Home Gardening Display at the State Fair Offers Ideas for Urban Farmers (PHOTOS)

Once you travel beyond the deep fried fair food and hundreds of vendors, hidden behind the exhibition halls, you will find a huge, three-acre, tribute to California’s vast agricultural heritage, at an exhibit called, The Farm.

California gardeners got two green thumbs up for their above average participation in home gardening efforts last year, in a market study done by the Scarborough firm. Sacramento tied 4th in US cities in Top Local Market for Home Gardening, reporting 58% of Sacramento home owners had gardened within the previous 12-months. The national average was 49%.

The State Fair took note, recognizing a strong, community-wide desire to grow their own food, while acknowledging space can be limited, adding an exhibit called Urban Farming to The Farm this year.

As you walk beneath the trellised squash, you are surrounded by displays of square-foot gardening, vertical vegetables, meal specific groupings such as salsa or spaghetti, edible landscaping, companion planting and more. Each with detailed instructions, volunteers happy to explain, and a smartphone scanner for easy recall access when you get home.

You can learn tips on drought tolerant herbs from the water-wise-guys in the Save Our Water tent and get hands on cooking lessons in the daily, Dirt to Dish demonstration on the Bring the Farm Home patio.

Click here for water-wise irrigation tips. 

Click here for demonstration schedules.

For more garden tips from The Farm click here.