Vermont cows need a comfy, cozy spot in the winter and our 60 x 120′ Solar Barn is the ultimate in accommodations. Inside this spacious hoop barn under an ultra-high roof that filters in natural light and provides maximum air flow, our cows roam freely on a soft bed of hay, sawdust, bark and manure.  The bedded pack keeps them toasty warm as they nap, nuzzle, and dine on summer cuttings of hay from mid-October to mid-May. Bovines naturally gravitate toward snuggling up and bedding down together around a bale of bedding hay- a makeshift pillow/bean bag they get to enjoy before we spread it out to cover their manure.

Fun Fact: Cows’ favorite temperature range is 30°-70° F

A Solar Barn is also called a Pack Barn. In summer it can act as a sanctuary from the heat and sun and a place for cows to eat hay before milking time or when pastures need more rest. As fall approaches, we build up a base layer of wood chips and bark on the floor before adding hay. When the cows come in full-time for the winter, we add more layers of bark, sawdust and hay daily, building “the pack” up higher and higher. The cows’ urine and manure combine with the natural materials underneath, sending heat upwards as the blend begins to compost in-place.

Our herd of Jersey cows always has access to outside too – and these Vermont girls really do enjoy their times frolicking in the snow and dozing in the winter sun!

Each spring, we shovel out the Solar Barn and arrange the bed-pack into long windrows of compost that continue to age and mellow throughout the season. With a close eye on the weather and the arrival of our first frost, we load up our dump truck and transport this high-fertility compost to our satellite hay fields and pastures to be spread over the earth.

Timing is everything here, as the compost is ideally applied while the ground is still warm enough to accept a shot of biological love before winter arrives. We want the extra nutrition to be ready for feeding worms, fungi, microbes and plant roots in early spring.

This system is the secret to our healthy pasture grasses, healthy cows, and delicious tasting yogurt.

And it all starts by giving our cows a pleasant and relaxing place to spend the winter. As our friend and fellow dairy farmer Guy Choiniere told his wife after visiting our solar barn for the first time “Today, I saw cows resting on clouds!” Now he has a solar barn of his very own.