What To Do: Its Kennett Mushroom Fest time!

Also: Chadds Ford Days, Secret Garden and much, much more

By Denny Dyroff, Staff Writer, The Times

Across America, certain towns are irrevocably linked to produce grown in their area — towns such as Gilroy (California) with garlic; St. John’s (Michigan) with mint; Vidalia (Georgia) with onions; Vardaman (Mississippi) with sweet potatoes and Hammonton (New Jersey) with blueberries.

That list also features Kennett Square and mushrooms.

Kennett Square and mushrooms are linked together so much that Kennett Square is billed as “The Mushroom Capital of the World.”

Kennett Square (along with its surrounding area) has been one of the top mushroom growing areas in the nation for decades. Pennsylvania produces almost 75 per cent of all the mushrooms grown in America. More than 50 per cent of the state’s mushrooms come from southern Chester County.

The fungus known as the mushroom and the mushroom-growing industry in the area is celebrated by Kennett Square each year when it presents its well-attended annual Mushroom Festival (various locations in Kennett Square and surrounding area, 610-925-3373, www.mushroomfestival.org).

This year, the Mushroom Festival, which is scheduled for September 10 and 11, is celebrating its 31st anniversary with a number of special events. State Street becomes “Mushroom Boulevard” for two days and hosts a street festival with more than 200 vendors.

The festival will be held from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. on September 10 and from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on September 11.

Admission is $3 for anyone age 12 or older. Proceeds from the sale of the admission wristbands goes toward the Mushroom Festival’s grant program. In 2016, the Mushroom Festival gave $85,000 to 47 non-profit organizations.

The Mushroom Festival is a rain or shine event. In severe weather some events may be canceled or rescheduled. Updates, when possible, will be made to the website.

The festival officially runs on Saturday and Sunday but events actually get underway on September 9 with a “Community Parade,” which has a 6 p.m. kick-off, and an event that is billed as “Dancing in the Streets with Good Foot.”

The 2016 Old Fashioned Carnival, which takes place at 600 Broad Street, runs Friday from 6-10 p.m., Saturday from 3-10 p.m. and Sunday from 1-6 p.m.

The long list of festival activities includes “Amateur Mushroom Appetizer Cook-Off,” children’s entertainment and street fair rides, an “Antique and Classic Car Show,” a “Mushroom Growers Exhibit” (including mushroom harvesting demonstrations), a “Culinary Tent,” a 5K “Mushroom Run” and two-mile “Mushroom Walk,” the “Cute-As-A-Button Baby Photo Contest,” Stanley Steamer Firing Up Demonstrations, the “Soup and Wine Fest,” a “Remote Control Air Show”, a “Mushroom Judging Contest” and the “Fried Mushroom Eating World Record Contest.”

Live music will be performed on September 10 by Pawnshop Roses, John Faye, Chris Bruni, Christine Havrilla and Mason Porter. Performers scheduled for September 11 are Alex Allegra and Marlboro Road.

Every year, there are two constants with the weekend after Labor Day — the weather will be very hot and sunny and the Chadds Ford Historical Society will be hosting its annual event known as Chadds Ford Days (John Chads House, Route 100, Chadds Ford, 610-388-7376, www.chaddsfordhistory.org).

This year, the well-attended festival, which will be held on September 10 and 11in the meadow behind the CFHS building on Route 100 in Chadds Ford, will feature an art show and a craft show with more than 40 traditional artisans selling their wares. There will also be a variety of colonial craft demonstrations presented each day.

Festival attendees will be able to interact with Colonial re-enactors and watch cannon firings, get a libation at a colonial tavern, watch a puppet show and take tours of the John Chads House and the Barns-Brinton House — both of which date back to the early 1700s.

The outdoor event, which is celebrating its 51st anniversary this year, also features food booths presented by local restaurants, Colonial demonstrators, children’s activities, an antique car show and live musical entertainment.

There will be also be a full slate of live music both days featuring McGraw & McLaughlin, the Steve Liberace Band, Steppin Razor and Next Wednesday.

