Save the Date for our Forth Annual Soil Fest at White Feather Farm!

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Join us for a celebration of soil at White Feather Farm's Soil Fest on Saturday, July 26th, 2025! Immerse yourself in a day filled with FREE workshops, demonstrations, and activities that highlight the importance of healthy soil for our environment and well-being.

One of the day’s highlights is the Underground Puppet Workshop & Procession of the Bugs with artists Alex Kahn and Sophia Michahelles of Processional Arts! At the end of the day, everyone is invited to join a joyful procession around the farm, celebrating the vital work these tiny but mighty underground creatures do to power the life cycles of our gardens and farms.

Day Schedule:

• Farm Stand Open | 9am-2pm

  Shop for delicious, locally grown, organic veggies and more! We accept cash, card, and SNAP.

• BYO Soil Testing w/ USDA SoilSHOP | 10am–2pm

  Drop off a sample of soil gathered from your garden or outdoor play area for a lead screening by the USDA. By detecting and addressing soil health, you can take steps to mitigate exposure risks and safeguard your health and well-being. This event is ongoing, you can enjoy our Soil Fest events while you wait for results!
  

• Soil Safari | 10am-2pm

  Embark on a soil safari adventure, where we'll roll up our sleeves and dive into the earth to uncover the hidden world of creatures and ecosystems lurking beneath the surface.This is an ongoing event and self guided experience, parents must be present with their children.

• Farm Tours | 10:30am, 12:30pm

  Join Farm Manager Celia Fay on a visit around the farm.

• Soil Stew Workshop | 11:30am

  Join our Farmer Amanda to explore regenerative practices that enhance soil health and biology. Learn how to create nutrient-rich compost tea by steeping compost in water, providing a liquid fertilizer that boosts microbial activity in your soil.

• Biochar Demonstrations | 11am-2pm

  Join Director of Sustainability Bill Hilgendorf to learn how to turn backyard brush and prunings into biochar, a unique way to address climate change by disrupting the carbon cycle through carbon sequestration. Don’t burn that pile, turn it into Biochar.

• Processional Arts Puppet Making | 10am-2pm

  Drop by anytime to help create larger-than-life, articulated puppets of soil-dwelling invertebrates, millipedes, worms, roly-polies, and more, using everyday and upcycled materials. This hands-on workshop is open to all ages, and the more makers we have, the grander procession will be! Procession of the Bugs will start at 1:40pm.

• Soil Painting Kids Activity | 10am-noon

  What is soil? What does it feel, look, smell like? In this session combining art and science, young investigators will use all their senses to examine the natural colors and textures under their feet. With a mortar and pestle, they will turn soil samples into pigments to manufacture paint as old masters did. Now our young artists are ready to create beautiful earth tone masterpieces!

• Upstate Bowls Food Pop-Up | 11am-2pm

  Delicious and nutritious food available for purchase!

All events are free & open to the public. Come for the learning, stay for the puppets, and leave with a deeper connection to the ground beneath your feet.

Funded in part by the New York State Council on the Arts and Ulster Savings Community Foundation.