I was pleased to find that our visit to Alaska coincided with its famous State Fair. The Fair is considered Alaska’s largest event with hundreds of thousands of people attending each year. It’s held in the town of Palmer, about an hour’s drive north of Anchorage, from mid-August to early September. As with many state fairs it highlights local farming (including 4-H, produce and livestock), features concerts and rides, vendors and carnival food. Special events are held daily, like a demolition derby, monster truck rally, and so on.
One of the reasons I wanted to attend the fair was to see the gigantic produce the region is famous for. It comes as a surprise to many people that an area so far north could grow record breaking crops. The growing season is short, but the sun is very intense in Alaska during the summer, with 22+ hours of light some days. The soil around Palmer is fertile and the climate mild enough to support many types of crops.
The produce is displayed in the Farm Exhibits structure, a huge warehouse. I was not to be disappointed by what I saw. For example, the pumpkin below was the new Alaska State Record holder, weighing in at more than 2050 pounds!
Below is a brief list of a few other crop records for the State:
Cucumber – 20.8 lbs
Rutabaga – 82.9 lbs
Zucchini (green) – 29.65 lbs
Watermelon – 168.6 lbs
Much of what follows are photos of some of these huge vegetables. Take a glance at these:
Cabbages have a special place in Alaskans’ hearts. The last Friday of the Alaska State Fair features a giant Cabbage weigh-off.
A surprising variety of fruits are also grown in Alaska, many of which looked delicious.
While most are not edible, a special wing of the Exhibit Hall showed beautiful floral displays of Alaska grown plants, like these….
Where there are flowers, there are bees and honey….
My wife and I are amateur gardeners, and we were in our element at this fair! It was a lot of fun!
Next week’s post will conclude our visit to the Alaska State fair
