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Date: 8/16/2023
SOUTHWICK — To recognize the important role agriculture has played in Southwick for over 250 years, the town’s Agriculture Commission is hosting its inaugural Farm Day on Sunday, Aug. 20, from noon to 4 p.m.
“This will give folks a chance to see how these farms work, the daily lives of farmers, the long history of farming in Southwick, raise awareness, and it will be a lot of fun,” said Burt Hansen Jr., the chair of the Agricultural Commission.
There are nine farms participating in the event, in addition to the town’s Historical Society, and each is offering a unique farming experience.
At Calabrese Farm, 257 Feeding Hills Rd., the Calabrese family will have a display of the fresh, hand-picked produce it provides to those who stop at it farm stand and local grocery stores.
“We want to let folks know where their food comes from and the pride we take in it,” said Joe Calabrese, the farm’s manager, and part of the family’s third generation of working vegetable fields around town.
“This is a real family affair … not a corporate farm,” Calabrese said.
Joe Calabrese’s mother, Donna Calabrese, said she’s hoping the Farm Day event will allow folks learn about the eastern area of town.
“We also want people to know there is another section of Southwick,” she said about how many people think only of the College Highway business corridor.
In addition to the demonstration, the farm stand will be open for those who want to pick up some fresh produce, nearly all of it handpicked only hours before.
“That corn was picked just yesterday afternoon,” Joe Calabrese said, pointing to pile of corn at the stand.
Blossoming Acres, at 249 College Hwy., will offer hay rides through its fields during the event.
Though Coward Farms, 150 College Hwy., is closed until Sept. 1, Hansen said it will open up on Sunday for the event.
The farm opens each spring on May 1 and through July 3 offers a wide assortment of flowers, shrubs, trees, herbs, and succulents.
During Farm Day, the Coward family will give everyone a chance to see the effort it takes growing Christmas trees (each takes up to seven years of care before it is ready to cut), which it starts selling the Friday after Thanksgiving. The Cowards grow balsam, Fraser and concolor firs, and blue spruce.
The Dwight Arnold Tobacco Farm is another of the places folks can stop during Farm Day. At 73 Sheep Pasture Rd., four generations of Arnolds have been growing tobacco used as wrappers for some of the world’s most prestigious cigar brands. These days, the farm has added broadleaf tobacco to the shade tobacco it grew for over 100 years.
Farm Day attendees will have a rare chance to step inside a barn curing boardleaf tobacco leaves, Arnold said, adding that the unique and pungent smell of the curing leaves is not soon forgotten.
In addition to the equipment used to plant and harvest tobacco, attendees will also get to see a tobacco barn built in the 1870s, used by the first Arnold in Southwick to grow tobacco.
Dwight’s wife Karen has grown a patch of sunflowers along Sheep Pasture Road this summer and she will be offering them for free during Farm Day — the patch is hard to miss along the road, Hansen said.
Also on the farm tour is Firefly Fields, at 9 Babbs Rd., Hansen said. Firefly has a petting zoo so children and adults can spend some quality time with goats, rabbits, sheep, chickens, miniature horses, perhaps a pig or two, and a donkey.
Kline View Stables, 53 Kline Rd., will walk attendees through the work involved in boarding and training horses. It will also be offering free pony rides during Farm Day, Hansen said.
Solek Farms, at 230 Granville Rd., raises corn, wheat, soybeans, hay and cattle, and will give attendees an peek into its cattle operation. To see some cows up-close, this is the place, Hansen said.
In addition, an apiary, 413B, will give a honey tasting during the event, he said, adding the Soleks will also have on display antique tractors and the implements used in the fields.
Bisi Farm is a former dairy operation at 146 S. Longyard Rd. Hansen said the farm’s property backs up to Provin Mountain and offers spectacular views of the town, and its owner, Roger Bisi (pronounced “bizi”), will be taking folks on a tractor ride into those areas.
The Southwick Historical Society’s museum at 86-88 College Hwy. will have special open hours on Farm Day. Hansen said two of the society’s docents will discuss the history of farming in Southwick.
Attendees can pick up a “passport” at any of the participating farms, and have it stamped at each stop they make. They should drop off their stamped passports at the final farm they visit. During the Aug. 23 meeting of the Agriculture Commission, the passports will be entered into a random drawing for prizes, Hansen said.
He also wanted to recognize several businesses and organizations that are helping sponsor the event: The Launch, High Standard Transportation, B&E Tool Company, VCA Animal Hospital, Terra Americana, Sonicron Systems Corp., College Highway Insurance Agency, The Mason Insurance Agency and Westfield Bank.