The event’s hours are 10 a.m.-7 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets are $10 for adults with free admission for kids and dogs — and free parking.

One of the area’s most pleasant late-summer events is the annual Barclay Friends’ Secret Gardens of West Chester and Plant Sale (locations in downtown West Chester, 610-696-5211, www.bf.kendal.org). It was formerly known as the Barclay Friends’ Festival of Gardens.

This event is a garden tour that features a variety of scenic gardens created by residents of West Chester Borough. Held in different sections of the Borough of West Chester each year, the Festival of Gardens is annual event that benefits the Barclay Friends’ Horticultural Therapy program.

This year, the 12th Annual Festival of Gardens will be held on September 10 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. The tour will visit a variety of private gardens in the borough of West Chester. During the tour, local artists can be found working in many of the gardens.

Garden Tour participants will also have the opportunity to view Barclay Friends’ gardens and attend a plant sale at Barclay Friends. The plant sale of uncommon plants will be held at Barclay Friends from noon-4 p.m. Refreshments will be served by Barclay Friends family members.

Tickets are not required for the plant sale and refreshments. Tour tickets are $20 in advance and $25 on the day of the event.

Time is running out for visitors to Longwood Gardens (Route 1, Kennett Square, 610-388-1000, www.longwoodgardens.org) to enjoy “Nightscape: A Light and Sound Experience” while the weather is still warm.

The installation, which will be open through October 29, brings the garden to life after dark with colorful lights and moving images that are choreographed to music.

“Nightscape” will take place in various areas of the garden — Rose Arbor, Large Lake, Flower Garden Drive, Legacy Tree, Flower Garden Walk, Topiary Garden, East Conservatory and Silver Garden. The installation will be on view Wednesdays through Saturdays, and will open every day at sunset.

The beer garden will also be the site of live music every Thursday from 7-10 p.m. and feature a roster of performers that includes Ensemble Novo on September 22; Polkadelphia on September 15, October 20 and 27; Joy Ike on October 6; and Marc Silver on September 29 and October 13.

Longwood Gardens will also have a special concert on September 11 at 7:30 p.m. Joined by his trio, with special guest Bettye LaVette to open the evening, the critically-acclaimed blues legend Taj Mahal will perform in the Open Air Theatre. Ticket prices range from $39-$59.

This weekend also marks the start of Longwood’s “Autumn Colors,” an event that will open on September 10 and run through November 20. It’s the perfect time of year to take a nature walk in Longwood’s Meadow Garden, where visitors are surrounded by colorful goldenrod, native asters, and meadow grasses.

Starting in mid-October, the Conservatory hosts the site’s most horticulturally intense display– “Chrysanthemum Festival.” It features Longwood’s Thousand Bloom Mum, which is the largest mum in North America.

Tickets are $27 for adults, $17 for students (ages 5-18) and free for children (ages 4 and under).

From September 9-11, the 20^th Annual Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance will be held on the grounds of Radnor Hunt (826 Providence Road, Malvern, www.radnorconcours.org).

This year’s event will feature Lancia, Previous Concour Winners and 300SL Mercedes-Benz. Land of the Rising Sun, Mid-Century Motorcycles and Fast From The Past are featured in the motorcycle category. The event also includes horse drawn coaches and carriages which illustrate the evolution of wheeled transportation.

The Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance features three days of activities beginning with the Friday evening barbecue, followed by the always popular road rally through the scenic countryside of Chester County on Saturday morning, culminating in a catered lunch. The Saturday evening “Black Tie Gala, Silent Auction and Art Show Preview” is the prelude to the main event, the Concours d’Elegance on Sunday.

Each year, the concours event, an invitation-only show, has a featured marque, a vehicle type or coachbuilder and a motorcycle make.

