The Granby Agricultural Commission is sponsoring a free Open Farm Day on Saturday, Sept. 14, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Open Farm Day is a day of fall farm fun for ages one to one hundred. Go farm-hopping at over a dozen farms in Granby to see a Sepe Farm sheep be shorn, how Sweet Pea Farm turns milk into cheese and taste a new Lost Acres Vineyard wine or a beer from The Brewery at Maple View Farm. Farmers will open their gates to host demos, tours, tastings, tractor rides and more at this one-of-a-kind, hands-on, educational experience. An annual tradition, Open Farm Day is a unique opportunity to discover what goes on behind the scenes at a diverse selection of farms, all in Granby.
Returning Farm Day goers will be pleased to find old favorites, such as wagon rides through Lost Acres Orchard, garden tours at O’Brien Nursery, garlic sampling at the Garlic Farm, soapmaking demos at Lyric Hill Farm and Pony Club pony rides at Lost Acres Vineyard. Open Farm Day is your chance to meet a large animal vet at Angel Horses, get your face painted at the Granby Grange, pick apples at Clark Farms, learn about agroforestry at Wilhelm Farm, help Holcomb Farm CSA with its harvest and get lost in the Hayes Corn Maze.
For the first time on Open Farm Day, guests at O’Brien Nursery will be able to see an observational beehive and learn why honeys taste different. At Schoolhouse Farm this year, visitors can explore a Salmon Brook Veterinary Hospital ambulatory truck, learn how to care for alpaca with Dr. Weber, and see how horses are trained with the Granby Horse Council. New this year, the Copper Hill Vaulting Team will be sure to wow the crowd at Lost Acres Vineyard with their horseback gymnastics. Making its Open Farm Day debut, The Brewery at Maple View Farm will have flights of beer for tasting, farm-raised sausages to grill yourself and live music to enjoy on the lawn.
Here’s how it works: Beginning at 10 a.m. on Sept. 14, start at any of the participating farms and pick up a passport and map. Spend the day visiting the open farms while collecting a new stamp in your passport at each location. At your final farm of the day, turn in your passport and be entered into a drawing for prizes donated by participating farms. Collect six or more stamps and you could win a $100 gift certificate to spend at the Thanksgiving Farmers Market at Lost Acres Vineyard on Nov. 25.
The Agricultural Commission is charged with furthering the connection between Granby’s farmers and the community, which prompted the Open Farm Day event.
Admission to Open Farm Day is free. For more information, visit GranbyAg.org