of plants. They had cards in front of each plant explaining all about them. I’m very glad they decided to join us and look forward to learning more from them.”
Kelley has always had an interest in gardening. She stated, “As I got older and had kids, I had a stronger interest in knowing where my food was coming from and making sure that we support the beneficial insects and pollinators that help provide our food. They’re a necessary part of the ecosystem.”
Kelley has a small property, but it is jam packed with a mixture of fruit plants and pollinator plants. On their property, the Kelley Family Homestead grows peaches, apples, pears, rhubarb, strawberries, blueberries, currants, plums, elderberries, hazelnuts, gooseberries, grapes, juneberries and sour cherries.
Kelley currently offers elderberries, grape starts and rhubarb on her stand and in the fall, will have strawberry and raspberry plants as well. She focuses on native plants that support a diverse range of pollinators and wildlife, not just bees, but butterflies, moths and birds.
Kelley tries to focus on flowering natives, as those are the easiest to slip into an existing garden to start adding natives to your property. She also offers herbs and medicinal plants on the farmstand. For example, in early spring, Kelley had mullein seedlings available on the stand, which has a diverse range of medicinal uses, and will offer dried Mullein leaves for tea, soon.
Late fall, she will have fresh and dehydrated elderberries available for home syrup making, and culinary herbs like red shiso and chamomile.
Kelley is hoping to continue growing the homestead and offer a wider range of native plants and perennial fruit crops.
She is starting to plan and do more fruit and nut trees, which take lots of time to grow before they can be sold.
Kelley is also planning for next year’s native plants. She has her seeds together and is ready for the fall.
“I try to put plants everywhere I can, and I really enjoy talking to people about different plants,” Kelley shared. “They’ll point to something and ask questions. I really enjoy being able to share knowledge. That’s one of my favorite things; giving them a good jumping off point and sharing plants.”
The Kelley Family Homestead is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
They will be attending the following Sunday markets at Enfield Farmers Market from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Enfield Town Green, 820 Enfield St.: July 14 and 28; Aug. 11 and 25; Sept. 1, 8, 22 and 29.
Follow the Kelley Family Homestead on Facebook for news and updates.
