The Marcel Goguen Farm: a long-lasting agricultural heritage
The Goguen farm in Cocagne, a Really Local Harvest member, has been producing on the same land since the 1780s.
This week, heritage is in the spotlight in New Brunswick — the perfect opportunity to learn about the rich variety of ancestral stories that lie in our backyard. The Marcel Goguen farm in Cocagne, a member of Really Local Harvest, has been an excellent example for almost two and a half centuries.
The son of the founder of Cocagne, Joseph Guegen Jr., received the land from the governor of Halifax, Nova Scotia. It was before the founding of New Brunswick. The land has been productive ever since.
According to Marcel Goguen, the evolution of their farm reflects the evolution of the country’s agriculture — beginning as a subsistence farm. From the 1910s and 1920s the farm diversified: "They want to sell goods outside, to trade. After that, in my parent’s time, they produced eggs, then seeds, and then we finally grow almost exclusively commercial apples."
"The pride we have in our farm has always been important. Everyone wants to keep a connection to that past, so maybe there is something in our blood that tells us not to give up our land."
Ancestral practices are perpetuated: rotating fields, making their own compost, learning to read terrain and climate. "If you don’t do this, the soil is going to be hard and will become a crust if you work it too much. If you compact the soil, the water will stay on the surface."
The farm offers a U-pick service during apple season and welcomes school visits, families and elders. "We always had a few animals on the farm to show people… The children want to see the pigs, the horse, the chickens — the animals in a context of years gone by."