In the glassed-in porch of the 1850’s farmhouse at Greenfield Berry Farm is a pen filled with fuzzy yellow goslings.  They scurry back and forth, inquisitively eyeing anything that moves.  They’re Chinese White geese, also known as Poor Man’s Swan, and when they grow up, they’ll be in charge of weed control in the farm’s strawberry patch.  Chinese geese are active foragers who eat grasses and weeds (but not broad-leaved strawberry plants), and they’re quite alert--and vocal--so they make good “watch birds,” too. 

     The geese are an addition to farmer Daniel Greenfield’s system for raising berries and vegetables organically.  Using geese instead of herbicides is just one facet of the farmer’s commitment to ecological principles.  “We have to work a little harder and in different ways here,” Greenfield explains, “ but it’s worth it.”  Greenfield’s 20-acre spread is a Certified Naturally Grown farm.   It is certified by a grass-roots program for small-scale farmers who farm sustainably using natural methods and sell directly to their communities. 

     The farm is located in the Cuyahoga National Park and is a part of an innovative effort to rehabilitate historic farms within the park’s 33,000 acres of protected land.  The park offers farmers a long-term lease, and the Countryside Conservancy, a non-profit organization, provides education and support, including the Countryside Farmers’ Markets, which are held within the park.  The land now occupied by Greenfield Berry Farm was once part of a large dairy farm and was later owned by a judge who built his own airstrip there and flew in and out on his private plane.

     The airstrip is gone now, and the land is lined with rows of seedlings and pruned berry bushes pushing up bright green new growth.  In a hoop house (a solar-powered greenhouse) near the white farmhouse are trays of young plants: spring greens, chard, broccoli, cabbage, and leeks.  “We grow nearly any garden vegetable you can think of,” Greenfield notes.  He also grows several varieties of  garlic, makes hickory syrup (it has a sweet, earthy, smoky flavor and can be used like maple syrup), and harvests honey from his bee hives.  Greenfield sells his crops at the Countryside Farmers’ Market, offers a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture program), and sometimes supplies local chefs and restaurants.

     Greenfield Berry Farm’s main focus, of course, is berries: strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries, which customers come to the farm and pick themselves.  If you love hand-picking the best succulent berries, this is the place for you.  Greenfield is putting in 3,000 additional strawberry plants this year, and the season begins in early June.  Most are Earliglow strawberries, a variety known for its exceptional flavor.  Greenfield says he’s partial to them in a strawberry shortcake, but “you can’t beat a strawberry picked right off the plant.”

     In July, Greenfield’s 800 blueberry bushes will be studded with ripe berries. These are followed by fall-bearing raspberries that are available from late August usually through October.  Some years, according to Greenfield, the canes produce raspberries past Halloween. When you visit the farm to pick berries, they’ll provide the containers and some picking tips.  For instance, Greenfield explains, “You need to look harder, look closer for strawberries, sometimes the best ones are underneath the foliage.” 

     It’s always  a good idea to call before visiting the farm, to check on hours and what’s in season.  There will be a recorded message on the farm’s phone (330-657-2924) with all that information. The farm is located at 2485 Major Road in Peninsula, and you can find a map at their web site: www.greenfieldberryfarm.com.   (Greenfield admits that some parts of the web site are a little out of date--strawberries are described there as a future project, but there are plenty now.) 

     On my tour of Greenfield Berry Farm, I also got to see the large, airy barn, a bee hive, and Greenfield’s two antique tractors, a 1947 Allis Chalmers and a 1957 Ford.  He even started up the Allis Chalmers, a miracle of good, basic mechanics.  Greenfield is gradually learning to make the tractor repairs himself, one of the ordinary things this farmer does at his extraordinary farm.  “What we’re producing here is special,” Greenfield says. “We’re your local farmer.”  Come June, I’ll be going back to the farm to pick some berries, and I want to see how those geese are doing.