Prairie Crossing Farm to host plant sale, open house
The Prairie Crossing Farm in Grayslake hosts an organic plant sale and open house from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, May 17.
Visitors can purchase organic plants for the garden, see chickens and baby goats, and support the farmers growing local food in your community. This free and educational event will be held rain or shine, with some activities dependent on the weather.
The Prairie Crossing Farm is at 32400 N. Harris Road; enter Prairie Crossing via Route 45 at Jones Point Road and follow the signs to the farm. Event parking will be on both sides of Harris Road. Do not block residents' driveways.
Reserved parking for vehicles displaying disability/handicap plates or placards will be in the Yellow Farmhouse parking lot at the entrance to the event.
Certified organic plants, other farm products, and community supported agriculture shares for organic vegetables, free-range eggs, and pastured pork will be available for sale.
Participating farm businesses include Gretta's Goats, Marigold Hill Organics, Midnight Sun Farm, Radical Root Farm, Sandhill Family Farms, and Yaw-Ye Farms. Meet the farmers at the Prairie Crossing Farm and learn how they produce food for customers throughout the Chicago region.
Prairie Farm Corps teens will sell plants they have grown as a fundraiser for this youth development program that integrates personal/professional development with farm work and provides experience cooking healthy meals with fresh vegetables.
A list of the plants for sale by the Prairie Farm Corps is available at www.libertyprairie.org.
The Montessori School of Lake Forest Adolescent Program will also sell plants raised as a school fundraiser, and the Prairie Crossing Charter School Parent Student Organization will host a bake sale.
Farm visitors can also view the vintage tractors in use at the Prairie Crossing Farm and more. A children's farm scavenger hunt will be offered, with free seeds for the first 50 participating children.
Farm tours are available at 10:15 a.m. 11:15 a.m. and 12:15 p.m., departing from the tractor display. These walking tours will be on uneven surfaces, including wood chips, gravel, and soil. Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy on the south lawn of the Yellow Farmhouse. Baked goods will also be available for purchase.
Good agricultural practices discourage even the best trained animals near fields used for growing food, so leave all pets at home except service dogs. The Prairie Crossing Farm is a smoke-free facility. Visitors are encouraged to bring a reusable water bottle and will have water coolers for refilling them.
The Liberty Prairie Foundation's Farm Business Development Center prepares new farmers to meet the demand for locally-grown organic food in the Chicago region. Farmers build their business with affordable access to certified organic land and access to experienced mentor farmers (Sandhill Family Farms), gradually scaling up to launch at a more permanent site.
Visit www.libertyprairie.org for information on the Liberty Prairie Foundation.