About this case study

10 years ago, Ethan Strickler looked at the marginal hay ground on his family’s farm in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, and envisioned a future that was both more ecologically diverse and more productive than it currently was. Today, Swallowtail Forest Farm has transformed into a thriving, diversified orchard, with chestnut trees as an economic engine positioned to significantly shift the financials of this marginal ground. In the process, Swallowtail has become a training ground for the next generation of tree crop farmers in Pennsylvania and a model for what’s possible.

This case study was developed with support from the Richard King Mellon Foundation.