For us, having visitors on our farm is a double-edged sword. We love to have people come learn about ecological farming by seeing what we do.  It’s exciting when people are inspired to go pesticide-free in their own gardens or keep their own flock of egg-laying chickens, or when they’re wowed by how great our tomatoes and peppers and winter squash look in September. On the other hand, visitors can take a lot of time and energy, particularly on weekends, when we’re tired at the height of the season and are trying to get everything ready for three farmers markets. We simply don’t have the time or energy to thoroughly answer every eager customer’s questions.   

The last couple of years, we’ve put together self-guided tours of the farm. These 3-page tours and maps are available at our farm’s self-serve stand in our produce barn. Now, rather than giving quick answers to complicated questions, we can offer people the chance to see it for themselves, right on the farm. 

To set up the tour, we made signs with numbers mounted on T-posts that we can move around the farm. We printed copies of a map of the farm with 16 stops drawn in, and a path for people to walk. We made a key with an introduction to our farm and detailed descriptions of what we want to show people at each stop.

The self-guided tour is particularly useful for participating in “Farm Tour” events. These entertaining events bring people out to area farms in an effort to educate them about what’s going on in local agriculture. They can do a lot to bring people closer to their local farms and show how sustainable agriculture techniques work in the field. 

In our area, tours are typically on weekends in September. It’s a great time for people to come out to our farm since everything is beautiful and in full swing. It’s the overtime part of our season, however, and we are reluctant to add another event at that busy time. On farm tour days, we have one person (myself or an intern) at our barn signing people in and directing them on their way on the tour. That person can handle a relatively large volume of “Farm Tourists” and maintain our on-farm stand at the same time. When people return, they ask questions and have the chance to buy some produce, too. 

It’s also been useful to have a self-guided tour option at CSA events. Often, some people would prefer to go at their own pace rather than be with the big tour group. If people show up at our Labor Day tomato tasting and want a break in the middle of tasting, they can fit in their tour any time and then come back and ask questions or make observations.  We offer a hayride/tour at the end of the event, which is still a big attraction for families with kids.

We also invite CSA shareholders, customers, and friends to come on a self-guided tour any day of the week. It’s nice to be out working on the weekend and see people walking around and taking an interest in learning about the farm. Being there while we’re working gives them a realistic picture of what it’s like to farm, which is important to us. 
The self-guided tour has been a great addition to our farm and we’ve enjoyed being able to reach out to the public in a way that respects both the customers’ and our own time. 

Rachel Bynum and Eric Plaksin own Waterpenny Farm in Sperryville, Virginia.