The online Marton Harvest Festival is sure to bring smiles all round, just like the 2019 festival did for Nina Hogg and Rasmus Wessman. Photo / Laurel Stowell
The online Marton Harvest Festival is sure to bring smiles all round, just like the 2019 festival did for Nina Hogg and Rasmus Wessman. Photo / Laurel Stowell
With Covid-19 confining people to their homes, we're looking at how locals are adapting everyday activities for the lockdown.
Lucy Drake reports in how the usually outdoor Marton Harvest Festival will go ahead online.
The festival was due to bring thousands together in Marton last weekend but it will nowbring people together online.
Project Marton co-ordinator Cath Ash said those on the organising committee were sad the event had to be cancelled but had received overwhelming support since so decided they wanted to find a way to host it differently.
They decided to host a five-day online Harvest Festival with several competitions that incorporate different elements that make up the festival.
"Obviously people are very concentrated on their immediate situations at the moment but if we can bring a little bit of fun and a little bit of heart into peoples' days and lives while everyone is in lockdown then that's what we'll do," Ash said.
The online festival launched this week on the Marton Harvest Festival Facebook page.
One of the competitions includes coming up with a winning Harvest Festival idea in the form of a selfie and sending it through to the Marton Harvest Festival Facebook page.
Ash is also encouraging people who grew large produce for the festival to send through their photos.
The judging committee remains the same as it was for the initial festival and all winners of the competitions will receive a $50 Prezzie card.
Despite not being able to do a number of the competitions such as the best pumpkin pie or the giant pumpkin weigh in, the Facebook page will be posting recipes, cooking and beer brewing tutorials for people to follow to use up their produce.
It also has video tutorials of line dancing and a preview of the band, Turkey The Bird, who were scheduled to perform at this year's festival.
"We're hoping people will get a sense of what the harvest is about, the videos showcase one of the bands who we were really looking forward to having with us."
Project Marton co-ordinator Cath Ash is excited to celebrate harvest time despite the lockdown period. Photo / Laurel Stowell
The scarecrows from the Scarecrow competition are still out on show and anyone out walking their dog or out getting some fresh air while in lockdown will be able to see them as they walk past.
Ash said the online event is also a way to continue to support and promote stallholders and their products.
There will be Harvest Festival specials and details of the different stalls posted to the Facebook page giving people the chance to buy products, although they will not be delivered until after the lockdown is lifted.
"It's a really cool opportunity, we hope by doing things online we might actually reach new people that have never come to the harvest before or don't know what it's about," Ash said.
She hopes, through the power of the internet, that the online harvest festival can reach people in more remote places who have never heard of it before or who have been unable to come along in previous years.
Ash said Project Marton is still business as usual with all staff working from home but they are still focused on getting information out to the community.
