Research Farm

What We Do 

We operate a 1-acre research farm located in the York River right off the shores of VIMS' Gloucester Point campus.  The purpose of the farm is for demonstration of different methods of oyster aquaculture, applied research, and workforce development. We strive to make the research farm a collaborative environment where internal and external stakeholders are welcome anytime. Contact Farm Manager,  Madeline Pitsenbarger if you are interested in collaborating on a project or touring the research farm.

Farm Capacity 

The research farm has the capacity to grow over 100,000 oysters at market size. The farm is comprised mainly of three gear types: 12 floating cages, 24 bottom cages, and 1000 FlipFarm baskets. At any given time we use around 80% of the farm to house applied research projects while the other 20% is used for demonstration and education purposes. The entire farm is utilized as a training ground for our workforce development efforts. Once we complete a research project the oysters are planted for restoration or served at VIMS and William & Mary events. 

Collaborative Projects

Grow-out Comparison of Oyster Seed Cultured in Two Different Hatchery Systems

Raising oyster seed spawned through either static culture methods or recirculating aquaculture to evaluate if there are any latent effects on oyster performance (growth, survival, etc).