The event also includes Motorsport Park, providing local marque car clubs the opportunity to gather in an exclusive parking area close to the show field entrance on Sunday, as well as a Cars & Coffee gathering on Saturday concurrent with the road rally. The Marketplace area features a variety of both automotive and non-automotive merchants, and offering specialized shopping for concours attendees.

Adult admission is $50 at the gate, and admission for youth (ages 12-18) is $25.Admission for children (under 12) is free with paid adult admission ticket.

Now through September 11, the Broomall Fire Company is hosting its 2016 Carnival 2105 (Malin Road and West Chester Pike, Broomall, 610-353-5225, http://www.broomallfirecompany.com/pages/carnival.html) — an old-time country fair put together by Majestic Midways.

The event features free admission but there is a cost for the rides. Individual tickets $1.50 each and are sold in quantities of two tickets. Riders can purchase a block of 24 tickets for $25 or a block of 54 tickets for $50.

The carnival is scheduled to get underway on September 9 at 6 p.m. and run until 11 p.m. Hours for Saturday are 3-11 p.m. and then the event will be open from 1-6 p.m. on Sunday.

Majestic Midways, which is based in York, has been providing amusement rides and games for carnivals for 105 years. Some of the company’s more popular rides are Ring of Fire, Century Wheel, Kite Flyer, Raiders, Monkey Mayhem, Super Shot and Himalaya.

September 12 is the opening day for “Pumpkinland” (Linvilla Orchards, 137 West Knowlton Road, Media, 610-876-7116, www.linvilla.com). “Pumpkinland,” which runs through November 8, features fairy tale characters from nursery rhymes along with a huge scarecrow and a really tall storybook.

Other activities include train rides, a straw bale maze, hayrides, pick-your-own apples and pony rides. Another attraction, which runs from September 23-October 30, is “Hayride to the Witch’s House.” Admission is free and hayrides are $9 per person. There will also be “Harvest Hayrides” and “Autumn Moon Hayrides” starting later in September.

The Philadelphia Comic-Con, which is scheduled to run from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on September 11 at the Clarion Hotel Conference Center (76 Industrial Highway, Essington, 856-217-5737, www.philadelphiacomic-con.com), features comic books, trading cards and other collectibles — both modern and vintage.

The event, which has an admission fee of $3, also features a number of special autograph guests. This Sunday, the guests are Dave DeVries (Artist – Marvel & DC Cards & Comics), Paris Cullins (Artist – Blue Beetle, Blue Devil & New Gods), Mike Sellers (Marvel & DC Artist, The Adventures of Shamus and Grey) and Jeff Shultz (Artist – Archie Comics, Peanuts Books, Tom & Jerry Newspaper Strips).

The popular collectibles event, which is the area’s longest running comic convention, will host dealers from all over the Northeast with sales booths featuring Gold & Silver Age comics, action figures, non-sport cards.

Also featured will be Japanese Manga, gaming cards such as Pokemon and Magic the Gathering, original artwork and all the latest issues of today’s popular comic book series. As an added attraction, there will be hourly door prizes beginning at 11 a.m. with $100 in show cash to be given away.

The annual Brandywine Festival of the Arts (North Park Drive, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-363-5955, www.brandywinearts.com) has been one of the most popular late-summer events in northern Delaware for a long, long time.

The 56th annual two-day staging of the arts-and-crafts festival is slated for September 10 and 11 at its usual location in Brandywine Park’s Josephine Gardens along the banks of the Brandywine River in Wilmington. Tickets are $5 for adults with children (under 12) admitted free.

As always, the festival is a juried event that brings more than 250 artists and crafters from more than 15 states to Josephine Gardens to exhibit and sell their work. The list of featured categories includes mixed-media, clothing, bears, stoneware, watercolors, lamps, ironwork, herbs, bonsai, wood type, glass, acrylic, weaving, stenciling, pastels, scarves, etchings, photography, sculpture, jewelry, raku, and leather.

There will also be vendors offering a wide variety of food items at the festival, which is scheduled to run from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday.

