History
Our farm was founded by Christopher Scheno when he arrived in America in 1854. The land was passed down through the generations and was always operated by the Shenots. For many years, much of the land was dedicated to a small dairy operation along with sweet corn, apples and other small vegetables. Most items were sold in Pittsburgh while some were distributed via a small roadside stand along Wexford Run Road. A larger, more modern farm market was built in 1971 and expanded in 1993 to support a growing clientele. The farm is now being operated by the 5th and 6th generations of Shenots.
About Us
Our farm is largely run by three people: Mary Lou runs the market consisting of a dozen or so employees, makes over 40 flavors of her fresh homemade fudge, takes care of most of the business bookwork and still manages to have dinner on the table more often than not. Ed and Rob, both of whom have Bachelor Degrees in Horticulture from Penn State operate the farming end of the business from seed to market.
Given the rapidly growing population of Wexford and the surrounding area over the last several years we often find ourselves talking about the future of our business and in what direction we want to take the farm. We came up with a lot of ideas - ideas we like to call "gimmicks" to bring in new customers. We did not put any of them into practice. We decided that the best approach was to stay true to our regular customers and "keep doing what we're doing", just do it better - and more will come. We found that the best way to get customers was to advertise, and the best way to keep them was to offer the finest and freshest produce possible.
On that note, we have found that the best way to ensure our produce is the best is to grow it ourselves. Only a small percentage of the produce we provide comes from outside sources and those sources are carefully selected to meet our high standards.
Our growing practices are based on conservation of our highly valued soil and natural ecosystems that exist on our farm. Careful management of these very important aspects are essential to ensure not only the safety and quality of our produce, but also the health of our soil to produce for many years to come.
Harvesting is done exclusively by hand. We refer to this as "picking", but we see it as more of a selection process. "Quality or Nothing" is our rule of thumb during any harvest. Handling practices of the fruits and veggies makes a significant difference in the resulting quality of our final product. During harvest, and any other time the produce is handled, we act as if everything is as fragile as eggs. This, combined with proper post-harvest temperature control, gives us confidence that our customers will be pleased with our produce.