Farm Experiences & Farmers’ Markets

It’s no surprise that Maine has fantastic agricultural attractions — the state is home to generations of family farmers and a culture that has valued farm-to-table long before the term had even been coined. In Maine, roadside farm stands and weekly farmers’ markets are a beloved staple of everyday life. It’s not uncommon to still find unstaffed cash boxes, dependent on the honor system. Other agricultural attractions have long been favorites of the state as well.

Local Farms to Visit

Smiling Hill Farm

Smiling Hill Farm in Westbrook is owned and operated by a 12th-generation family, and visitors are always welcome. Free and open to the public, Smiling Hill allows you to take part in daily farm chores, feed and pet animals like baby goats and donkeys, shop for fresh-bottled milk and cheese at the market or simply stroll around, enjoying life on the farm. Little has changed since the 1700s, and you can see the pride the Knight family has in their farm.

Pineland Farms

Pineland Farms in New Gloucester is situated on 5,000 acres of farmland and offers a number of family programs designed to educate and inspire guests — from cozy story time with barn animals to walks through the farm’s woods and flower-filled gardens. You can pitch in on daily farm activities like milking cows, collecting eggs or brushing a soft bunny. The farm also offers seasonal workshops throughout the year to teach skills such as making butter, ice cream, salsa and dilly beans, as well as maple sugaring.

The Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment

The Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment is another wonderful place to learn about Maine farming. Located in Freeport, the center is free and open to the public from dawn to dusk and offers inexpensive educational programs for the whole family. Children can help with farm chores, go on a goat hike, see how they tend and milk their herd of cows and sample Stonyfield Farm’s yogurt made from the milk. There are birding walks and a program where you harvest your own breakfast ingredients, which are then prepared by the farm chef.

Farmers’ Markets

Buying Maine’s local produce isn’t just shopping, it’s part of the experience. Just the term “farmers market” heightens the senses to the sights, sounds, smells and, especially, tastes. Here, you’ll dial it all up a notch, because the produce is as fresh as fresh gets — locally grown and locally loved. Prepare your tastebuds for baked goods like chewy chocolate chip cookies and gooey cinnamon rolls straight out of the oven. You’ll also find arts and crafts vendors showing the kind of creativity and handcrafting Maine is famous for.

Winter Farmers’ Market

Few things are more welcoming in winter than the warmhearted feeling you get at a Maine winter farm market. This is the place to find the best local foods, including fresh produce — perhaps to complete a hearty soup recipe for the season — along with warm baked goods, fresh cheese and meats. There are also Maine-made arts, crafts and gifts. It’s a great way to support the local folks who are always happy to make your acquaintance — and to make your winter a little brighter and tastier.

Apple Orchards and Blueberry Farms

The only thing that makes a ripe, juicy piece of fresh fruit better is if you picked it yourself in Maine. There are plenty of ways to make that happen at pick-your-own farms and orchards throughout the state. Blueberries and apples are always top of mind, but you can also get your hands on the very best strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and peaches. It all depends on the time of the year and your fresh-fruit state of mind.

Apple Picking

Early September is the time to sink your teeth into the first set of ripe apples in Maine (please pull them from the tree first). With pick-your-own orchards and farms in plentiful supply, you’ll have more options than you could shake an apple-on-a-stick at. At that time of year, you’re also likely to find family-friendly hayrides, winding corn mazes or refreshing apple cider stands. You’ll find more than 20 varieties of Maine apples throughout apple picking season — and never a shortage of fun.

Blueberry Picking

Blueberries are to fruit what lobster is to seafood in Maine. In other words, the best. You can taste them for yourself at the end of July and early August, as they ripen at pick-your-own blueberry farms throughout Maine. There’s a reason the wild blueberry (aka low-bush blueberry) is the state’s official fruit. Turns out, Maine’s glacier-churned soil and hardy seasons produce a smaller berry than the high-bush variety. Resulting, as their fans are quick to tell you, in a juicier, more flavorful berry — and a delicious, fun-filled, fresh-picked experience.

Fairs and Festivals

With waves of agriculture rolling across the state like the ocean off our coastline, it’s only natural that there are countless fairs and festivals across Maine, each celebrating in its own special way the bounty and the beauty that comes from this amazing patch of earth. Which is a long way of saying: Grab the family and check this out. Here are some samples:

Maine Potato Blossom Festival, Fort Fairfield

Since 1947, Aroostook County has hosted the Maine Potato Blossom Festival in Fort Fairfield. Potatoes are considered Aroostook County’s agricultural cornerstone. Each July, the potato-loving world is invited to enjoy dozens of family-friendly events, including live entertainment, one of Maine’s largest parades, fireworks, fireman’s muster, antique car show, cornhole tournament, Maine-made arts and crafts fair, barbecue cook-off, food trucks and so much more you won’t even know where to begin!

Maine Wild Blueberry Weekend, Statewide

The Wild Blueberry Weekend honors Maine’s delicious, healthy and iconic wild blueberry in all its antioxidant glory. It’s a statewide event, with Mainers and visitors invited to celebrate the official state fruit and enjoy food, drink and the beautiful bounty of the Maine summer. Participating will be 15+ wild blueberry farms and 40+ restaurants, bars, wineries and distilleries. It’s in early August, to align with the first crop of the blueberry season.

Common Ground Fair, Unity

Could there be a better-named town than Unity to host an agricultural fair celebrating organic living, farming and growing? The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association didn’t think so either, so Unity has been just the place since 1977. It’s also been the watchword for responsibility, innovation and creativity. Highlights are a working organic farm, organic orchards and demonstration gardens, with hundreds of exhibitors, music, dance and amazing organic foods.

Damariscotta Pumpkinfest & Regatta, Damariscotta

For 10 days in early August, the Damariscotta Pumpkinfest & Regatta promotes horticultural education in the science of growing Atlantic Giant Pumpkins. Didn’t know AGPs were a thing? In Maine, they’re massive, growing to weights between 400 and 700 pounds. That’s where the regatta part comes in — in the form of gargantuan, hollowed-out pumpkins to be paddled or piloted (some have motors attached) in a race in Damariscotta Harbor.

Harvest on the Harbor, Portland

Stroll the streets of Portland and it’s impossible to miss the enticing aromas from the local restaurants and eateries. Surf the food channels or skim some epicurean magazines and it’s impossible to miss Portland’s mercurial rise in the foodie chain. Harvest on the Harbor goes all in to serve it all up, celebrating Portland and Maine’s local and independently owned restaurants and their crave-worthy, award-winning cuisine, beers, ciders, wines and spirits. Enjoy.