Dickinson College Farm's Silvopasture

Farmers in the Northeast are exploring options to adapt to the changing climate.

Higher average temperatures and more intense rains impact farms and can take a toll on livestock. Intensive rotational grazing, silvopasture, and cow houses are practices that can increase resiliency to the changing climate. Other practices include: hub ponds, integrated pest management, healthy soils, and riparian forest buffers.

Dickinson College is a private liberal arts college in Carlisle, PA. Their farm provides food for the college campus and local community while creating a distinctive hands-on learning experience for students. The college has a Climate Action Plan with a goal to achieve carbon neutrality by reducing and offsetting carbon emissions. To help reach that goal, the farm uses several methods to mitigate or adapt to changes in the climate.  This tour explores the silvopasture systems and adaptive management practices at Dickinson College Farm. Silvopasture systems combine the management of trees, livestock, and forage on the same piece of land. These practices help with climate change mitigation while also increasing the resiliency of the farm to extreme weather and climate change risks. By increasing species diversity, the farm system can better adapt to change. Silvopasture also enhances the existing cattle operation and supports the whole farm system. Through this tour, you can learn more about integrating plant and animal production to create a more sustainable and resilient production system.

Available resources from this tour: