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AgriNature Center outlines 2026 farm plan, community shearing event and seeks capital improvements
Summary
Staff presented a detailed 2026 farm plan for the Larry P. Abraham AgriNature Center that includes orchard irrigation upgrades, an acequia‑only cropping trial, beehive moves, a secure sheep enclosure and community garden expansion; trustees and staff also highlighted an upcoming community event and legislative capital outlay of $2.5 million for the center and Anderson House.
The village's agricultural team presented a multi‑year plan for the Larry P. Abraham AgriNature Center on Tuesday that focuses on low‑staff, high‑impact projects, community programming, and leveraging recent capital funding to expand facilities and educational offerings.
"We are here to present our 2026 farm plan," Erin Callahan, agricultural program director, told the Board, summarizing an approach to capitalize on existing assets while adding new demonstrations and community projects. Farm manager Andy Thran outlined site‑specific work: irrigation and mulch upgrades at the entrance orchard, repurposing former lavender beds for cut flowers and heritage grains, continued landrace chile and healer's garden work, and trials for food crops grown using only acequia water.
Thran described the new sheep enclosure in detail: "We've created an an basically an 800 square foot, or 8,000 square foot, sorry, enclosure with 6 foot woven wire fence, very secure from coyotes and predators... we are going to build just a small little shelter for them... there's a small demonstration and viewing area." The enclosure will host an educational sheep shearing demonstration during a public event the Ag Center will hold Saturday, March 21 (9 a.m.–3 p.m.).
Staff also reported expansion of the community garden (about 27 new beds, for roughly 60 beds total), continued partnerships (Big Jim Farms, Desert Forge veteran nonprofit, Master Gardeners, Albuquerque Sign Language Academy), honeybee relocations and maintenance of a pollinator garden, and plans to improve trellis systems and electrical/irrigation infrastructure for program spaces.
Why it matters: The farm plan combines hands‑on educational programming with production trials (including a challenge to grow food using only acequia water), strengthens partnerships with community groups, and dovetails with capital outlay funding—staff reported approximately $2.5 million in legislative capital outlay for AgriNature Center and Anderson House improvements.
What happens next: Staff will continue the master‑plan RFP process and implement near‑term projects such as the sheep enclosure and irrigation upgrades; trustees encouraged staff outreach and public participation at the March 21 event.
