It's tough times nowadays with the drought, but that doesn't mean you still can't have plenty of fun on the farm this weekend as part of a province-wide celebration of agriculture.
Open Farm Days is this Aug. 22 and 23, and four county-area farms are throwing open their doors to give city slickers a free taste of the farm life.
It's the third time that the province-backed event has been held in Alberta, which drew some 7,500 people and families to participating farms last year.
Many Albertans are two to three generations removed from farm life nowadays, said Tim Carson, CEO of the Alberta Association of Agricultural Societies. This event is meant to show Albertans where their food comes from and how farms work.
About 70 farms are taking part in this year's event. Paid culinary events are on Saturday, while free open houses happen Sunday.
Sonya Steiner will have cows, sheep, horses, alpacas, hedgehogs and a macaw for people to meet, greet and pet this Sunday at Horse Sense Training and Petting Zoo just northwest of St. Albert as part of Open Farm Days.
"We're doing free carriage rides, free pony rides, free popcorn and a free petting zoo," she said, in addition to vendors and other family activities.
Steiner says this is her third time participating in Open Farm Days, which has been a smash hit on her farm.
"We've had the highest number of people come through in all of Alberta," she said, referring to participating farms – close to a thousand per day.
New this year will be an amateur pet show, where residents can bring in their cats and dogs for a shot at prizes for nicest collar, ugliest pet and other titles.
Colin Campbell, of Bon Accord's Cajun Angus farm, said he had so much fun doing Open Farm Days last year that he's doing it again this year. He's offering free tours of his pasture and purebred Angus calf breeding operation on Sunday, where you can learn all about cow genetics.
Also opening its gates this weekend is the county's Prairie Gardens & Adventure Farm. You're out of luck if you wanted in on the five-course Farm to Fork dinner on Saturday (it's sold out), but you can still come by Sunday for the corn maze and petting zoo, says owner Tam Andersen.
The Morinville Farmers' Market is hosting a free pancake breakfast on Saturday, as well as a best pie contest, axe throwing lessons, and a paid farm-to-table dinner.
And Ward and Jo-Anne Middleton will once again be giving tours of their organic grain crops at Midmore Farms Sunday just north of Morinville.
Drought problems
This year's drought has made times tough for many farmers, and locals can see the impact first hand this weekend.
The drought has roughly quadrupled the price of hay in Alberta, making it extremely expensive to feed animals, Steiner said. She needs about 300 tonnes per winter for her farm, and a tonne of hay costs about $180 nowadays.
"That really hurts."
Campbell said he has had to shrink his breeding stock by 40 per cent because it's too expensive to feed them all.
All of Bon Accord has been hit hard by the drought, Andersen says.
"My husband in his farming activities has seen crops anywhere from 25 to 50 per cent of what they should be."
While diversifying into ag-tourism has helped, Steiner says it's still tough to make a living on the farm under these conditions.
"People don't do it for profit. They do it because it's a lifestyle and they love it."
Andersen and Steiner both say they've gotten some repeat visitors through Open Farm Days.
Visitors put some $45,000 into farmers' pockets in the form of on-site sales during last year's event, Carson said.
Albertafarmdays.com has the full list of Open Farm Days activities, as well as an interactive map with which to plan your route to them. Check the website to see when each farm is open.
