Above: A look at the fun that was had at Chestnut Hill Farm’s HarvestFest last fall. (images cropped from contributed photos)
Chestnut Hill Farm is celebrating fall early this year. Rather than waiting until Heritage Day weekend for their big annual festival, they’ll be holding it a week from Sunday.
The 5th annual HarvestFest is scheduled for Sunday, September 15th, from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm:
The family-friendly outdoor festival is filled with live music, food and beverages, farm animals, vendors, hayrides, contests, games and activities for all ages.
This event runs rain or shine. (And I have photographic evidence that the festival is fun even in heavy rains. But let’s keep fingers crossed for a dry one this year.)
Most of the community’s favorite activities will be back:
- Farm games/races
- Donuts on a string
- Hayrides
- Cider Press
- Children’s Hay Maze
- Face Painting
- Pie Eating Contest
- Pumpkin carving and painting (first 100 families get one free pumpkin)
- Live Music
- Chicken Plop Bingo
- Food and beverages for sale
(Scroll down for a look at some of that fun over the past few HarvestFests.)
This year, they’re adding Blacksmithing demos, Farm Tours, and a “Community Corner” to the fun.
The event isn’t free. The admission cost for Trustees of Reservation’s members is $9/adult and $6/child – capped at $24/family. For non-members, that’s $15/adult and $10/child – capped at $30/family.
Admission covers everything except refreshments, hayrides, and additional pumpkins. Proceeds help support the running of The Trustees of Reservations’ nonprofit farm and its community events.
For more details (especially about what vendors, food, and beverages to expect), scroll down to the press release from TTOR. You can also check out the farm’s Facebook page for updates closer to the event.
Now here’s a reminder of what past HarvestFest fun looked like. (Note: for best results, wait until the page finishes loading before you click.)
And here are more details from TTOR’s press release:
Fun, Food, and Entertainment for Everyone
Children will delight in craft making, face painting, field games, and finding their way through a challenging hay maze, as well as interacting with the farm’s personable goats. While the popular music of the Railroad House Band provides the soundtrack for the day, attendees can take a turn at a cider press, try their luck at “chicken plop bingo,” enjoy a hayride around the farm, or try eating a donut-on-a-string. Pumpkin painting is also bound to be a hit with families attending HarvestFest! The first 100 families to arrive at HarvestFest will receive a free sugar pumpkin; the farm will also have both sugar pumpkins and carving pumpkins for sale.Attendees will have a variety of shopping options in HarvestFest’s vendor village, where artisans and local businesses — purveyors of handmade crafts, jewelry, pottery, woodwork, candles, artisanal foods, and more — will offer their creations and services for purchase. New this year in the Vendor Village: the Community Corner, where Southborough nonprofit organizations such as the Southborough Library and Native Plant Gardens will educate visitors about their services. Many vendors and community groups will feature fun, interactive activities for both children and adults.
Visitors are also encouraged to shop Chestnut Hill Farm’s onsite farmstand, which will be offering delicious farm produce and the farm’s own pickles, tomato puree, and pesto; Trustees meats, eggs, and cheeses; a variety of locally-made dressings, condiments, and treats — and so much more.
After working up an appetite, festival attendees will have many food and beverage options, including Anzio’s mobile brick oven pizza, Uncle E’s BBQ Express, and treats from local favorites Lady Laurie’s Sweet Life and Trombetta’s Farm ice cream. Jack’s Abby will be offering a selection of beer to quench the thirst of active adults, while the farmstand will offer a variety of beverages for everyone. Children and adults should be sure to save some room for the pie-eating contest, a favorite for contestants and spectators alike!
According to Chestnut Hill Farm’s farm manager, Desiree Robertson-Dubois, “HarvestFest is our favorite day of the year. It’s a special day for us to showcase the many things Chestnut Hill Farm has to offer, and an opportunity to bring old and new friends together to celebrate the autumn season! We are so looking forward to welcoming many new visitors to the farm.”. . .
For more information about this event please visit our website: thetrustees.org/CHF. Contact Jessica at jdevine@thetrustees.org with any questions. . .
About Chestnut Hill Farm
Chestnut Hill Farm is a 170-acre farm that features a produce and meat CSA, farm stand, trails, and seasonal events. The farm is open to the public year-round, sunrise to sunset; the seasonal farm stand is open Tuesday/Thursday/Friday 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. and Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Chestnut Hill Farm is owned and managed by The Trustees, a member-supported nonprofit conservation organization that preserves, for public use and enjoyment, properties of exceptional scenic, historic, and ecological value in Massachusetts, and works to protect special places across the state.
