By Matt de Simone
Martin Farms, located in Fincastle, is owned and operated by Joe Martin, who took over the farm’s day-to-day responsibilities from his father, Hubert Martin. Hubert started the farm in 1955, and over the decades, it has become a staple in the region’s agricultural community.
The farm specializes in pork products – including sausage, ham, pork chops, and liver pudding. In addition to its pork offerings, Martin Farms raises around 70 Angus cow/calf pairs and maintains a commercial feedlot. Cattle are sold on the open market. While peak “meat season” arrives later in the year, the farm offers frozen meats and sausage throughout the summer.
A large garden on the farm supplies the fresh produce sold in the on-site store. During the warmer months, customers can find items like yellow and red tomatoes, corn, squash, peaches, and oranges. Corn grown on the farm also supports livestock needs, either as silage or supplemental hay.
Joe says his family has stuck with many of the same farming practices for generations. Their approach includes no-till planting when possible and using manure from livestock to enrich the soil after harvests—methods that have worked well over the years.
“We’ve pretty much stayed with the same practices,” Joe Martin said in a recent interview. “Traditional livestock management has always worked for us.”
Now in its 70th year, Martin Farms has transformed significantly since its founding. In the early days, Hubert Martin relied on limited mechanization – tractors and basic tools were just beginning to become common. As a result, farm operations progressed at a slower pace. Over time, however, Martin Farms has embraced innovation to improve efficiency and ease the burden on farmers.
“We’ve come a long way from what we used to be,” Joe Martin said in a recent interview. “Back in the day, you had to do everything by hand. You put up all the hay by hand. Now, it’s mostly mechanized equipment that does most of the work.”
Joe shared that one of the first major improvements on the farm was the addition of a front-end loader for a tractor. The ability to move feed and load hay mechanically marked a turning point in their operations.
“When we got one of them (loaders), we thought we had it made,” Joe laughed. “When we got our first round baler, it was one of the first ones in the area. So, I mean, some people would line up along the road to watch you bail hay (back then).”
That development came in the 1970s. Today, Joe uses advanced GPS systems to assist with tasks like planting corn.
Photos by Matt de Simone
“The most recent thing I got is this new GPS stuff,” Joe continued. “We’re planting corn with it. It keeps the rows lined up – you don’t have to go by a row marker. That’s a big improvement.”
Joe explained that this technology saves time and effort once learned. Although GPS guidance is widely used in large-scale operations across the country, it has been slower to catch on in Botetourt County. “Farming is not in a big way like it is in the Midwest,” he noted.
While modern tools have made farming more manageable, the future of small farms in Botetourt remains uncertain – not necessarily because of suburban expansion, but due to waning interest among younger generations. Joe expressed concern that fewer young people are willing to embrace the long hours and physically demanding nature of farm life.
“Unless more young people get interested in farming, it isn’t going to go very much further,” Joe said. “Kids need to be educated in school programs to learn where their food comes from. The farming population’s old. Some farmers don’t have people to take over what they got.”
Jason Martin, Joe’s nephew, and his wife, Kim, run Catawba View Dairy Farm on the Martin property. Their son and daughter represent the fourth generation of Martins on the land.
Still, Joe worries about the growing trend of farmland being sold off, as is happening throughout much of the Midwest. There, rising land values and lack of interest from younger generations have made small family farms increasingly vulnerable to buyouts by large corporations and investment groups.
“To get somebody really interested in farming, maybe it’s not a person that’s 18 or 20 years old, but somebody that’s younger than (the farmer) – let them get on board and help them along. A lot of times, they end up giving them what they got (because) they don’t really have anybody to leave it to.
“We’ve got the dairy farm up there, so (my nieces and nephews) can make a living. If (farmers) have children that come on board, they have to do more because they have to make a living, too. In my view, that deters a lot of young people from farming. If you’re not dedicated, you’re not going to (be successful).”
In addition to the on-site store at the farm on Martin Lane, the farm currently sells its sausage at Ikenberry Orchards in Daleville, The Heritage Market in Fincastle, and The Country Crate in Buchanan.
As Martin Farms enters its eighth decade, its future shines bright, supported by the next generation’s dedication to honoring the farm’s legacy while bringing fresh energy and innovation to life on the land.
