About Us..

 Pete and Brenda Cashel have owned and operated Terrapin Hill Farm since 1985. The 350-acre farm is located west of Harrodsburg, Kentucky, along the Chaplin river. Fertile river-bottom fields, rolling hills in pasture, hardwood and cedar woods, numerous streams, a mile of river and a 1-acre pond combine earth, water and sky to create a beautiful farm setting. 

Pete grew up in various places in Pennsylania, and Brenda is a native of Vermont. Neither of us are from farming families, but when we met we decided to create a business and lifestyle on the farm and since then we can't think of anything else we'd rather do. Now we have our own "farming family" with our three children, Kelby, Deanna and Jonah.

Since 1995, the primary business of Terrapin Hill Farm has been the production of sustainably grown produce and plants and pastured poultry, all sold locally in the central Kentucky area. Our simple philosophy about farming is that we are stewards of the land; in order to reap the fruits of the land we must care for it as best as we know how. We follow the guiding principles of organic farming: chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides are never used on the farm; sustainable agriculture methods such as composting, crop rotation, and soil fertility management are used wherever possible; an effort is made to work with the balance of Nature, rather than to control it. We choose not to be "certified" organic; since we market directly to our customers we can assure them of our high standards, and we encourage visits to our farm to see our farming practices. 

We are also a certified tree farm, and have participated in several cost-share programs through the state of Kentucky to plant hardwood trees and native grasses.

In 2005 we were awarded a Competitive Agri-tourism Award from Kentucky's Agricultural Development Board. This enabled us to make improvements to the farm and to develop the Terrapin Hill Farm Retreat Center. Through the Retreat Center, people can learn firsthand about the benefits of local food and how local food systems can help protect our farmland for future generations. We encourage visitors to our farm for any of our events, or even for a private farm tour. We believe that when people get out to enjoy the natural beauty of the land and see where their food comes from, they can begin to discover their own connection to the land.