The MD of Bonnyville wants to recognize those that make their municipality so beautiful.
Whether it’s a colourful garden, a beautiful tree line leading you up the drive, or something unique to your property, the MD’s agricultural service board wants to highlight your acreage or farm with their annual MD Rural Beautification Contest.
Janice Boden, assistant ag fieldman, said it’s important to recognize the properties outside of the city limits.
“They’re not in town, so not everyone gets to see them, but the hard work these farms put into beautifying their places, even the acreage owners, it’s crazy how beautiful some of these places are,” she stated.
With this in mind, the MD created a contest that has property owners submit photos of their acreages and farms to the municipality. A committee reviews the entries and picks a winner in one of the two categories: farm and acreage.
The acreage category is for properties 10-acres or less. They can be in rural subdivisions in hamlets, and must meet a list of criteria in order to claim the top spot.
Landscaping, design and facilities, vegetables and flowers and trees are all considered when evaluating the properties.
“On the farmsteads, we’re looking for farm layout, to see if they’ve included our shelterbelt trees that we sell every year, and when you drive into the farm yard that it’s picturesque. We have a lot of those, and the people that put the work into it do an amazing job,” detailed Boden.
The committee is looking for the yards that provide a “wow” factor.
This year, submissions are being accepted through the MD of Bonnyville website.
According to Boden, interested participants can upload their photos online.
For those who aren’t computer savvy, Boden said they will send someone out to take pictures of the property.
The deadline to submit is July 15.
The winners are revealed during the Aug. 15 Rural Beautification Tour.
“We do the tour for two reasons. We give out a farm award and acreage award, which includes the hamlets, and it’s for people taking care of their yards, planting shelterbelts, and just really having community pride. We like to reward them for that,” noted Boden.
The day also features some of the area’s agriculture-based hot spots.
Although there is no confirmation at this point, Boden said they plan on stopping by a local buffalo farm, tree farm, and as always, will incorporate the Lakeland Agricultural Research Association.
The day-long event includes lunch and dinner.The tour may be making a stop at Ye Old McLean Hobby Farm, Boden detailed, adding there are only 80 spots available and they’re already getting snatched up.
Boden encourages people to take the time to submit a property, whether it’s their own, or a neighbour’s.
She said families should be recognized for the hard work they put into making their land stand out amongst the rest.
But it’s not only onlookers who benefit from a clean acreage, Boden said.
“All of the work they put into it, all of the aesthetics they put into it, increases land values.”
For more information, or to find out more about the tour, contact the MD of Bonnyville shop at 780-826-3496.
