Scott Farm Orchard

Scott Farm is a 571 acre property that has been a working farm since 1791. The farm itself is something of an heirloom, settled in 1791 by Rufus Scott. Ownership then passed to the Holbrook family who expanded and diversified the farm. The orchards were planted in 1911 and soon became the main focus of the farm. In 1995, Fred Holbrook gifted the Scott Farm to The Landmark Trust USA, a non-profit whose mission is historic preservation. They grow over 130 varieties of heirloom apples and an array of different pears, plums, peaches, cherries, all sorts of berries and other fruit. They are Certified EcoApple® and a Certified B Corp.

Ezekiel Goodband, an internationally renowned pomologist, managed the orchards from 2001-2019. In the first years of Zeke’s tenure, he cut off the tops of thousands of McIntosh trees and grafted on twig sized scions of heirloom apple varieties.  Under his direction, the orchard evolved from one of conventional management and cultivar selection to an ecologically managed heirloom apple oasis that continues today.

Each year, the day after they close their Farm Market at Thanksgiving, they begin pruning their 6,000 trees by hand. During the bloom they plant new trees and then nurture their crop through summer heat and storms. They start the apple harvest in August and work tree by tree through 120 varieties. The fruit is hand-picked and hand-packed onsite under the expert guidance of our Jamaican guest workers as well as local employees; many of whom have worked in the orchards for over 20 years. Many Vermont cideries use their apples to make unique and interesting hard ciders. All of these efforts are powered by 165 solar panels.