UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The 7th annual Harvest Fest on the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm at Penn State will be held from 5-8 p.m. on Sept. 15. All are welcome to kick off the fall season and enjoy the outdoors at the farm.
The celebration will feature activities including a musical performance by local musicians Tyne and the Fastlyne, freshly prepared food tastings with seasonal crops, and an up-close view of the diversified vegetable farm.
Visitors can also plant their own succulent for $5 (free for Penn State students with an ID, courtesy of the University Park Student Fee). Non-students can pay with cash or check.
Harvest Fest will have activities for all ages. Other activities include coloring bookmarks with natural dyes from plants grown on the farm, hands-on apple peeling with an antique peeler, and face painting.
Free buses will be available to take guests to and from campus throughout the event. The blue event buses will board at the Curtin Road bus pull-off near the Creamery. For more information about transportation to the farm, visit the Ross Student Farm’s website.
An exciting new feature at this year’s Harvest Fest will be a ceremonial tree planting on the farm. Dan Hill, the caretaker of the Cayuga SHARE (Strengthening Haudenosaunee-American Relations through Education) Farm, gifted a catalpa tree to the Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm when Hollie Kulago (Diné), associate professor in the College of Education, visited the farm earlier this year. Kulago hopes to begin a relationship that will become a pathway for Penn State University to support the Cayuga SHARE farm and Indigenous sovereignty.
“The SHARE Farm is a great example of how allies and Indigenous communities can collaborate through educational experiences to support Indigenous sovereignty and self-determination,” Kulago said. “Attend the Harvest Fest to learn more about the SHARE farm and supporting Indigenous peoples, communities and nations.”
Ross Student Farm interns and Student Farm Club members have been working for months to plan this event. Olivia Kranefuss, a Student Farm Club member and lead planner for the festival, is looking forward to hosting both new and returning members of our campus and surrounding community.
“We’re so excited to invite people to experience the final days of summer on the farm,” Kranefuss said. “All the flowers, fresh food and sun!”
This year’s Harvest Fest is made possible in part by a sponsorship from Nestlé and the support of Penn State Auxiliary and Business Services, whose chefs will be preparing food tastings.
For more information, visit Harvest Fest.