Wheeler Farm

Wheeler Farm has a farmer's market on Sundays from 9 to 2 running from June to October. There's a big crowd every week so we grabbed the first parking place we saw. After navigating all the parking lots, we saw three empty handicapped spots right next to the Activity Barn. We should have parked there. That's much better than trying to squeeze in on the grassy area. 

I expected the market to be mostly agricultural products but it was mostly other things. There was a couple playing music among all the "shops". 

It was smoky today so Bill wore his face mask.

  

This is a portable pizza oven!

Most of the things I remember from the last time I visited in about 1995 are still there. You can milk a cow if you sign up ahead of time. There are other farm animals that seem to be well cared for but you could get much closer to them in the old days.   

I brought some corn to feed the ducks. 

We were unhappy with the pathways. They are obviously meant to be an improvement over the dirt pathways that they replaced. However, they are bumpy for people in chairs and scooters! Plus, the transitions between the dirt and the paved part are not smooth. Bill didn't go into some areas because there was too much of a drop off. 

I recognized the old Wheeler family house but the grounds are so much nicer than they were. I took several tours of that house with the scouts. Mostly I remember the deprivations the family suffered and that none of the children wanted to stay and carry on the farming.

These are the outbuildings that I remember, starting with the outhouse.

There is a beautiful new climbing structure for children.

There are several tree trunks that have been carved into fanciful shapes. 

Lastly, we came upon a man with goats who let us pet and feed them. 

I checked and there are handicapped accessible restrooms. 

All in all, it was a wonderful morning. 

West Jordan Conservation Garden Park

These are demonstration gardens aimed at encouraging residents to plant in a way that uses less water. There are videos and classes to help with designing a landscape from scratch and with updating an established yard to be more water wise. They also maintain a database of 1000 plants that grow well in Utah. 

Entrance is free and there is a receptionist who can answer questions. In our case, she just let us out into the garden area. We took off to the left and meandered through the gardens that need the least maintenance first.  

There is a side by side demonstration showing what the usual Utah backyard looks like, which is grass only. 

Next to this yard is a minimum maintenance yard that could be constructed in the same amount of space. Truthfully, I don't find this very attractive--too much concrete. It would be hot in the summer. 

Nearby, there is a shaded area with a large patio which uses pavers to outline a giant chess game. That would be low maintenance and fun! It would be tolerably cool most of the year with a good shade structure over it. 

The next section is devoted to low water plants and then it segues into an explanation of the CUP--the Central Utah Water Project. 

There is another segue into an area of ground covers and soil types. 

Next up is a display of different kinds of grasses showing the water and maintenance needs of each type. 

The buckets let you look at different kinds of soil and then the path leads into types of ground covers including wood chips, rock, etc. Check out the blue marble glass!

A long walkway leads ino the section on ways to make shade in your garden. You can look at the flooring choices and the overhead structures. 

The next section of the garden could be right out of the pages of House Beautiful. They really like vines that climb over the structures. Trumpet vine is a favorite everywhere. Not many flowers this time of year but we managed to find a pretty pink one. 

There is an outdoor seating area that can be rented for events.

The last section is a demonstration of crops that grow well in Utah gardens. Dogs on leashes are allowed. There are handicapped accessible bathrooms in the main building and on the path. All in all, this is a great place to go for a walk and learn something along the way.