NOFA-NH is very fortunate to have Ken Koerber on our Board of Directors. Ken has a flower farm in Dunbarton and is dedicated to preserving open spaces.   

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Ken grew up in the Cincinnati suburbs, where his father had a backyard garden. Even as a boy, Ken was interested in learning gardening from his father.

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 “My father practiced fairly organic gardening using cow manure and grass clippings to build up the soil. I was the only child in our family who enjoyed gardening with him,” Ken recalls.

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As a teenager, Ken worked for the Cincinnati Parks Department. It was there he learned to identify a wide range of native plants and insects.

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“Later, when I was studying electrical engineering at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts, I convinced my landlady to put in a lawn and a small flower garden in her yard. Cambridge is where I met and eventually married my wife, Susan.”

“I had a friend who had a farm in Concord, New Hampshire,” Ken continues. “We visited often, and I liked the area. So we looked for land, and ended up buying a 147-acre farm in neighboring Dunbarton.  I started gardening and immediately began building up the soil. I’m pretty much self-taught, and I learned farming by doing it.”

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Ken worked for a technology company in Massachusetts until he was laid off, but he quickly landed another job with a tech company in nearby Merrimack NH. He worked there for another 35 years, working in his garden whenever possible.

“It took me a while to appreciate the size of the farm,” he adds, “but I kept expanding my garden.”

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After retirement, Ken began growing flowers. He enrolled in a master gardening program at UNH and started a flower business, Chanticleer Gardens, by putting a pushcart on the front lawn.

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“I soon discovered I liked growing but not business,” he says with a smile. “So. I hired a woman to do the floral arrangements, and she became my business partner. We planned what to grow every winter and developed some regular customers.“

“Now we grow wholesale zinnias and dahlias for Cobblestone Design in Concord. About a third of our business is through Cobblestone, a third from our stand, and third from pick-your-own. We also sell dried flowers and a few vegetables.”

Ken believes farming is a way of life.

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“You’re outside where you can smell the earth and feel the weather,” he explains. “It’s a way of life that’s bigger than you. It’s a long day of work cutting six cords of wood for heat or experiencing the joy of successfully growing a very fussy flower after several years of trying.”

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Ken also has a great sense of community.

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“Our property is adjacent to the elementary school. Students can use our property to learn about nature, conservation and farming. We encourage them to learn where their food comes from.”

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And he’s committed to organic farming.

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“Organic farming is the approach that maximizes the use of soil to produce the highest quality food. Organic farmers have to work twice as hard to be successful, but small organic farms are increasing.”

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 “The greatest challenge small organic farmers face is not going broke. There are many risks, and it’s hard to make ends meet. It’s amazing that so many people get into it when they can make more money elsewhere.”

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“Small farmers contribute to positive environmental changes by moving away from mechanical practices. NOFA-NH helps farmers and gardeners learn to use organic practices. People just have to be willing to pay more for organic produce.”

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Ken has also always been interested in music. He has spent the last five years learning to play the banjo.