Carriage Hill MetroPark
Small Farm & Food Fest
Small Farm & Food Fest returns Saturday, August 3, from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Five Rivers MetroParks will host Small Farm & Food Fest at Carriage Hill MetroPark, 7800 E. Shull Rd. This free, all-ages event promotes healthy eating and sustainable living with dozens of hands-on activities, a pop-up farmers market, demonstrations, speakers and more.
Small Farm & Food Fest will offer a mix of modern-day and historical farming, gardening, homesteading and food preparation information.
“Visitors can look forward to an entire day of fun activities and leave with a new understanding of local foods and the importance of local farmers,” said Rick Musselman, MetroParks Historical Farm supervisor. “People will also learn skills from the past that can help them today.”
Bites from a variety of food trucks and farm market vendors will be available during the event. Festivalgoers also will enjoy live music from noon to 4 PM at the Visitor’s Center.
“As a conservation agency, Five Rivers MetroParks implements sustainable practices into every facet of its day-to-day operations in the parks, facilities and programs,” said Musselman. “We want to empower people to adopt healthier lifestyles and help make the connection that sustainable practices are accessible, fun and important to our local environment.”
Activities
Historical demonstrations and workshops
Learn about sustainable home practices, such as heirloom gardening, canning, milling, and wool spinning.
Historic Daniel Arnold Barn Ongoing Demonstration Stations:
- Planning for Fall Crops: seed giveaway
- Identifying, Caring and Using Garden Tools
- How to make a Container Garden
- Healthy Summer Drinks: Switzel, Shrub and Others
Carriage Hill Farm Country Fair Living History Stations:
- Floral and Heirloom Gardening Display
- Exotic Fruit Stand
- Canned Good Display
- Textiles Display
- Historic Breeds of Livestock
- Draft Horse Demonstrations
- Children’s Games
- Rope Making Demonstration
- Steam Engine Demonstration with complimentary steamed corn
Pop-up farmers market
Featuring local growers, artisans and more, the farmers market will feature more than 15 vendors.
Learn local
Discover the importance of local produce and where to find the fresh picks from local growers at the 2nd Street Market, organized by Five Rivers MetroParks.
Speakers
Seven local professionals will offer talks starting at 10 AM, with the last talk starting at 4 PM. Speakers will explore such topics as cooking and growing heirloom tomatoes, the benefits of farm fresh eggs, coffee 101, growing flowers for spring, making your own kombucha, and many more.
2024 Speaker Schedule (Daniel Arnold Barn at the Historic Farm)
10:00-10:30 a.m.: Benefits of Farm Fresh Eggs: Bryna Chandler, Drunken Duck Farm & Mallard’s Landing Sanctuary
11:00-11:30 a.m.: Fermenting: Making Your Own Kombucha, Dawn Kirchner, Full Circle Brewgarden
12:00-12:30 p.m.: Chickens or Bees: Profiting on a Small Farm, Andrea Hancock, Happy Wife Acres
1:00-1:30 p.m.: Growing and Cooking Heirloom Tomatoes, Betty Hoevel, Ed. Coordinator, FRMP
2:00-2:30 p.m.: Fall Planting for Earlier and Better Spring Flowers, Wendy Brubaker, Morningside Meadows Flower Farm
3:00-3:30 p.m.: Coffee 101: Michael Thomas, Roaster/Owner, Poppets Coffee & Tea
4:00-4:30 p.m.: Growing Mushrooms at Home, Michael Goldstick, Guided By Mushrooms
Live animals
View draft horse demonstrations, then visit the farm animals at the Historical Farm.
Family fun
Families can enjoy tractor-pulled wagon rides. Children also will be able to experience kid-focused activities such as heirloom gardening, butter making, sewing, weaving and spinning.
