(This is about visiting during Lehigh County Open Gate Farm Tour Weekend)…read more
There are a few farms that set themselves apart from the rest during the Open Gate Farm Tour weekend and Heidel Hollow is at the top of the list. They do all the things which make the concept of an open house work:
* Demonstrations of their equipment
* A full explanation as to what they grow, how they grow it and where/who they sell to
* The ability to buy their products plus a free half dozen eggs just for showing up
* Lots of parking
* A great staff that goes out their way to help you even when it's crazy busy
On the open house weekend Heidel offers the chance to see their computerized hale bale system do its thing, a small hay maze, for a fee you can make your own scarecrow, a decent sized food court & bake sale and a bunch of things for sale including pumpkins-mums-eggs-local honey and a whole lot more. Pricing is excellent. A two and a half dozen egg flat for three bucks and a two pound jar of local honey for ten bucks. You can't beat that.
From their website:
"The fourth and fifth generations of the Fink family invite you to their farm in Heidelberg Township. Energy to run the farm is from the 200kw solar array. Farm products grown here could end up on your dinner table or be loaded on ocean vessels to feed horses and cows. Computerized big bale hay processing system will be demonstrated; 1,200 pound bales are reprocessed down into 40 or 80 pound bales. Mike Fink grows over 1,000 acres of vegetables-broccoli, sweet corn, tomatoes and pumpkins for local stores.
Customers and friends still know our farm store as the "Egg Room." For many years, this is where we did our egg packing from laying hens and where you could come and watch us pack eggs directly from the hen house and also purchase eggs and potatoes. Though the chickens are at another farm, you can still buy eggs as well as a variety of vegetables and fruits grown by son Michael during the summer season.
Starting In May, we will have a full selection of Bedding and Vegetable plants, hanging baskets, herbs, and mixed planters for sale at the farm. All plants are grown here in our Greenhouse facilities. Stop in to stock your gardens for the season!
In June and July, we start with seasonal produce such as strawberries, Mike Fink's Sweet Corn, tomatoes, peppers, local peaches, watermelon, and much, much more! Keep stopping by all summer for a great variety of fresh, local produce.
In the fall, we switch gears to pumpkins grown right here on the farm, mum, Indian corn, and fall decorations, as well as home-grown spaghetti, butternut, and acorn squash.
All winter long, we can supply your home with fresh eggs and local potatoes.
The "Egg Room Store" is open Monday-Friday from 8am-4pm, and Saturdays from 9am-1pm."
It's a bit of a hike for us to be making this a regular stop for produce but we get here every year for the open house and a few times during the rest of the year. The offerings are first rate, the staff is great and the prices are very reasonable. Definitely worth the trip.