James and Nella:

Ledgenear Farm is a hilltop farm with a homestead dating back to the 1850’s. Hardscrabble but beautiful, the farm has provided for multiple generations growing field crops, herding sheep, milking cows, and producing Maple Syrup. James Coe was born on the farm and grew up raising cows and making maple syrup. James met Nella in College – and after a 12 year stint operating a small architecture firm in Portland Oregon, they have moved back home with daughter Isabella and son Jude to pursue a sustainable agrarian future for the land. James and Nella are presently re-furbishing the farm ‘s old sugar house, managing the maple woods, and investing in new maple equipment. We look forward to growing our sugar bush and production capacity while we grow our regional and artisanal markets and outlets.

Ledgenear Farm:

Ledgenear Farm is approximately 250 acres of mixed Maple sugar woods, softwoods, hay fields and pasture. Currently in a time of transition, our dairy herd was dispersed in 2005 and we are in the process of re-inventing Ledgenear Farm for the future. We strive for economic and environmental sustainability and believe organic practices are key to both goals. An adjacent dairy farm is leasing our dairy barns and crop lands so the farm remains active and working and our land is well cared for. We currently tap approximately 1000 maple trees and will be expanding to as many as 3000 trees over the next few years. We have just purchased three Scottish Highlander heifers with a goal of offering grass fed organic beef in the future. We are talking about growing commercial and specialty hops, working on an apple orchard and Christmas trees….. check back and see how we grow!

Isabella and Jude and the Cows

 

Neighboring Farms

Luckily for us, there are many sugar makers in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont.  As we re-establish sugaring at Ledgenear Farm, we have many resources and much expertise to draw from.  Andersonville Maple is next door to us and owners Ted and Rebecca make award winning syrup and hold generations of knowledge that they generously share with us.  James’ brother Jesse is also a sugar maker (Green Mountain Maples) and we often collaborate with him by sharing labor, equipment, and new methods that we pick up.  There is almost nothing better than “talking shop” with fellow sugar makers!

As we grow our business, we have found that at times our market has outstripped Ledgenear’s supply.  To supplement, we at times purchase barrels of certified organic maple syrup from Andersonville Farm and Green Mountain Maples to fulfill our orders.  Similar to our own product, we heat, filter, grade, and taste test all syrup at the time of bottling to insure the best quality and flavor.