McHenry County farmers ‘bridge that gap’ between suburban and rural, get boost from events like Farm Stroll

McHenry County didn’t see much rain overall this year, something farmers in the county have found challenging.

“The drought has been the biggest challenge,” said John Patyk, who owns Patyk’s Farm in Richmond. “We farm on a small scale.”

Piscasaw Gardens in Harvard focuses on flowers, but also grows Mirai sweet corn and other vegetables. The farm uses an irrigation system for some crops, which owner Jennifer Kinney said the previous owners had installed.

“It’s been a godsend.”

She said Piscasaw Gardens, which began operating in 2020 in Harvard, participates in local farmers markets, which are a big part of its business.

“That’s like our main income,” Kinney said.

Kinney said her farm grows vegetables as an “ethical endeavor.”

“People come here and they load up on veggies,” she said.

Patyk’s farm had several hundred visitors Sunday as part of the annual McHenry County Farm Stroll, where local farms open their properties to visitors who come to tour the grounds, see some animals or buy produce, depending on what the farm offers.

“It brings awareness that we’re here,” Patyk said about the farm stroll, adding that although he has farmed for 15 years, visitors sometimes swing by and ask what he does.

This year was Piscasaw Gardens’ first time participating in the farm stroll.

“We more than doubled our sales,” Kinney said, compared with a typical September Sunday for the farm. She estimated the farm had more than 600 visitors Sunday.

Hephzibah Farms, down the road in Hebron, also participated in the farm stroll. Owner Anita Miller said more than 1,000 people passed through the farm Sunday.

Illinois Extension volunteers greeted visitors and kept track of attendance told her that about an hour before the farm stroll ended.

Miller said the farm stroll helps people learn about Hephzibah Farms, which also featured a scavenger hunt Sunday where people could visit different parts of the farm and get a prize at the end if they visited them all.

Like Patyk, Miller has found the rain, or lack thereof, challenging, and often finds it to be one of the biggest challenges to farming.

“Sometimes it’s too much, sometimes it’s not enough,” Miller said.

With rain picking up in the McHenry County region recently, farmers have felt some relief.

“It’s better now,” Miller said. “We’ve had quite a bit of rain lately, and that’s been helpful.”

McHenry County historically has been an agricultural county, but its growing suburbanization in recent years has at times been a source of controversy.

Despite the growth in development, farms still made up up 60% of McHenry County land in 2020, according to the McHenry County Economic Development corporation website.

Patyk said he feels suburbanization gets more customers to support his farm.

“It helps our business. By suburbia creeping in, we have more people.”

Miller said she lived in Kildeer before purchasing the farm in 2015.

“It’s different lifestyles,” Miller said. “We bridge that gap.”

The farmers who participated in the farm stroll said they felt the event helped put their farms on people’s radars.

“It gets our name out there,” Miller said. “We appreciate the farm stroll very much.”