Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard is starting a new holiday tradition in North Salem with its inaugural tree lighting celebration on December 7, 2019. While the lighting will take place at 5:30 p.m., the family-friendly event will last all afternoon. Santa will be at the farm store from noon to 6 p.m.

The Madrigals, a singing group from North Salem High School, have been invited to perform, and the farm staff will be offering hot apple cider and hot cocoa, as well as hard cider for the adults. They will also be roasting chestnuts on an “open fire” (in a pizza oven) and serving the farm’s famous apple cider donuts.

 “We’ve never done anything like this before, so we’re excited to offer this event to local families,” says manager Kristina Jahaly. “We’re hoping that people will bring their children for the afternoon and come shopping for Christmas gifts and décor.”

Among the decorative items available at the farm store are hand-decorated wreaths, plain fresh wreaths, handmade bows, holiday ribbon and pine roping. Frazier firs will be available for purchase by December 7.

In addition to indoor and outdoor home décor, the farm store carries local produce, including several varieties of its own winter squash and other seasonal vegetables from neighboring Hudson Valley farms. The store freezer is already stocked with 100 percent pasture-raised, grass-fed beef from Harvest Moon’s sister farm upstate, in Hillsdale.

“We have a beautiful array of cuts, ranging from porterhouse and roasts to short ribs and ground beef,” Jahaly says. “We also have Berkshire pork, including pork chops, hand steaks, chorizo, sweet Italian sausage, hot Italian sausage, breakfast sausage. These are all raised exclusively for Harvest Moon. All the meat is frozen and available all winter.”

Santa will return to the farm store December 8, 14 and 15 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The store will be closed for a week after Christmas and then will be open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until spring.

Location: Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard, 130 Hardscrabble Rd., North Salem, NY. For more info, visit HARVEST MOON FARM AND ORCHARD - North Salem, NY.