Farms

April 2012 Events

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Come see over 10,000 tulips at the Crystal Hermitage Gardens Tulip Open House. The  dates this year are April 7 & 8 and April 14 & 15 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. This is a free event with live music, refreshments and gardening questions and answers. The Crystal Hermitage Gardens are located in the Ananda Village, just 15 miles from the Broad Street Inn. It is also possible to see the tulips on self-guided tours throughout the month of April between 8:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M. Check out our pictures of the tulips from last year on Flickr!

Community Asian Theatre of the Sierra (CATS) opens its 18th season with The Teahouse of the August Moon. This Tony Award winning play was first adapted by the 1951 novel, then opened on Broadway in 1953, and later MGM produced a movie in 1956. This comedy takes place in a tiny Okinawa village from 1945 to 1952. It is a clash of cultures as Captain Fisby begins the process of “Americanization”. The play runs from April 12 through May 5 at the Nevada Theatre. Show times and tickets are available HERE. (You may have seen CATS’ incredible production of The King and I last year.)

Take a hike! Docent guided Wild Flower Walks will be held every weekend beginning March 17 through May 13 from 11:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. at the South Yuba River State Park. Bring a lunch, snacks, good walking shoes and a camera. Take in the flowers and views of the South Yuba River on the Buttermilk Bend Trail. For more information call the Park Visitor Center at 530-432-2546 or visit their website at www.southyubariverstatepark.org. This is a fun, family event and you can support our local park by donating a suggested $3.

For a new way to see Nevada City, go on a food tour! We highly recommend Local Roots Food Tours for a fun and interesting way to discover Nevada City for first-time tourists or return visitors. Read our blog on our food tour experience by clicking on the blog tab above or clicking HERE.

Once a month, join local bird expert Bill Cortright on a birding expedition along the South Fork of the Yuba River. The 2012 schedule is posted on the South Yuba River State Park website or click HERE.

SYRCL's Wild & Scenic Film Festival

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Come into town for SYRCL‘s 10th annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival! The three-day environmental film festival takes place on January 13, 14, and 15 in and around Nevada City. Each year, the Festival draws in top filmmakers, celebrities, leading activists, social innovators and well-known world adventurers to the largest film festival of it’s kind. The films show all over Nevada City, including the Miners Foundry, the Nevada Theatre, the Veterans Hall, and many more locations. This is one of Nevada City’s biggest events and is worth going to! If you plan on coming next year, make your reservations as soon as possible. Accommodations fill up as far as one year in advance. We hope you can join us for this fabulous, one-of-a-kind festival! If you’ve never been to the festival, check out this article “How to Festival” for tips and answers to the most popular questions. Tickets are available online now. Volunteers are always needed at the film festival. If you want a free pass for films and love to help, consider volunteering at the festival! You can register HERE.

SYRCL (South Yuba River Citizens League) has been working hard to protect and restore the Yuba River since 1983. Read more about the organization on their website.

Bishop's Pumpkin Farm

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One of the greatest things about this area is the abundance of farms. This weekend we visited Bishop’s Pumpkin Farm in Wheatland, which is only about 45 minutes from Nevada City. Bishop’s has a ton of fun activities for the whole family! Parking is $10, but there is no admission fee. The food was delicious, homemade, and very affordable (we got 3 cinnamon rolls, a caramel apple, a water, and a cookie for $11). They have turkey legs, grilled corn on the cob, corn dogs, and sweet treats like cinnamon rolls and cookies. Mrs. B and Farmer Bill are the owners, and Mrs. B sells her famous pies. There is a fun train ride that goes through the pumpkin patch and flower garden (where you can pick your own flowers for a bouquet). There’s a corn maze and a sunflower labyrinth that require tickets (as does the train) but are pretty reasonably priced. The corn maze was so big, we didn’t have time to do it. You can pick your own pumpkin or pick one off of the wagons on the way out. They had at least 20 different varieties of pumpkins. Bishop’s is a great day trip to take with the family and is less than hour from Broad Street Inn! Check out pictures from our adventures on our Flickr HERE. If you are looking for something closer to Nevada City, every weekend in October, Bierwagen’s Pumpkin Patch is only 15 minutes away and offers fresh pressed cider, homemade caramel apples, and pumpkins on their farm in Chicago Park. The family-owned and run apple farm sells their apples, cider, and other produce. Happy Fall!

 

 

 

Fowler Family Farm

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Last week, we visited Fowler Family Farm, owned by Brad and Alana (plus their 5 daughters Macey, Molly, Morgan, Wyatt, and Wendy) in Grass Valley. The family-run farm raises turkeys, chickens, pigs, goats, and cows. They sell their meat and eggs at the Saturday Farmers Market in Nevada City, as well as through a CSA. The chickens are free-range and have plenty of room to run around and eat bugs. The pigs are happy to get splashed with water by the girls and sleep under the big oak trees. The turkeys are also free range and are ready by Thanksgiving. They’re processed just a few days before T-Day so you don’t have to freeze or thaw out the bird! We are so happy to see another farm in our community that raises good, wholesome food with love and compassion. Check out more pictures HERE.

Lost Hill Farm

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Today, we took a short walk up American Hill Road to visit a small farm known as Lost Hill Farm. Juniper is the gardener and owner of Lost Hill Farm, along with a few interns part of the Living Lands Agrarian Network. Tim Van Wagner started the Living Lands Agrarian Network to offer training and mentorship to the next generation of farmers. (Tim Van Wagner is the brother to Wendy Van Wagner, who owns In the Kitchen on Zion Street where they often use veggies and herbs from LLAN gardens). Read more about the non-profit here. We usually take our resident pup, Dot, for a walk right by Lost Hill Farm. We have seen the land transform over the past year from an empty, dry field to a thriving, groomed garden. Juniper was born and raised in Southern California. She moved to Virginia and caught the gardening “bug”. She loves to garden and spend time outdoors. She moved back to California and started Lost Hill Farm. She is a part of Living Lands Agrarian Network. She does most of the gardening herself, but donates some of her land to the interns at LLAN and in turn gets a little help. Every Thursday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. she sets up her garden stand and sells her crops. She asks only for a donation, or to pay what you can. Currently she has kumquats, bok choy, arugula, spinach, turnips, and radishes at her farm stand.