Digby County Exhibition Grounds, Bear River

Explore how today’s small-scale farmers are building on the strong foundation of traditional farming knowledge and practices with modern production technology, farm business management and marketing.

The Celebration of Small-scale Farming takes place on Monday, July 22 at the Digby County Exhibition Grounds, 854 Riverview Road, Bear River

This year, the Celebration of Small-Scale Farming is brought to you by the Nova Scotia Department of Agriculture, Perennia and the Digby County 4-H Council.

Registration fee: $20/person, $40/family (children under 12 free) –
Registration includes $5 in coupons ($10 for families) for use with the local food vendors selling food on site.

This year, food will be provided by the Orange Ukelele Food Truck, D’Aubin Family Meats, and Digby County 4-H.

Online Registration (provided by Perennia)   |   Schedule   |   Poster
For questions about the program or how to register, please call
Gina at (902)638-2395 or email: saulnigl@gov.ns.ca

Google map directions to Digby County Exhibition Grounds

Financial Sponsors:

• Rural Delivery
• THINKFARM
• Digby Federation of Agriculture
• Annapolis Ventures, Digby-Clare, and Yarmouth Community Business Development Corporations
• Perennia
• Nova Scotia Department of Economic and Rural Development and Tourism
• Just Us! Centre for Small Farms

Workshop Descriptions:

• Grass Farming 101
• Pastured Pork
• Pastured Poultry
• Sheep Shearing
• Commercial Cheese-Making
• Agri-tourism
• Selling Vegetables at Farmers’ Markets
• Jams and Jellies
• Cut Flower Production
• Seed Saving as a Business
• Pushing the Climate Boundary for Vegetables
• Hops Production

Interactive Stations

During the lunch break, enjoy delicious local food and wander around to our interactive sessions. Ask questions and watch short demonstrations of practical skills.

• Plant Teas: Brewing and Applying
• Basket Weaving
• Fibre Arts
• Forage Clinic
  Growing good pasture, hay or silage is a science and an art, one that the health of your cattle, sheep and goats depends on! Bring in a sample of your first cut hay or silage or some of what’s growing in your pasture. Jack van Roestel, Perennia forage specialist, will give you a professional opinion on its quality and advice on how to improve. Hay and silage samples should be a few pounds worth of randomly selected material. For pasture samples, cut to about 1” from the ground about 1 m2 worth of material from a representative section of the field the night before, place it in a sealed plastic bag and store it in your refrigerator. Or cut it in the morning before you leave.
• Soil Clinic
  Everything in agriculture depends on the soil! Bring soil samples, photos or descriptions of the problem to Amy Sangster, Perennia soil specialist and she’ll help you find some solutions! Amy will also hand out her Soil Health scorecard and describe how to use it.

Advertise Your Business or Farm Organization at the Celebration of Small-Scale Farming

Now in its fourth year, the Celebration of Small-Scale Farming attracts more than 150 new, aspiring and experienced farmers from across Nova Scotia to a day of farmer-led workshops. Workshop participants are looking for affordable, practical solutions for maintaining sustainable and self-sufficient farms. Let them know what your organization has to offer.

We can help you promote your business or organization at this year’s Celebration of Small-Scale Farming. A limited number of trade show booths are available onsite. We can also include your flyer or brochure in our registration kits.

Trade Show Booth fee: $50 + HST
Literature Distribution fee: $50 + HST

For more information, contact Becky Sooksom at sooksord@gov.ns.ca or call  (902) 893-5649.