The Crowded Acre: Where a FarmHER's Dreams Come to Life

In 2006, FarmHER Jen Welch started a homestead on a single acre in Buena Vista, Colorado. The original idea was to grow food for her growing family. That single acre soon got the name The Crowded Acre Farm, and they expanded to a 15-acre family farm (raising pork, ducks, chickens, and turkeys) with 100 additional leased acres for their beef cattle.

It’s not just the operation that has expanded in those 10 years. Welch’s focus has also grown to include those in her community. This year, she entered the food truck business in a remodeled 1984 Bluebird school bus. Known as The Bearded Lady, the idea is to provide fresh, high-quality, farm-to-fork locally produced products.

Two farm dogs, one sitting and one standing on a bed of straw inside a greenhouse, in front of a woman farmer, who is pictured from the waist down and holding a green basket of fresh eggs.

1/35

FarmHER, Inc.

2/35

FarmHER, Inc.

3/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A green metal basket of farm-fresh eggs sitting on a bed of hay.

4/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A photo of two little boys playing inside a greenhouse with farm animals including chickens, ducks and a fluffy white farm dog.

5/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A little boy holding a black and white cat.

6/35

FarmHER, Inc.

7/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A female farmer holding a dirty white bucket inside a barn. A male farmer is walking in the background behind her.

8/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A woman farmer, photographed from behind, walking towards a greenhouse carrying two dirty white buckets.

9/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A femal pig farmer is dumping a white bucket of slop into a trough for three black pigs.

10/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A female farmer in a barn looks back sweetly at her son and a barn cat playing in a sunny window.

11/35

FarmHER, Inc.

12/35

FarmHER, Inc.

13/35

FarmHER, Inc.

14/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A female pig farmer with dirty boots is photographed from the waist up, straddling a pig pen fence, with a white bucket of slop on the ground beside her, sitting on a bed of hay. A little girl is standing on the other side of the white bucket.

15/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A little boy looking over a fence at a black goat.

16/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A single chicken is standing in a sunny spot inside a barn.

17/35

FarmHER, Inc.

18/35

FarmHER, Inc.

19/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A smaller red and orange Dutch oven and a larger blue Dutch oven sitting on the center console of a farm truck.

20/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A close-up image of a woman farmer driving a farm truck.

21/35

FarmHER, Inc.

22/35

FarmHER, Inc.

An old school bus painted turquoise has a white painted back window displaying a photo of a goat and the text "THE BEARDED LADY."

23/35

FarmHER, Inc.

24/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A tip jar, a selection of Deerhammer spirits, and a cocktail shaker sitting on a bar mat on top of a polished cherry wood bar.

25/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A steel frame barrel rack with four wooden barrels for aging alcohol. The barrel in the center of the frame reads "Dearhammer Distilling Co."

26/35

FarmHER, Inc.

27/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A young girl setting a table for an outdoor meal at a farm. In the background, a turquoise school bus sits partially out of frame.

28/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A cardboard basket of fresh bread sits on a white plate on a wooden picnic table, with other empty white plates sitting slightly out of frame.

29/35

FarmHER, Inc.

30/35

FarmHER, Inc.

31/35

FarmHER, Inc.

32/35

FarmHER, Inc.

33/35

FarmHER, Inc.

34/35

FarmHER, Inc.

A mom looking at her daughter as they sit at a table outside and enjoy a meal with other people sitting out of frame.

35/35

FarmHER, Inc.

When Jen’s first child was born, she decided to take the leap from a career in food service to the root of it all and finally start her farm, The Crowded Acre. Over the past 10 years, the family has grown to include three kids, and the farm has expanded to about 120 acres of land….so they aren’t all crowded into one acre anymore.

On Now

Meet FarmHer Jen Welch of The Crowded Acre - “Stinky Mom”

On Now

FarmHer S1 E2 Jen Welch farm to fork happy family

1:27

On Now

FarmHer - S1 E2 Jen Welch farm to fork smelly mom

1:44

Read Jen’s FarmHER Story:

The Crowded Acre Where Dreams Come to Life

Related Stories

FarmHER + RanchHER

Debra Lockard

Meet FarmHER Debra Lockard, a third-generation Tennessee produce grower who splits her time running two farms in West Tennessee and teaching ag classes that promote sustainable farming practices in her Memphis community.

September 26, 2024 05:55 PM

RFD-TV News Staff

FarmHER + RanchHER

5th-Gen FarmHER Grows Sweet Baby Broccoli in California’s Salinas Valley

FarmHER Kate Hitchcock joined us on the Market Day Report to discuss the upcoming episode of the show where Kirbe and the crew visit her family’s produce operation in California’s Salinas Valley, which premieres tomorrow, Sept. 24 at 9 PM ET only on RFD-TV.

September 23, 2024 02:01 PM

Marion Kirkpatrick

FarmHER + RanchHER

Kate Hitchcock

The FarmHER crew catches up with fifth-generation California sweet baby broccoli producer Kate Hitchcock and her team in the middle of the harvest season in the Salinas Valley.

September 18, 2024 12:05 PM

RFD-TV News Staff

FarmHER

The Crowded Acre: Where a FarmHER’s Dreams Come to Life

In 2006, FarmHER Jen Welch started a homestead on a single acre in Buena Vista, Colorado. The original idea was to grow food for her growing family. It didn’t take long before The Crowded Acre Farm started to grow, too!

Read Jen’s FarmHER Story: