Hyperion’s
Agrivolatic Featured Project
Joe Czajkowski Farm
"Energy Sustainability shouldn’t be our only goal. Our goal is to improve the quality of this farmland over the life of the solar array.”
— Joe C., Farmer
Farm owner Joe Czajkowski is a third-generation Hadley, Massachusetts farmer. He produces on more than 400 acres across the Pioneer Valley. The farm practices both organic and conventional farming, contributing to the local food system by providing produce to institutions and retail outlets, including UMass Amherst Dining Services, Springfield Public Schools, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and numerous local restaurants. Czajkowski’s produce reaches Boston almost daily, and their squash noodles can be purchased up and down the East Coast.
The Joe Czajkowski Farm project is a commercial agrivoltaic array in Hadley, Massachusetts. The project was developed through a partnership with Joe and Hyperion Systems. The farm’s dual-use array has served as an excellent example of a medium-scale solar that works for both the farmer and the land.
Parcel is Now Ideal for Plantings
Prior to the agrivoltaic install, Czajkowski has been growing on this specific parcel for over two decades, rotating a variety of crops, including beets, broccoli, tobacco, and corn silage, among others. While the parcel is used annually, it is not one of their most productive fields. Joe describes the field as “a sandy, wind-swept knoll.” The site is set back from the roadway, has an existing farm access road, and features screening trees from neighbors. Combined, these conditions make the site an ideal space for an agrivoltaic system.
The project is a 445kW DC, 375kW AC, solar array on 2.2 acres. Comprised of 832 modules, the array utilizes single-axis trackers. Modules are 10 feet above the ground when horizontal. These system specifications meet the Massachusetts SMART Program guidelines, and the project was awarded the Agricultural Adder. The rows are spaced 26 feet post to post, allowing equipment to make two or three passes between the post rows, depending on the farming activity. Joe has operated his tractor both north to south (parallel with the module rows) and east to west (perpendicular to the module rows) throughout the array. Joe is able to operate his equipment for all functions including subsoiling, tilling, harrowing, cultivating, and spraying. Most of Joe Czajkowski Farm’s harvest is done by hand.
In the first year, in 2023, Czajkowski grew broccoli underneath the array. In 2024, Joe is growing an early season planting of spinach under a portion of the array. Later in the 2024 growing season, Joe will grow broccoli throughout the array area.