We love this little fella’s smile!  Kids do have fun pumpkin picking!  Posted on Facebook by our fan Cherie Camechis.

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This almost horizontal little ‘jumping bean’ was posted on Facebook by our Fan Cheryl Korycinski Slavnik!  Thanks for sharing, Cheryl!

This week’s food feature from the Red Rooster Grill:

Breaded Chicken Sandwich Combo
with regular fries and 24 oz drink — only $6.99

8-acres of corn with a space ship in the middle of it is what you’ll find at Belvedere Plantation this fall!  It’s part of a joint venture celebration with six other farms across the nation in collaboration with NASA to honor the NASA Space Program.

Space Food – Moon Rocks – Spinoffs – Plinko – Space Suits! 

This weekend’s festivities at the farm will include a NASA exhibition featuring the ‘Driven to Explore’ trailer.  Inside the trailer will be a black moon rock sample rubbed smooth from thousands of touches. The rock was carved from an 8,110-gram lunar specimen brought back by Apollo 17 astronauts Harrison Schmidt and Eugene Cernan.

Vaccum envelopes will hold samples of space food.  Touch-screen exhibits will acknowledge NASA research, space technology that has transitied into the home, a view from the International Space Station and more!

A special focus of the NASA presence at Belvedere Plantation will be farm “spinoffs”.  NASA calls the technology that is originally developed for aeronautics and space but eventually is used to benefit others a “spinoff.”   NASA has been responsible for thousands of spinoffs.  From crop improvements to a mother for baby pigs, NASA technology has made strides on the farm.  Visitors will learn how space exploration and research has benefitted or changed the farming industry.

There will be a “post cards from space” exhibit that is similar to a photo booth and provides visitors a simulated photo of themselves in space.

Other exhibits and attractions include a space suit replica and ice vest, inflatable astronaut, Discovery kiosks, corn rockets, and a solar system scale model.  Visitors will get a shot at NASA Spin the Wheel and NASA Plinko where they can win prizes by answering NASA-related questions correctly.

Special this weekend:  Beef TriTip Sub, Regular Fries, 24 oz drink — $7.50

Dear Readers, we want your PHOTOS! Send in your photos of the farm to Ian@ BelvederePlantation.com Winners will be chosen every week, with a Grand Finalist being chosen from the winners at the end of the season. Weekly Winners will receive 2 day passes for the 2012 Harvest Festival and $10 in Belvedere Bucks. The Grand Finalist will receive 4 seasons passes for the 2012 Harvest Festival  and $25 in Belvedere Bucks. Winners will be selected by Belvedere Staff and chosen for creativity, quality, and relevance to Belvedere Plantation’s Vision.

Rules and Regulations

1. only three (3) entries per photographer allowed

2. All photos must be taken at Belvedere Plantation during the 2011 Fall Harvest Festival (October 1st- November 5th)

3. The contest is open to amateur photographers only. Photographers must be at least 18 yrs of age or have written permission of parent or guardian to enter contest.

4. Submission of an entry indicates agreement with this policy on the part of the photographer and any persons featured in the photo. It is the photographer’s responsibility to receive permission of any persons prior to submitting the photo.

5.Submission of an entry indicates agreement that Belvedere Plantation may use the photos for our commercial or promotional use.

Farmer Donnie’s candid camera managed to capture the spicy goodness of our Meatball Sub Combo … you can get this “live” at the Red Rooster Grill!

The SpaceFarm 7 website is sponsoring a contest for the favorite Space Maze design!  One winner will be randomly selected for the grand prize of 4 tickets to visit the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex and 4 tickets to Lunch with an Astronaut! Winner will be contacted in November by email.

Go to SpaceFarm7 and vote for Belvedere Plantation!

The answer is a resounding NO! A pumpkin patch can never have too many pumpkins. But Boy Howdy do we have a pile of em!

You only have to wait 2 more days to come out and pick to your hearts delight. Are we busy getting ready? Beavers and bees have nothing on the farmers here at Belvedere Plantation, no siree! On October 1st we’ll be ready and open, all dolled up (scarecrowed up rather) and ready to rock and roll.

Our pigs are hogging their training treats, the maize is standing tall, the swings in the barn are just in knots in anticipation, and the bouncing pillow is just blown up with pride. Even  the ground in the patch is nice and firm, thanks to well drained fields.

Come on out on Saturday, ride the hayride, swing in the barn,cheer for the winning pig, zip along the ziplines, get lost in the maze, make some memories and go home happy and wore out. We’ll see ya there!

Farmer Ian

Space Farm 7:  A national collaboration with NASA

Seven farms across the nation are joining together in collaboration with NASA to celebrate and honor the NASA Space Program.  “It is a year of milestones” said Layla Dowdy, a NASA headquarters spokesperson.  “Fifty years ago we launched the first American in space.  Thirty years ago we started the space shuttle program.  Twenty years ago we launched the Hubble telescope and this year the international space station will be completed.”

NASA is now focusing its attention on creating a sustainable environment in space so that future generations can actually live and work there. The Kepler Mission for example focuses on finding other habitable planets that could potentially support human life. A key component of any future sustainability, whether on a different planet or on the international space station, will be having the ability to grow food in space. The seven “Space Farms” here on Earth will showcase demonstrations on how that can be done.

Belvedere Plantation is the East Coast Representative 

Each of the seven farms has been chosen to participate in the program due to their extensive agri-tourism operations and their fall corn mazes. The group of seven are working together to design their 2011 mazes to depict different NASA achievements. Games and activities in the mazes will reinforce the educational missions of the Space Program so maze-goers can learn and have fun at the same time.

Other activities proposed for the farms include traveling space displays which could include hands-on NASA sponsored activities and free educational materials. The group is also working together to schedule astronaut visits and a speaker series. There may even be a national essay contest where winners could earn a private tour of their regional space centers. The details and specific activities will be made available at a later date.

NASA has ten regional research centers located in the United States, each of which has a different responsibility. The individual Space Farms have been paired up with their local space center in order to highlight that region’s contribution to NASA. For example, The Rock Ranch in Georgia will feature achievements of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida where the Shuttle was first launched.

The participating farms include Belvedere Plantation in Fredericksburg, Virginia; Liberty Ridge Farm in Schaghticoke, New York; The Rock Ranch in Rock, Georgia; Vala Farms in Omaha, Nebraska; Dewberry Farm in Brookshire, Texas; Cornbelly’s Corn Maze & Pumpkin Fest in Lehi, Utah and Dell’Osso Family Farm in Lathrop, California.  The farm owners are very excited about the venture. “We are honored to be chosen to be part of this program” said Brett Herbst, owner of Cornbelly’s and The MAiZE Inc. which actually designs and carves the mazes. “Not only do we get to collaborate with other farm operators across the nation, we are going to be part of history by paying this tribute to NASA.”

Belvedere Plantation is a 645 acre heritage farm, built in the 1760s on the historic Rappahannock River near Fredericksburg, Virginia.  Belvedere Plantation is a working farm, with grain crops such as corn, wheat and soybeans.  The corn maze is a showcase feature of the Fall Harvest Festival, which also boasts a pumpkin patch, Fun Barn, fun-filled outdoor attractions — and farm-fresh memories for the whole family.  History reports that  General and Mrs. George Washington were entertained at Belvedere Plantation; local owners, the Fulks family, are proud to be part of space history by cutting a tribute to NASA in this year’s corn maze.