LIVERMORE FALLS — Pasture Lane Farm Market is operated by an Amish community that has been fun to watch grow and is a wonderful place, according to customers.

Pasture Lane Farm Market, seen Friday, June 21, offers a wide variety of produce and other farm goods at the Amish market located at 2 Pasture Lane in Livermore Falls. Pam Harnden/Livermore Falls Advertiser

“You can’t beat that,” Christine Mitchell of Fayette said when told the price of her selections Friday afternoon, June 21. “It’s a wonderful place down here, wonderful people,” her husband Tom Mitchell added.

The market is located at 2 Pasture Lane at the intersection of Bog Road with state route 133 heading towards Wayne. A large porch along the front of the building is taken up by a variety of wooden chairs of natural or vibrant colors. Some are Adirondack style, others are rockers or suitable for two or three people. Nearby, picnic tables and storage buildings for sale are displayed.

Two draft horses are seen Friday afternoon, June 21, near Pasture Lane Farm Market located at 2 Pasture Lane in Livermore Falls. The horses are used with farm equipment at the farm operated by an Amish community. Pam Harnden/Livermore Falls Advertiser

Inside the market a display of wooden spoons is found on the left wall. A long counter along that side of the building features fresh eggs, selections of fudge, pastries, bags of popped corn and breads. Four glazed donuts more than fill a plastic enclosed 9″ paper plate while the reddish color of tomato bread draws the eye. Honey from Ridge View Farm in Unity lines a windowsill while a four tiered tower of Kountry Kitchen jams, pickles, sauces and other preserves made in Wales is a sight to behold. At the far end, rockers, benches and tables provide a spot for folks to take a break from shopping and socialize.

June Hoar of Jay on Friday afternoon, June 21, tries out a wooden rocking chair at Pasture Lane Farm Market of Route 133 in Livermore Falls. Pam Harnden/Livermore Falls Advertiser

“These are nice,” June Hoar of Jay said of the rocker she was sitting in. “You should try one.”

She was at the market with daughter, Sara Behr of Winthrop. “We were here this morning,” Behr said. “They were very busy. We drive by here so much. It was wonderful to see the buildings go up, them taking care of the fields. It’s been fun to watch. We are very happy they moved into the neighborhood.”

The center of the market is lined with two long counters. Strawberries and slicing cucumbers are found at the front, while radishes, beets, broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi and cabbage cover one side. Pickling cucumbers and new potatoes are found at the back end while kale, spinach, Swiss chard, bok choy and a variety of lettuces take up the other side.

The far wall features displays of homemade goat milk soap, candles, skin creams and pot holders. An open cooler displays pints of flavored milks while a nearby chest holds a variety of raw milk cheeses. A bargain table finds boxes of larger zucchini along with second quality slicing cucumbers, summer squashes and zucchinis.

Near the cash out area at right is a display of summer squashes and zucchinis.

Edward Kulp took time to speak with the Livermore Falls Advertiser about the market. “It is conducive to people,” he said. “It’s not the rush. It is out of the rat race, a little town place with chairs people can sit, spend time.”

July 21, 2023, was the first day the market was open, he noted. “When we opened up, this inside part was not done,” he stated. “We set tables up on the outside. We hadn’t done any advertising, we simply hung a sign up and the neighbors just came flocking in. The next day we said, “Hey, you know what? We’ll make some donuts and fried pies, see if we can’t bring in some more people.” We hung a little hand painted sign by the road. We never thought of it. But you know, we only made about 10% as many fried pies as we should have made. People took pictures of that sign with their Smartphones and it went on social media and we were swamped. We had no idea. That was amazing.”

Edward Kulp, a member of the Amish community is seen rearranging strawberries Friday afternoon, June 21, at Pasture Lane Farm Market at 2 Pasture Lane in Livermore Falls. Pam Harnden/Livermore Falls Advertiser

Kulp said the first Amish families moved to the farm in August 2022. “We are from all over the place,” he noted. “The original families who moved here had lived in other Maine communities and then we had families move in from Kentucky. Most are from somewhere else in Maine.”

The farm has Guernsey and Jersey cows that are milked twice a day. Those “more traditional breeds have something they call A2 milk which for people with sensitivities, the A2 makes it easier to digest,” Kulp said. “Not necessarily allergies but milk tolerances. Guernseys and Jerseys are better for that.”

Milk from the farm’s cows is taken to an Amish facility in Wales where the cheeses are made, Kulp said. All produce, including strawberries are grown on the farm, he stated.  “Everything sold comes from the Amish community,” he noted.

Organic practices are used on the farm which is not certified, he stated. A sign behind the check out area calls attention to the fact that bugs like the fruits and vegetables, may cause imperfections, he noted.

Many of the vegetables are raised in two large greenhouses. When asked about the use of other season extenders, Kulp said they are used. “Remay is one of our favorites,” he noted. An example concerns the insect pressure found with cole crops [broccoli,  cabbage and cauliflower], covering those with the lightweight fabric “definitely makes it a lot easier,” he stated.

Dairy goats and sheep are also raised on the farm, Kulp stated. Draft horses are used with farm equipment and standardbreds for the buggies, he noted. Some of those horses come from harness racing, others are raised, he said. Chickens and rabbits are kept, with guinea fowl the latest addition in an effort to control ticks, he said.

Kulp said sickle bar mowers, ground driven tedders and rakes are drawn by horses. The baler and square bale wrapper which squeezes each bale together and wraps it in plastic to make baleage for the sheep and cows do have engines, he noted.

At one time there were almost 100 people living on the farm, Kulp said. A few families moved out leaving about 70 or 80 with about 60 [some of them kids] working on the farm, he noted. “It is a good way to raise children,” he stated. “Fresh air, hard work makes them well adjusted.”

Customers are seen Friday afternoon, June 21, in the Pasture Lane Farm Market at 2 Pasture Lane in Livermore Falls. Pam Harnden/Livermore Falls Advertiser

Son Naphtali Kulp said he likes working with the farm animals.

“I like picking strawberries,” Lucretia Kulp said. “And eating them while picking them,” her dad said. She also likes doing the animal chores, it is pretty exciting when the babies are born, she added.