.png)
Liberty Prairie's May 10 Plant Sale/ Farm Festival Beckons You
- Bob Benenson
- Mar 31
- 2 min read
Visit the Farm, Buy Local Food, Tour a Conservation Community in Grayslake
Whether you live in northeastern Illinois' Lake County or would like to take a drive for spring fun on a farm, save the date of Saturday, May 10 for the Liberty Prairie non-profit's Spring Plant Sale and Farm Festival in Grayslake.
The event takes place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at The Prairie Crossing Conservation Farm, 550 Harris Road. Here are the details from the organizers.
Join Liberty Prairie and Grayslake High School District 127 for our annual Spring Plant Sale and Farm Festival.
Grayslake Central and North High School students grow the vegetables, herbs, and flowers offered for sale. We also partner with Possibility Place Nursery to offer a wide variety of native perennial plants, and Vermont Compost and DK Organics to offer organic mulches. Handcrafted garden items will also be available.
In addition to the plant sale, we have a slate of family-friendly activities planned for the day, including:
Sheep shearing
Farm wagon rides
Student-led farm tours
Feeding the farm animals
Student performances
Silent auction
Snacks, refreshments and more!
Finally, stop by the Community Gardens between 12-5pm to learn about home composting techniques suitable for gardeners. This program is part of International Compost Awareness Week, presented locally by the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County.
All proceeds support sustainable agriculture and education. Thank you for your support!
Grayslake, an outer Chicago suburb near Illinois's northeast corner, became a focal point for sustainable development in 1993 when then-new Liberty Prairie Foundation launched Prairie Crossing, a conservation-focused "agri-community."
Over the next 25 years, the foundation funded sustainable agriculture and land access activities, including an incubator in Prairie Crossing called the Farm Business Development Center (FBDC). Among the graduates were Jen and Jeff Miller, who first partnered with an existing farm on the foundation's land holding, then in 2017 started their own Prairie Wind Family Farm and built a loyal clientele for its community supported agriculture (CSA) subscriptions.
The foundation's funding mission ran its course, though, and in 2022, with the hiring of Karen Wilkes as executive director, set a new course. Dropping "Foundation" from its name, it became the Liberty Prairie non-profit, focused strongly on food system education and sustainable land management. And early in 2023, the Millers' farm merged into Liberty Prairie.
Along with the Plant Sale and Farm Festival on May 10, you'll also have the opportunity to buy hyperlocal produce from Prairie Crossing Farm, as well as other better-for-people-and-the-planet products, at the Liberty Prairie Farm Store.
It is located about a mile and a half from the farm on the opposite side of the Prairie Crossing agri-community — and on your way over, you can do a self-tour of the community, where many of the residents let their lawns grow wild.
Hope to see you there on May 10.
Comments