TOMPKINS COUNTY
FARM CITY DAY

2005 Host: Freebrook Farm

Kermit and Geraldine Marquis and their family look forward to welcoming visitors to their 250-acre farm at 39 Fall Creek Road for this year's Farm City Day - a free, family oriented, educational event offering the public a chance to visit a working farm and learn about agriculture through nearly 50 different exhibits, hands-on activities and demonstrations.

Freebrook Farm has been in the Marquis family for nearly 70 years, and was a dairy farm until Kermit retired in 1992. The family currently raises draft horses, which pull an assortment of buggies, carriages and wagons for parades, weddings, parties and tours of the farm. One of the Farm City Day highlights will be the horse-drawn wagon ride farm tour, which will introduce visitors to the field crops on Freebrook farm and also the vegetable crops on the neighboring Thompson Research Farm.

Horses are not new to the farm; Kermit's parents, James and Ethel, worked the farm with horses before the advent of the tractor, and there was a team on the farm until Kermit was 21. In fact, many horse drawn farm implements will be display for Farm City Day, in addition to a number of antique buggies and carriages. Geraldine recalls that when their children were young they all had their own horses, and Kermit decided he wanted some, too. That desire motivated them to buy their first draft horse in 1977 and led to as many as 17 at one time, in addition to 15 quarter horses. Visitors can expect to see several different draft horse breeds at the event, as well as other farm animals, including sheep, goats and dairy calves all up close and personal.

Another treat for the day will be a demonstration of a Border Collie working with a small flock of sheep. Sharon Garland, a local sheep farmer, will share information about the breed, their innate abilities and how she trains them, and then will amaze visitors with how well the dog understands its tasks and performs them. After seeing the sheep on the hoof, watch wool spinning and check out the many different types of fiber available to spinners.

Plan to spend the day at the farm, because that's how long it will take you to see and do everything offered and you won't want to miss a thing! Learn about farm practices that protect our watershed, how farmers grown and mix healthy food for livestock, and the great big important role the little tiny honeybee plays in successful farming. Sample some delicious and nutritious local foods; there will even be a food concession stand run by area 4-H'ers for when you get hungry from all the fresh air and fun. A special activity especially enjoyed by children is the Farm Fact Find Passport to Fun . Upon arrival, children receive a colorful passport on a lanyard directing them to visit different exhibitors. The passport includes specific questions to ask related to the exhibits' theme. The child asks a question, receives some information about the topic that includes the answer, and then gets a sticker or stamp for their passport. As they leave the event, the child shows their passport and receives a bag of fun farm activities to take with them.

The Ag in the Classroom Auction at Farm City Day is an event within an event, and it's a real gem. Over 100 goods and services from many local businesses, such as restaurants, specialty shops, museums and artists, are featured in this huge silent auction. Proceeds benefit the county's Ag in the Classroom Program in local schools, resulting in the availability of many high quality resources loaned free of charge to public and private classrooms and home schoolers.

Farm City Day is coordinated by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County on behalf of the County's Agriculture and Farmland Protection Board. The event receives generous support from local farms, agricultural businesses, organizations and agencies.

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