This past weekend, May 1-2, marked the 16th Annual Spring Planting Festival at Baker’s Creek Farms. Each year, the festival brings in over 10,000 guests to get together and share knowledge, products, and entertainment around sustainable agriculture. Baker’s Creek is famous for their production of heirloom vegetables with over 1800 varieties from over 75 different countries. Farmers and plant enthusiasts come down to their Ozark farm (which happens to be right down the street from the historic Laura Ingalls Wilder home) from all over the country to see what’s hot on the agriculture scene.
Priding themselves on variety, the festival proved to demonstrate keen roots in local and non-local plants, as well as techniques, and how to apply them to your own efforts. In just one day, we were able to pickup the locally endangered Ivan tomato as well as sit in a seminar about an herbalist who has hundreds of herbs from across the globe growing in his own back yard here in Missouri.
Did you know: Mountain Mint is the only native mint to the United States?
As you galavant through the market ways, your ears are graced with the sweet sounds of bluegrass strung through the bright spring air.
Families are toting around wagons full of fresh little seedlings. The varieties available from the different vendors seemed endless. From hops to sugar cane, we picked up a myriad of different plants to play with now; an exciting array of editable plants to explore with in the kitchen!
One of the biggest highlights of the weekend event is that the epic heirloom seed shop, which is the farm’s claim to fame, has a big spring planting sale offering their seed packets for just $2 a pop.
PROTIP: Hit the seed store towards the end of the day to avoid the lines.
And for those who are traveling in, camping is available on site for the festival weekend, and you don’t have to leave your dog at home! (Next year we will definitely be taking advantage of this!)
In the meantime, here’s a break down of the newest garden editions for sowing and transplanting:
Transplant:
- Sugar Cane
- Hopps (Cascade, Centenniel, Chinuck)
- Lemongrass
- Lavendar (Provencal, French, English)
- Red Russian Kale
- Thyme
- Rhubard
- Strawberry Bush
- Echinacea
- Chamomille
- Dill
- Ivan Tomatoes
- Curry
- Marjoram
- Oregano
- Summer Squash
- Sweet Pepper
Sow:
- Amaranth (Love Lies Bleeding, Hopi Red Dye, Opopeo)
- Straight 8 Cucumber
- Arugula
- Eggplant
- Quinoa
- Flax
- Kentucky Wonder Pole beans
- Sugar Snap Peas
- Pumpkins
- Pak Choy
- Carrots
- Beets
- Garlic
- Onion