Grace Farm Newport (Grace) is located on 16 acres of pasture and woodlands in Newport, NH.  Grace is a noncommercial farm created to provide fresh fruit and vegetables to local nutritional programs.  Grace practices Integrated Pest Management or using the least amounts of chemicals, at the right time for the shortest duration and maximum impact.  Soil and pollinator health are essential concerns for Grace and when possible organic materials are used.  

Apples:

William's Pride, Liberty, Freedom, Enterprise, Dayton, Harrison, Cortland, Sweet 16, GoldRush, CrimsonCrisp, RubyRush, Pixie Crunch, Scarlet O'Hara, Wolf River, Golden Delicious, Winecrisp, Pristine, Frostbite,  McIntosh, RedFree, Northern Spy, Spartan, Zestar, and Roxbury Russet.

Stone fruits:

Peaches (Gloria, Galactica, and Saturn), Nectarines, Apricots

Grapes

Berries:

Blueberries, cherries, raspberries, blackberries, elderberries, strawberries and lingonberries 

More information on Good News Gardens can be found at https://www.episcopalchurch.org/good-news-gardens/ .

The mission of the Good News Gardens movement, as led by The Episcopal Church, is to partner with people in transformational agrarian ministry that feeds body, mind, and spirit. Good News Gardens is a church-wide movement of individuals, congregations, schools, colleges, seminaries, monasteries, camps, and conference centers involved in a variety of food and creation care ministries – gardening, farming, beekeeping, composting, gleaning, feeding, food justice advocacy. The list goes on and on. Collectively, Good News Gardens share their abundance, their prayers, and the Way of Love in their communities and beyond.  

 Grace Farm is part of the Good News Gardens movement of the Episcopal Church and was featured in the movement's April 2024 Newsletter.

Good News Gardens April 2024

Locally Grown Faith

Our monthly story-sharing campaign, called Locally Grown Faith, uplifts examples of transformational agrarian ministry that feeds body, mind, and spirit. This month we interviewed Michael Nickey of Grace Farm in Newport, New Hampshire.

Q: Tell us about your agricultural ministry.

Grace Farm was started approximately five years ago in Newport, New Hampshire. The   farm’s mission statement and inspiration for its name is 1 Peter 4:10: “Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received.”  The land was mostly open pasture when work began. Today, Grace Farm has approximately 125 fruit trees and an assortment of berry bushes. The first planting of fruit trees is just now reaching maturity. In the interim, potatoes, carrots, and onions were grown last season. The produce is donated to a local gleaning program that will eventually harvest and distribute the apples.  Our operation is all volunteer and free to recipients. 

Q: Where or how do you meet God in this ministry?

I spend much of my free time planning, preparing, or working on the farm. Time is precious because it is so limited. Many of the distractions of modern life, such as social media, television, and movies, receive much less of my attention now. With fewer distractions and more focus, I have found that the “still small voice” has gotten clearer and harder to ignore.

Q: How is your spiritual life changed or challenged by this work?

For many years I was heavily involved in church activities. Somewhere along the way, I lost a sense of connection and purpose. I stopped doing church activities outside of worship and focused on my career. Some personal challenges caused me to reevaluate things. I began to ask God for direction on what a former pastor would refer to as my “call to be.” I thought I would sense a career change. Growing food as a volunteer was the unexpected answer, and it has continued to evolve from there. Once again, my spiritual life has a clear sense of purpose and connection to God, although five years later it is still unsettling to “let go and let God”.

Gardening is filled with surprises, and not all of them are happy ones.

Q: What is one practical piece of advice that you have?

Growing fruit trees involves a lot of preplanning, selection, and ongoing maintenance. Extension services are free and offer a wealth of information to help you.

Q: Anything else you want to share with our community?

It doesn’t matter if you have 8 acres or two flowerpots. God may call us all to this work, but record-breaking rainy summers, late freezes that kill fruit blossoms, and armies of ravenous creatures still abound. Do not be afraid to start, fail, and start again.