Live entertainment will be featured both days. Musicians performing at the festival are Nancy Heubner, Hanna Paige, Mike McDevitt, Rachel Schain, Pristine Raeign, Jessica Graae, Falling Rocks and Swing That Cat!

A special event that is both fun and educational will be presented on September 10 and 11 at the Brandywine Zoo (1001 North Park Drive, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-571-7747, www.brandywinezoo.org) — “Zippity Zoo Days: Celebrating Vulture Awareness.”

Visitors can enjoy a special weekend at the Zoo during the Brandywine Festival of Arts as the Zoo celebrates International Vulture Awareness Day — in an arts festival way. Special learning stations and keeper talks this weekend will focus on vultures and condors.

The Brandywine Zoo will have another species-specific event one week later when it presents “International Red Panda Day” on September 17.

Admission to the Brandywine Zoo is $7 for adults and $5 for seniors (62 and older) and children (ages 3-17).

Based on the weather forecast, this Saturday looks like it will be a perfect day for drinking beer — and also the perfect weather to stage a brewfest.

Fortunately for all those who love drinking beer at warm weather outdoor events, there is a great local festival focusing on beer in this weekend –the Historic Odessa Brewfest (202 Main Street, Odessa, Delaware, 302-378-4119, http://www.odessabrewfest.com).

The Third Annual Historic Odessa Brewfest, which is being presented by the Historic Odessa Foundation and Cantwell’s Tavern, is slated for September 10 from 2-6 p.m.

America’s thirst for ale and beer began with the earliest colonists who made it a priority to first build a brewhouse on the site of their new settlements. As drinking water was avoided like the plague, beer was a major dietary staple in the colonies, consumed by everyone from cradle to grave.

Joining the festivities again this year will be colonial re-enactors, Rich and Linda Wagner. In full period dress, the Wagners will make beer on site using historically accurate methods and materials –copper kettles, wooden barrels, hops and grains.

This year they will brew a normal, lightly-hopped pale ale of around 3.5 to 4.5% a.b.v. During fermentation they will split the batch and add beach plum juice to half of the batch during secondary fermentation.

There will be an array of tasty locally-produced food served at Cantwell’s, which is a farm-to-table gastropub.

Approximately 60 local and national breweries are participating, including Downingtown’s Victory Brewing Company, Allagash, Alpine, Anchor, Big Oyster, Blue Earl, Brooklyn, Dominion, Duclaw, Elysian, Evo, Flying Dog, Flying Fish, Fordham,  Goose Island, Green Flash, Harpoon, Heavy Seas, Iron Fist, Lagunitas, Lienenkugels, Long Trail, Magic Hat, Mispillion, Neshaminy Creek, New Belgium, North Coast, Ommegang, Oskar Blues, Schlafly, Shipyard, Sierra Nevada, Six Point and Smuttynose.

Live musical entertainment will be presented on two stages. Performing on the Main Stage will be Grateful Dead tribute band Rainbow Full of Sound and local reggae act Spokey Speaky. The Garden Stage will feature acoustic jazz and blues artist Bruce Anthony and solo performer Tony Mowen.

All attendees have access to food and merchandise vendors, live bands, sponsor tables, and more during the entire event. Doors open at noon for the VIP Tasting and the regular fest is slated to start at 2 p.m. All taps will close at 6 p.m. General admission tickets are $50.

The Summer “WineDown” Fest, which is scheduled for September 11 at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center (100 Station Road, Oaks, 609-888-3618, http://www.phillyexpocenter.com), will showcase the finest wines from Pennsylvania wineries, with hundreds of delicious samples for visitors’ enjoyment.

This year’s participating wineries are Bee Kind Winery, Boyd’s Cardinal Hollow Winery, Buddy Boy Winery, Calvaresi Winery, Happy Valley Vineyard & Winery, Juniata Valley Winery, KingView Mead, Kog Hill Winery, Naylor Wine Cellars, Paradocx Vineyard, Peace Valley Winery, Red Shale Ridge Vineyards, The Vineyard at Hershey and University Wine Company.

