Visiting Lannom Farms

A scarecrow marks the entrance to the Lannom Farms venue.

Late this morning several members of the Wilson County Sustainable Agriculture Coalition gathered at Lannom Farms in the Gladeville area of Lebanon, Tennessee for a tour. The Sustainable Ag. Coalition is the brainchild of Wilson County Agricultural Extension agents Shelly Barnes and Justin Stefanski. Our Family and Consumer Education (FCE) and Horticulture specialists, respectively, this pair teamed up to apply for a grant from the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program, better known as SARE, that is funding our local coalition. The Lannom Farms field trip could not have occurred on a nicer day.

A view on Lannom Farms fronted by the play area.

What fun we had together! From the general store out front, past the nature trail, around the edges of the 5-acre sorghum maze, to the entertaining hayride and farm animals on view, we had a marvelous visit that concluded with lunch catered by Mt. Juliet's Country Haven Cafe--complete with delicious pumpkin pie made from Lannon Farms pumpkins. The farm even offers a soybean and millet maze for families with very young children; the plants grow just a few feet tall and the adventure takes closer to five minutes that the requisite 45 - 60 minutes needed for the taller maze.

For pumpkin lovers, this is the place to be. Lannom Farms grows a number of varieties of pumpkins, all of which are planted by hand. The field trip pumpkins grow to a perfect size for little hands to carry home, after each child has ventured into the field to select his or her pumpkin. The pie pumpkins--mmm, mmm, mmm--are excellent for cooking. Among the other varieties grown there, the fairy tale or Cinderella pumpkins grow to a perfect shape for turning into pumpkin coaches drawn by bright white horses. Interestingly, this latter variety of pumpkin grows upside down, such that the stem is located against the ground.

The pre-K field trip was leaving just as we sat down to lunch.

The farm spreads over rolling land big enough to entertain multiple families and field trips without ever feeling crowded. Indeed, on this trip we were not alone, as a handful of Wilson County Schools' pre-K classes simultaneously were enjoying the venue. While they picnicked beneath shady trees, we enjoyed the entertaining hayride. After they packed up, we settled around a longer table to enjoy our tasty home-style meal. To learn more about the farm, check out their website or read any of the local articles that have appeared recently. Here's a link to one that appeared in The Wilson Post.

The Wilson County SAC has been meeting monthly since its inception this past spring, and is presently exploring producer and consumer possibilities of local agritourism/edutainment venues. The Lannom Farms such field trip is the first I have been able to attend. From now on I will try to work more of these excursions into my calendar. For those interested in attending the meetings, contact Wilson County Extension. As with all UT/TSU Agricultural Extension offerings, the Wilson County name refers only to the location of the gathering; we open our doors to residents from all counties and proudly count Davidson County residents among our burgeoning number. Middle Tennesseans, come on out and join the fun!