Lindsay Allen’s Case for Agroforestry
Across the Northeast, women and nonbinary farmers are leading the way in adopting practices that build resilience, starting with the soil. AFT staff worked with local writer Jacquelyn Voghel to capture the stories of women and non-binary farmers in Massachusetts that highlight their relationships with soil health, stewardship and conservation. In the face of mounting challenges, their stories show why investing in equitable, soil-centered conservation programs is essential to the future of farming. Women and nonbinary farmers lead with care, creativity, and resilience—protecting both the land and the communities that depend on it.
Learn more about the project: Stories of Women and Nonbinary Farmers Leading the Way in Conservation in New England
The profiles were made possible through funding from the Massachusetts Humanities Council, NRCS Massachusetts, and an anonymous donor.
Ten years ago, it seemed to Lindsay Allen that the only way to farm involved a lot of tillage.
“Agroforestry wasn't on my radar as a word or a concept at all,” Lindsay recalled. Unlike much of conventional agriculture, agroforestry integrates trees and shrubs into crop and livestock farming systems to maximize environmental, economic, and social benefits.
Now, this once-unfamiliar term has become a cornerstone of Lindsay’s farming operation and values at Fern Hill Farm in Buckland, Massachusetts, an agroforestry-based operation currently in its fourth growing season.
Lindsay’s former lack of familiarity with the practice isn’t uncommon: Though farmers have made strides with conservation methods like no-till farming in recent years, just 1.5% of farms nationwide reported having at least one agroforestry operation as of 2017, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. For Lindsay, the road to adopting this practice took her around the world and involved numerous vital mentorships
She began her career as an intern on an organic farm—a common entry point for farmers who weren’t born into it. Over time, she farmed in Tanzania, Panama, and California, learning from systems across the globe.
Just before starting Fern Hill Farm, she worked in a very different setting: a 2,658-square-foot rooftop farm on top of Boston Medical Center, while studying agroforestry in graduate school.
From Rooftop to Rural
Though tiny compared to her current farm, the rooftop taught Lindsay lasting lessons, especially when it comes to relying on hands as a primary farming tool.
“Rooftop farming, with such a small space, prepped me for being efficient and fast with my hands and my body,” Lindsay said — a skill that comes with essential sustainability benefits.
“I definitely think I carried with me that kind of ability or lens of trying to be really efficient, even though I have (about 14 acres) of space [at Fern Hill],” she continued. “We could reduce our footprint but still have kind of the same kind of output or yields,” as farmers reckon with climate change.
Lindsay knows this environmental crisis well—it’s what drove her to move across the continent, from Maricopa, California, to Massachusetts.
“As farmers, we are at the whim of the environment,” Lindsay said, “and I didn’t want to continue to farm in a place that is either on fire or flooding.”
In Boston, rooftop farming showed what’s possible in urban spaces, but she missed working in real soil.
Shared Dreams
At the same time, Lindsay and her mother shared a dream of buying land together, which would allow Lindsay to continue her farming business full-time while also supporting the family’s aging and future generations. After a seven-month search in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, they found and purchased their current land in Buckland.
Now, Lindsay farms with her husband, child, and mother, alongside her sister, sister-in-law, and their child. The farm’s community-centered design includes neighbors, customers, students, and supporters.
Still, Lindsay wanted more security for the farm, especially in light of climate concerns. That sparked a deeper dive into agroforestry.
“My desire to go into agroforestry was mostly fueled by wanting to come up with different solutions and approaches to farming in our current climate crisis,” Lindsay said. “I felt like what I was seeing in the agroforestry world were some of the most viable solutions.”
Fern Hill Farm now uses regenerative practices that build soil health and resilience. It’s a no-till operation, where farmers literally have their hands in the dirt. But the agroforestry methods provide a distinct edge.
Lindsay sees the trees and perennials as long-term investments. If annual crops fail, these plants offer a buffer.
“One of the biggest appeals for me with agroforestry is that diversification of income streams and diversification of what’s happening in the ecosystem,” Lindsay said, which “brings me stability as a farmer both in the immediate and in the long term.”
That became clear when floods covered part of the farm with two to three feet of water. The trees held strong.
“Especially where I had cover crops in around the trees, the soil was not moving or washing off our farm,” she said. “If I had had that same field planted as all vegetables, I have a feeling most of that soil would have just been washed away.”
The Living Soil
Lindsay credits her mentors, especially fellow women farmers, for shaping her path.
“I've had some great male mentors in the permaculture world as well, and in farming and in agroforestry,” she said. “But I do feel like I've resonated the most with the female farmers... I think it’s like that for most people who have farmed with female farmers.”
From alley cropping and nitrogen-fixing trees in California to permaculture design in Kenya, Lindsay’s practices reflect her global learning. One phrase from a Kenyan farmer stuck with her: “Soil is the living thing. Dirt is under your fingernails.”
Now, Lindsay hopes to continue this tradition of passing on knowledge.
“In terms of scalability, [agroforestry] could be done on an acre, or it could be done on hundreds or thousands of acres,” she said. “And that really intrigued me, the versatility of how agroforestry could be applied.”
For more information about Fern Hill Farm, please visit www.fernhillfarmma.com or on Instagram @fernhillfarm.ma