The festival will also have tasty food, extravagant chocolates, shopping areas and live entertainment. There will be Bottle Check so attendees can buy bottles of wine to take home and vendors will have it ready for pickup at the door when the buyers leave.

There will be two separate sessions — 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. and 3:30-7 p.m. Tickets are $30 at the door.

If you’re looking for a fun day of interesting and educational activities, head to Penn’s Landing in Philadelphia on September 10 to participate in the 2016 Pennsylvania Coast Day (Penn’s Landing, Delaware Avenue, Philadelphia, 800-445-4935, www.delawareestuary.org).

The family-oriented event is slated to run from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. at the site along the Delaware River. The free event provides visitors with a variety of ways to experience Philadelphia’s main water tributary.

Attendees can board the RiverLink Ferry for a free, round-trip tour of the Delaware River or get an up-close look at the river by paddling around Penn’s Landing in a kayak or swan boat.

There will also be a number of land-based activities including more than 20 interactive displays and children’s activities near the RiverLink Ferry terminal.

Visitors can even ride a free, round-trip shuttle to the Fairmount Water Works where they can compete in the Philly Fun Fishing Fest early that morning and explore Schuylkill River and the historic Fairmount Water Works.

Greenfest Philly (Headhouse Square, Second and South streets, Philadelphia, http://cleanair.org/greenfest), which will be held on September 11 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m., is the largest environmental festival in the Philadelphia area.

With more than 150 exhibitors and vendors, Greenfest is the place to learn about living sustainably while having fun.

Since 2006, this popular event in early September provides a unique opportunity for 10,000-20,000 attendees to learn how to live life a little greener and healthier. The festival’s multitude of vendors, local businesses, supporters and sponsors help transform Headhouse Square into a festive, fun and educational outdoor marketplace.

This event has something for everyone including shopping for local green wares, great food, live music, live demonstrations, and kid-friendly activities. In 2015, Greenfest Philly was voted “Best Family Event” by Everything Philly.

The festival is free to attend and all are welcome.

South Philly SausageFest (West Passyunk Avenue between 15th  and South Broad streets, Philadelphia,

http://southphillysausagefest.com) is an autumn craft beer, sausage-themed, and live music festival that celebrates the Newbold/West Passyunk neighborhood.

The SausageFest is a project of the Newbold Community Development Corporation, a non-profit organization which promotes the revitalization of the Newbold community. The proceeds from South Philly SausageFest support the CDC’s Street Cleaning Program, which provides employment for 10 disabled Philadelphia residents.

This year’s festival will feature 10 diverse restaurants, 10 local craft breweries, eight live music shows, a variety of arts and crafts vendors, and an exciting kids’ play area.

The Kimmel Center Music (300 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, 215-731-3333, www.kimmelcenter.org) is presenting its annual “Open House” on September 10 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

On Saturday, the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, the Merriam Theater, the Academy of Music, and the Avenue of the Arts — all part of the Kimmel Center Campus — will come alive in a festival-style celebration of Philadelphia’s arts scene.

The Kimmel Center’s free “Open House” season kickoff event — in partnership with its eight Resident Companies — will feature free performances, behind-the-scenes Campus tours, exclusive giveaways, family-friendly activities, and intimate chats with Kimmel Center staff and artistic teams.

Free programming will include kiddie group Moona Luna and the Kimmel Center’s PNC Grow Up Great children’s musical theater program,. There will also be season sampler performances from members of The Philly Pops and Pennsylvania Ballet II, dance classes, demonstrations on the Fred J. Cooper Memorial Organ, stage selfies, and a panel discussion featuring some of Philadelphia’s top arts leaders and journalists.

From September 9-11, the Philadelphia Honey Festival (https://phillyhoneyfest.com/) will feature three days of free, bee-related activities at three locations in Philadelphia — September 9 at Bartram’s Gardens (5400 Lindbergh Boulevard, Philadelphia), September 10 at Wyck Historic House/Garden/Farm (6026 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia) and September 11 at Glen Foerd (Grant Avenue and Milnor Street, Philadelphia).

