Sunday, August 18 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Cloud Mountain Farm Center will be hosting an Open House and Summer Harvest Day. This is an opportunity for you to come out and visit to learn about the various crop and production trials and internship program happening here. We’ll have stations set up with a map to guide you to different parts of the farm. You’ll find staff and interns at each station to answer your questions.

Station 1:Nursery Production

1. Nursery: Ornamental and fruit plant nursery and growing areas.
2. Production from propagation (grafting, cuttings, seeds
3. Container growing, inside greenhouses and outside, and field growing
4. Retail nursery

Crop development:

• Increasing rhododendron propagation
• Wine grape grafting
• Fruit tree budding of uncommon varieties
• Seed growing of ornamental perennials

Station 2: Vegetable Production

1. Organic Vegetables: Certified organic vegetable production. Includes the use of high tunnels/hoop houses to grow heat loving crops including tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and melons. Open field production includes onions, leeks, carrots, beets and brassicas.

Crop Development:

• Grafted Tomato & Eggplant trial
• Variety Trials: Cherry tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, yellow sweet peppers, melons
• Leafy Greens Trial: Research trial along with WSU, for evaluation of hardiness and commercial production of salad greens, specifically overwintering greens

Station 3: Fruit Production

1. Orchards: Tree fruit varieties (more than 60) chosen for their success in PNW climate. Over 36 varieties of apples have been trialed over 36 years. Includes a double row of heritage apples, known to have been grown in the Northwest from the 1880’s through the 1940’s.

Crop Development:

• Peach Trials: Trial of 13 newer peach varieties, evaluating disease resistance, fruit quality and yield for commercial peach cultivation in maritime climates
• Cherry Tunnel: Growing trial of 8 sweet cherry varieties, trellised and trained to the Upright Fruiting Offshoot (UFO) system. Overhead protection protects from frost and rain, lowering disease pressure.
• Wine Grape Trials: A trial of both red and white wine grape varieties to find suitable cultivars for the Pacific Northwest. Working with NW Wine academy and other partners in winemaking trials. Canes are used in propagation of new vines for local vineyards.

Station 4: Internship Program

1. Eight months (February – October), full-time program for five beginning and aspiring farmers each year
2. 32 hours per week paid; 8 hours a week of educational curriculum
3. The educational programming consists of: Field Trips, Guest Speakers, Discussions, Readings, Hands-on Learning
4. Vegetable & Tree Fruit Production, Vineyards, Greenhouses, and Nursery Management

Also at Station 4, you’ll see on display and get to taste fruit and produce we’re harvesting now.

• Twenty varieties of Tomatoes
• Fourteen varieties of Peppers
• Thirteen varieties of Melons
• Three varieties of Peaches
• Three varieties of Pears
• Two varieties of Plums
• Seven varieties of early Apples
• Two varieties of Strawberries

Not every variety is available to taste, but the display gives an example of the array of possibilities.

We’ll also have fruit and produce for sale in the sales room.