Illustration by Rocco Baviera
Nothing against archery, canoeing, or lanyard crafts, but agrarian experiences are where it's at right now. And these summer camps afford children ages 4 to 16 the opportunity to milk Holsteins and harvest carrots. The seven options below, which range from half-day sessions to week-long sleepaway adventures, represent the best of the farm set.
Riverton, Utah
Day campers care for rabbits and goats, grow vegetables from seed, even take tractor tours of the 10-acre fifth-generation Petersen Family Farm. Bonus: Attendees can return in fall to harvest pumpkins they planted in summer. (Ages 5-12; from $200 a week. petersenfarm.com)
Webberville, Michigan
Northfork Farm & Outback's sleepaway sessions school the junior horsey set in riding, grooming, stall-mucking, and calf-roping. Off-saddle camp fun: a re-created Old West town and Native American village, plus two swimming holes. (Ages 8-15; from $700 a week. northforkoutback.com)
Ghent, New York
The 500-acre, biodynamic Hawthorne Valley Farm engages overnighters and daytime visitors in activities animal (milking cows), vegetable (picking beans), and culinary (assisting with the camp's organic, vegetarian meals). (Ages 8-16; from $275 a week. hawthornevalleyfarm.org)
Muir Beach, California
At Slide Ranch, a 134-acre coastal farm and nature preserve in Marin County, children learn about land stewardship while exploring wildflower fields and tidal pools. This day camp encompasses down-and-dirty farmwork, too, such as feeding chickens and pulling weeds. (Ages 5-13; from $375 a week. slideranch.org)
Dacula, Georgia
The Quintero family of Rancho Alegre Farm crams a lot into each half day. Nursery- and elementary-schoolers can ride tractors and horses, care for goats, and nosh on snacks, like cheese-stuffed zucchini blossoms, made from ingredients farmed on-site. (Ages 4-12; from $145 per week. ranchoalegrefarm.com)
Alexandria, Virginia
Fifteen miles from downtown Washington, D.C., Arcadia Farm shows urban kids where food comes from. Day campers tend tomatoes and basil in the Pizza Garden, learn about composting, and collect eggs from the 4-acre farm's popular Rhode Island Reds. (Ages 6-11; $335 a week. arcadiafood.org)
Pocantico Hills, New York
Famed as an educational resource for ag-minded adults, the Stone Barns Center for Food & Agriculture also connects the farm-to-table dots for budding activists, via days devoted to livestock tending, crop management, and--of course--cooking with the harvest. (Grades 1-10; from $380 a week. stonebarnscenter.org)