The mission of the Philadelphia Honey Festival is to raise awareness about the importance of honey bees to our environment, our food supply and our economy, and to promote urban beekeeping and gardening.

The Philadelphia Honey Festival began in 2010 to accompany the placement of an historic marker honoring Philadelphia-born Lorenzo L. Langstroth.  Well-known to beekeepers, Langstroth invented the first movable frame hive design based on the principle of “bee space.”  You can see the marker at 106 South Front Street in Philadelphia, his birthplace.

Visitors to the festival will be able to learn about the importance of bees in our ecosystem through honey extraction demonstrations, hive talks and other programming designed to explore at the hard-working insect that supports our food supply.

When summer winds down, it means that the area’s many ethnic festivals are looming on the horizon. This weekend, the list of options includes Greek, Latin American and Polish.

The Fall Grecian Festival 2016 (St. Sophia’s Greek Orthodox Church, 900 S. Trooper Road, Jeffersonville, 610-650-8960, www.stsophiavf.org) runs now through September 11 with a wide array of tasty Greek treats such as souvlaki, shish-ka-bob, moussaka, pastitsio and gyros and baklava.

Other activities include midway rides, vendors with crafts and Greek items and live Greek music. The free festival is open from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. on Frda yand Saturday and from noon-7 p.m. on Sunday.

The Latin American Cultural Center of Lancaster presents its Fourth Annual Latin American Festival September 11 at Lancaster’s Binn’s Park (North Queen Street, Lancaster, www.lancasterlacc.org).

The event, which will run from 2-9 p.m., is an original Latin American festival featuring an entire day of music, dancing, culture and food. There will also be live entertainment from several Latin American countries.

The festival is suitable for people of all ages and attendance is expected to again reach or surpass 10,000 people. The festival begins in Binn’s Park at noon with food and merchandise vendors set up along North Queen Street.

The special guest will be Ismael Miranda. In addition to the live music from local and international talents, there will be face painting, piñatas and balloon twisting for the children.

The Latin American Cultural Center of Lancaster (LACC) is an established, non-profit organization that promotes the rich and diverse Latin American culture in Lancaster County. Admission to the festival is free.

The 51st Annual Polish Festival the National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa (654 Ferry Road, Doylestown, 215-345-0600, www.czestochowa.us) is being held on September 10 and 11.

Visitors to the festival will be able to feast on such Polish delicacies as kielbasa, pierogis, placki, holubki and chruschicki. The festival will feature rides, games and a full slate of Polish music and polka bands.

The roster of live entertainers includes Maki, Polish Country Musicians, Little Circus, Dynabrass,  Goralski, DJ Grzegorz, Polish American String Band, and Marisk Szczepek.

There is another reason to make Doylestown a destination this weekend.

On September 10 and 1113, the downtown area of Doylestown will be the site of the 25th Annual Doylestown Arts Festival (www.doylestownartsfestival.com, 215-340-9988).

It will be a weekend of original arts and crafts, live music and diverse food. The two-day festival features more than 160 artists showcasing their creative works. Selections include paintings, photography, jewelry, wood and metal work, furniture, pottery and more.

There will be five stages of live music and various activities featured throughout town. The roster of entertainers includes Wes Combs and the Pine Valley Rhythm Jumpers, Randy Lippincott, Ceramic Animal, August John Lutz II, Power Trio Jazz Project, Elle Gyandoh & The John Doe Band, and Ginni Corsello Jazz Quartet. Also featured will be Mike Lorenz and Friendz, Andrea Carlson and the Love Police, Alex and the Kaleidoscope, Bucks County Folk Song Society, Diversity Jazz Band, Chronic Wolf, Weatherhead, J. Squared and RichieNavigator.

A variety of dining options are available at the festival’s food court and at the restaurants that line the streets. The annual festival features free admission.

The Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire (Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire Shire, Mount Hope Estate and Winery grounds, Route 72, Cornwall, 717-665-7021, www.parenfaire.com) is hosting its “Children’s Fantasy” on September10 and 11.

From 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. each day, the huge faire will be dedicated to youngsters. His Royal Highness proclaims a Faire weekend dedicated to its biggest fans — the young ones. There will be two days filled with 16th-century fun and frivolity for kids of all ages.

At “Cake with Queen Catherine,” kids can celebrate Her Majesty’s birthday by sharing her favorite pastry — cupcakes. At the Queen’s request, all young nipperkins are invited to have a delicious dessert with her and wish the Queen happy birthday face-to-face.

Another popular attraction will be the “Four Corners Treasure Hunt” where kids search for pirate treasure. After finding all the clues, they can proceed to the Chess Board to speak the secret password and open the treasure chest.

The event also includes “Royal Dog Days.” His Majesty has issued an invitation to the lover of dogs to join him and the Royal Hounds upon the Fairegrounds on this special weekend.

Admission is $30.95 for adults. There will be free children’s admission for kids age 11 and under.

If you’re looking for something very different to do on this late-summer weekend, consider attending the annual Whoopie Pie Festival at Hershey Farm Restaurant & Inn (240 Hartman Bridge Road, Route 896, Strasburg, 717-687-8635, http://whoopiepiefestival.com).

The Whoopie Pie Festival, which is billed as “The Most Delicious Day in Lancaster County,” features more than 100 different Whoopie Pie flavors. It will be held this year on September 10 from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

According to food historians, Amish women would bake these tasty desserts and put them in farmers’ lunch pails. When farmers would find the treats in their lunch, they would shout “Whoopie!” It is likely that the original Whoopie Pies were made from cake batter leftovers.

Scheduled events at the 2016 festival are Whoopie Pie Treasure Hunt, Whoopie Pie Race, Whoopie Pie Launch, Whoopie Pie Checkers, Whoopie Yell Off, and Amateur Whoopie Pie Eating Contest.

Visitors will also be able to watch when the festival’s Whoopie Pie makers attempt to produce the “Largest Whoopie Pie Ever Made.” Other events throughout the day include

Whoopie Pie making for kids, face painting and bounce house fun.

The event features free admission. Rain date is September 11.

The weekend after Labor Day always features the Hay Creek Fall Festival at Historic Johanna Furnace (Route 10, Morgantown, 610-286-0388, www.haycreek.org).

The well-attended Berks County festival, which is an authentic traditional arts and crafts show that is celebrating its 40th anniversary, is also an event that gives visitors a chance to have a look back at the area’s historical development.

This year, the festival, which runs now through September 9-11 from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. all three days, will have a number of special festival areas, including Charcoal Barn, Casting House, and Festival Food Court (early American and contemporary).

Other areas are Early American Crafts, Engine and Mechanical Technology, a Civil War Encampment, Open Hearth Cooking Demonstration, Home Craft Marketplace and the Historic Joanna Furnace Iron Plantation Complex.

Festival attendees can shop in the Early American Crafts area for such items as fabrics, jewelry, folk art, pottery, woodworking, leather, dried flowers, woodcrafts, Windsor chairs, stained glass and hand-woven rugs.

The Craft Market will feature handmade redware pottery, candles and hand lotions, gourd birdhouses, soaps, wooden toys and bowls, handbags from vintage fabrics, quilted items and unique jewelry.

The Mechanical Technology area presents vintage working equipment, including a model steam blower engine and a display of pedal tractors. Hundreds of antique cars, tractors, and hit n’ miss engines are on display and will parade the festival grounds throughout the weekend. There will also be daily demonstrations of sawmilling, shingle milling, grain threshing and water ram pumps.

Other activities include live entertainment, storytelling sessions, musical jam sessions and a variety of hands-on activities for children. This year’s featured entertainment act is the Celtic Martin’s.

Tickets for the festival are $10 for adults and $2 for children (ages 6-12).