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Horticultural Farm III (HF3) is located about a mile from the George H. Cook Campus of Rutgers in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The 60-acre farm is used for hazelnut, vegetable (i.e., tomatoes, peppers), and small fruit trials. It consists of field plots for testing new plant varieties, greenhouses and barns. The farm was closed from 2018-2020 to make needed improvements, listed below:
- Removal of obsolete greenhouses and buildings
- Construction of a new barn
- Field reclamation which involved pH correction and cover crop planting
- Installation of over 5,500 feet of irrigation pipe
- Installation of electrical upgrades to increase energy efficiency and eliminate the need for diesel pumps
- Repair and installation of deer fencing
- Installation of a swale to better manage water flow on the farm and provide erosion control
- Purchase of new equipment, such as tractors and implements
Hort Farm 3 will re-open in Spring 2021. It will be an outstanding resource for faculty scientists in plant breeding and a unique location to deliver programs for the agricultural community.
NJAES administration will work with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service to install and demonstrate soil and water management programs on its farms, starting with HF3. Our goal is that these farms will be models for sustainable management of land and water resources.
Future plans include establishing a Hazelnut Center at Hort Farm 3–an educational post-harvest/crop processing demonstration center that will be a resource for growers from New Jersey and the Northeast. This facility will house a training center focused on hazelnut production and provide opportunities to work with growers to help them establish new crops based on the research efforts of NJAES faculty.
