Clagett Farm Festival

photos by Roshani Kothari and Fred Delventhal, text by Kathleen Davis

About 125 friends and family attended the annual Fall Festival at the Clagett Farm on Saturday, October 21, 2006. Revelers were treated to lots of activities including hayrides, pumpkin painting, corn holing, a silent auction, and a potluck lunch. Music was provided by The Clagett Farm String Band. And of course, regular CSA shareholders picked up their weekly share of vegetables and the CSA made its regular donation of vegetables to a local charity.

Carrie Vaughn welcomed everyone to the Festival and invited all to share in the potluck lunch and hot apple cider.

The Clagett Farm String Band gave its first performance at the Festival and delighted the crowd with toe tapping bluegrass and old time music. Band members are Craig Highfield (mandolin), Bart Merrick (bass), Rick Truett (hollow bodied electric guitar), and John Shields (rhythm guitar). Phyllis Saroff sat in with the band on 5-string banjo.

Susan Sanders, a CSA member, donated many jars of homemade jam, marmalade, chutney, and relish from Clagett Farm vegetables.

The silent auction raised seven hundred dollars, which is much more than any previous year.  That extra income helps us give away more food.  Friends generously donated many beautiful items for the auction including a hand painted silk scarf, a tea time basket of homemade goods, a soy candle, hand crocheted scarves, a painting of the Farm, theatre tickets, and framed photographs of the Farm. Special services for nurturing the mind-body connection - health counseling and yoga classes -were also donated for the auction.

The Festival was a big hit with kids. Pumpkin painting was particularly popular. The hayrides around the Farm were lots of fun. The kids also had a great time riding the bikes around the barns, making scarecrows, and playing ‘corn holing’ with Kenji.

A new woodland trail on the Farm was walked for the first time during the Festival.

Rita Calvert was on hand with her exhibit, “Working Food and Farmscapes”, and free samples of delicious Lady Calvert’s Chesapeake Popcorn. Rita also had some extra treats of chips, salsa, and guacamole from Chipolte’s Restaurant.

An informal poll of the merry makers at the Festival indicated that EVERYONE was having fun. The poll results also provided the following information:

Favorite activities on the Farm: (listed in order of popularity)

•   Strawberry picking
•   Playing in the sand tires
•   Talking to the cows
•   Chasing butterflies
•   Picking flowers
•   Harvesting basil
•   Weeding

Favorite vegetable, herb, or fruit: (listed in order of popularity)

•   Strawberries (especially in June)
•   Tomatoes
•   Kale
•   Sweet potatoes
•   Kohlrabi
•   Watermelons
•   Hot peppers
•   Okra
•   Zucchini
•   Basil 

The Fall Festival 2006 was a fine day at the Clagett Farm – dear friends, sunny skies, lots of fun. A good time was had by all.