6 Reasons to Visit a Farm

Over the past three months, we have begun opening the farm to small groups of people for farm tours. School classes have visited for a day of outdoor education too. If you’ve never visited a farm or stayed at a farm overnight, you’re missing out. There is so much to see and learn, no matter what age you are. The health benefits when you visit a farm are numerous. Simply put, a day trip to a farm is a day well spent. And a few days staying in a cabin or glamping only enhances the experiences. Here’s what you gain when you visit a farm.

Visit a Farm to See How Food is Produced

One of the best reasons to visit a farm is to see how food is produced. As busy people, we dash to the supermarket and buy bunches of grapes on plastic bags and meat wrapped on a tray with little thought to the production. But many of us are being more intentional with what we put into our bodies these days. Knowing where our food comes from produced and how it grows is important. When you see how small producers care for animals and grow our gardens without chemicals, you develop a greater respect for the food. Seeing that a piece of steak is actually a cow might be hard but it makes you appreciate your food.

Visit a Farm for Delicious Produce

There is a certain crispy taste to freshly picked vegetables and fruit. That taste can’t be replicated in a mass-produced garden. The eggs from true free-range happy chooks are yellower. The cheese is creamier. When you visit a farm, you taste food straight from the garden. There’s nothing like picking your own and eating it.

Support the Farmer

Meeting the people who produce our food is one thing you gain from a visit to a farm. Farmers have so much knowledge about the environment, the weather patterns. They are a wealth of knowledge. And many of the ‘tree change’ farmers have reverted to more traditional farming practices. They understand the importance of preserving their patch of the planet and can provide us with lessons in how to do so.

By visiting a farm you are supporting small businesses. Many local farmers use visits, roadside stalls, and sales directly to the public as a side hustle. It could even be their main source of income. When you purchase straight from the grower you know the provenance of your food. You’re also keeping that grower in business.

How’s the Serenity

Okay. It’s quieter in the country. In fact, it’s so quiet when you live on a farm you can actually HEAR the different birds singing and identify their calls. There is no better stress reliever than standing in the middle of an empty expanse of paddock staring at the sky. Seeing a lamb take its first wobbly steps has an instant calming effect. As does cuddling a chicken or feeding a goat. The lowering of your blood pressure is measurable after a few days staying at a farm and waking to the birdsong.

Even better, the wifi in rural areas of Australia is often quite sketchy, so if you want a detox from all things social media a farm stay is the perfect holiday. Turning off your phone and focussing on your surroundings, chatting to the locals and learning something new is a great way to spend a weekend. Try it. You’ll see I’m right.

Experience Old-Fashioned Hospitality

Many people who live on a farm do things the old-fashioned way. Not because they are behind the times, but because welcoming guests is a big deal. For us, a visitor has driven at least an hour to come to the farm. That means they deserve a warm welcome and a batch of scones. Or a cuppa and a biscuit at the very least. If you go to visit or stay at a farm you are likely to get a very warm welcome. Farmers love to talk because they don’t see people much. A visitor to the farm is an occasion for us. We love to provide country-style hospitality. It’s not that our friends don’t do that when we visit the city but there’s something special about homemade hospitality.

Farm Animals

There is nothing cuter than a baby animal, no matter what species. When you visit a farm the chances are there will be a baby of some kind. Patting a baby cow or holding a lamb is the best medicine for a case of the winter blues. It’s beautiful to watch the faces of children and adults alike change when they are holding or feeding one of our animals. It has such a calming effect.