Living History Farms, Gardens In Mercer County Opens For Tours

MERCER COUNTY, NJ — Registration is now open for tours of the fields and gardens where Howell Living History Farm is producing crops for local food pantries and soup kitchens, Mercer County officials announced.

Beginning Tuesday, “Share the Harvest” tours will be offered on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m., 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., and 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Tours are free and open to the public. Those interested must pre-register through Community Pass in order to reserve a ticket. Tickets can only be reserved online; there will be no tickets available at the facility.

There is a six-ticket maximum per person; all visitors must have a ticket to enter. Use of a face mask is required. To view available dates and times, visit https://register.communitypass.net/reg/.

Tours take about one hour to complete, and visitors will be guided past fields, gardens and barns for a close-up look at the corn, oats, wheat, vegetables and eggs being donated to Mercer County’s food pantries, food banks and soup kitchens this summer and fall.

Visitors will use interactive maps during the tour and learn about each production area through a crop-themed crossword puzzle.

An Instagram photo contest and a match game will challenge youngsters to identify vegetables grown in the farm’s market garden. Guests who complete the crossword puzzle receive a sample bag of the farm’s whole wheat flour and a recipe card to take home.

Tickets must be presented when arriving at the farm gate, and are good only for the 90-minute tour session reserved. Bathrooms and porta-johns are open, but stream crossings, play areas, trails and off-tour areas will remain closed to the public. Picnicking and tailgating are not permitted.

Howell Living History Farm is not yet open for general admission or weekly programming.

For more information about the farm or other Mercer County Park Commission facilities, visit www.mercercountyparks.org, or call the farm office at 609-737-3299.