ALLEGANY — Area residents who are ready to welcome in spring after a very long winter will likely enjoy Canticle Farm’s Earth Day activities from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday at 3835 Nine Mile Road.
The event, which is free and open to the community, will have activities that include starting a seed and taking it home, learning veggie tips and their preparation and participating in farm tours. The operation of the all-natural, community-run farm is owned and overseen by the Franciscan Sisters of Allegany. The farm, which has community shareholders, also provides shares to several area charities.
Other activities at the Earth Day event — held the day before Earth Day 2018, which is Sunday — will include an upcycled craft event, conducted by staff member Kelly Hendrix, who will show participants how to make a craft from a discarded item.
“Last year, they used metal Coke bottles, silverware and other metal containers to make windchimes,” said Sister Melissa Scholl, president of the farm. “But it won’t be that involved this year.”
She said other fun events for youngsters will include a scarecrow workshop and kids’ yoga.
“One of the (new) things is they’re going to harvest spring carrots and they’ve invited everyone who wants to come and help,” she said, adding the harvest will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. before the other activities start.
She said students from nearby St. Bonaventure University and the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford (Pa.) had volunteered to dig some of the spring carrots earlier in March but hadn’t been able to complete the work due to cold weather.
“Because of the weather, it has to be finished,” she said. “Anyone can help, but you should wear your muk luks and a sweater — and if you have gloves, bring them.
“Basically, the people who know what they’re doing will pull the carrots out of the ground, clean them off a little bit and throw them on the ground,” she continued. Volunteers will be asked to pick them up and throw them in storage bins.
Scholl said that while the event is a way to work hand-in-hand with the community, organizers also have a goal of introducing the facility to those who have never visited it.
“We want to invite people to come and experience it if they haven’t,” she remarked. “It also will provide time for parents and children to do something together.”
