MOSTHistory Museum to host three-day hands-on farm experience

EDINBURG, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Museum of South Texas History in partnership with Hub of Prosperity Farm and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s Center for Sustainable Agriculture & Rural Advancement presents “Farm Life in South Texas."

During “Farm Life in South Texas” visitors will experience history through hands-on activities and demonstrations related to farming. Activities will be conducted at the museum or Hub of Prosperity Farm.

Photo courtesy of the Margaret H. McAllen Memorial Archives, photo from the Richard Hensz Collection

March 12: From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at MOSTHistory, visitors will experience Magic Valley history through hands-on activities. Starting in the Courtyard Gallery, an eight-minute video will highlight the history and culture of packing sheds in South Texas. At the entrance of the River Crossroads galleries, visitors will learn how land developers, who traveled by train to the Valley, purchased land, created irrigation systems, and, later, operated packing sheds. Other activities will include packing crates with oranges and sensory play.

March 13: “A Day in Farm Life” role-play will take place at the Hub of Prosperity Farm located behind the Edinburg First United Methodist Church on 3707 W. University Dr. in Edinburg. Activities start at 9 a.m. Participants will learn about the variety of crops that were, and still are, historically grown in South Texas, water conservation, and when to harvest produce. MOSTHistory staff will host a station onsite to conduct oral histories that will be archived in the museum’s collections. All are welcome to record their story. Light lunch featuring produce from the Hub of Prosperity Farm will be served.

March 14: From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., a Victory Garden workshop will host the first 50 people who will be given a step-by-step process on planting seeds in a pot and maintaining their seed on museum grounds. Afterward, participants can sign a “Museum Garden ID,” giving them access to their plants throughout the year. The Hub of Prosperity Farm will provide take-home kits, while supplies last. Other activities include a Wall Quilt in which participants can either draw or write about certain farm words.

“Farm Life in South Texas” is included in the regular museum admission fees:

• $9 for adults
• $6 for seniors (62 years and older) students and active military
• $5 for children age 4 to 12
• free for children 3 and under

For more information and to register for Museum Garden, call (956) 383-6911 or visit www.mosthistory.org/events.