The 23rd annual Harvest Celebration will take place on Sept. 17 as eight farms in Clark County open to the public to show off local agriculture and allow people to meet local farmers.
Terry Koper, the small acreage program coordinator for the Washington State University Clark County Extension program, said a lot of the farms will host various events throughout the day.
“They have kids’ games, vegetables (and will) have some u-pick produce as well as flowers,” Koper said. “They have salsa tastings, apple tastings, veggie tastings, crafts, hay wagon rides.”
Koper said producers from other farms will often come and set up booths, which allows people to buy from different vendors.
“It’s just a celebration of what we can grow,” Koper said. “It’s just a wonderful time to come meet our local farmers and put a face to that food that we eat, and really honor our local produce.”
Serendipity Alpaca Ranch will open their property to the public and will sell socks, hats and gloves made from the animals’ fibers. Flat Tack Farm and Good Year Farms are new additions that were added this year. Koper said Good Year Farms is a native plant nursery where people can buy plants for their yards. Good Year also has a barn where they hold different events, like catered dinners.
“It’s a very beautiful location and we’re happy to have them on board,” Koper said. “Hannah (Schrager), the owner, is super knowledgeable about native plants and a really great resource for that. We encourage people to plant native plants because they’re more adapted to pests and they’re on our local climate.”
Koper personally plans to visit Get To-Gather Farm, Good Year, Flat Tack, and 78th Street Heritage Farm. The latter will participate for the second time, and it’s “another exciting location” because many different organizations will represent what they do at the farm so people can learn about community gardens and 4-H.
“There’s a lot going on at the (78th Street) Heritage Farm and it’s a really good opportunity to learn about what takes place there because it’s there for our community, and that’s where our extension is housed as well,” Koper said.
Koper also hopes to visit Serendipity, Gather and Feast Farm, and Coyote Ridge Ranch.
Four farms that WSU Clark County Extension personally recognized this year are Get To-Gather Farm, Serendipity, Gather and Feast Farm, and Gifts of the Planet Farm.
“We ask them to do a self-assessment regarding their practices, and then they invite us on and we’ll do a site assessment and ask questions about ‘well do you have rain gutters and bounce-abouts on your buildings, because that helps keep water from eroding the soil?’” Koper said.
WSU Clark County Extension also asks the farms if they keep livestock at a safe distance from waterways to avoid soil erosion and inquire about whether farmers drive their tractor across a field during the winter, as those practices can cause soil compaction.
“We like to highlight those practices so that others have a good model of things that are being done and with good stewardship around the water,” Koper said.
Information about the celebration, including a map and guide, can be found online at extension.wsu.edu/clark/naturalresources/smallacreageprogram.
WSU Clark County Extension will also start a Living on the Land class series on Sept. 27. The 10-week course allows people to learn about land stewardship practices. Participants can pre-register online at extension.wsu.edu/clark/naturalresources/smallacreageprogram.
