Fall Community Farm Tours by Ada Soil & Water Conservation District
The Ada Soil & Water Conservation District facilitated Fall Community Farm Tours this summer. In September, the group came Purple Sage Farms to understand in person how we manage and conserve soil and water on the farm.
The tour group arrived on a big yellow bus. We began the talk in front of our processing building, with an introduction from Mike Sommer. Tim Sommer shared about the extensive processes we follow to obtain organic certification each year.
About 20 guests took a walk through the greenhouses with us, listening to how we grow more than 150 different organic crops and asking wonderful questions that get us thinking. We are thankful for a community of customers who care to learn more about their food systems. Educated consumers help make a healthier planet.
Everyone scurried from the lettuce house to the basil house, then a fallow house where microbes digested dead plants under ground covers. Our visitors admired the blooming yarrow and fennel and noticed a fluttering population of moths lighting about each bed of plants. It's so fun to see the farm from a visitors point of view, with a little more curiosity and fun.
After tromping around the greenhouses, participants enjoyed a beautiful, locally sourced lunch prepared by Whitney Fredin Catering & Events. They used ingredients from Purple Sage, as well as the other farms on the tour, Peaceful Belly Farm and Kelley Orchards.
