Day Well Spent at Ennessi Farms

Last week, Destination Riyadh visited their nature-lovin’, organic-farming friends at the Ennessi Organic Farm.

Ennessi Farm is an organic farm where the vegetables and fruits are grown without the use of harsh chemicals or processed and hybrid seeds.

We were given a tour of the 5 acres farm located in Dir’yiah. The moment we got out of the car, we could hear the happy chirping of birds, and the clucks of hens. It didn’t feel as though we were living in a desert.

Karla, the field trip tutor (a.k.a. lead caretaker, a.k.a. farmer), enlightened us by teaching us about the history of the farm and the historic importance of the location of the farm. From the farm, you could spot the remains of UNESCO World Heritage Site, At Turaif. She gave us a detailed background of At-Turaif; about the Saudi Dynasty that found it in the 15th century, the importance of its architecture, and the significance of its location.

Karla mentioned that the vegetables taste delicious when they are grown naturally, without the use of chemicals. She imparted upon us the details of the kind of irrigation systems used to water the plants.

We were amazed to see healthy growing vegetables, like, lettuce, pumpkin, corn, different kinds of basil, and squash. The fruits growing there amazed us; there were lots of fig trees growing in the area as well.

At the end of the trip, our lovely friend, Karla, treated us with fresh farm produced vegetable from Ennessi Farm. We had a buffet spread of spring onions, arugula, romaine and iceberg lettuce, baby tomatoes, and lots more. They were fresh, vibrant in color and tasted great. (Great enough to make you love your veggies.)

Ennessi has been successfully running hands-on educational enrichment programs for a number of years, for children, adults and family groups.  For 2017-2018, they have introduced Field Trips which introduce young children (grades 1-6, ages 6-11) to ideas of organic growing, recycling, sustainability and healthy eating.

The programs are run by Karla Ptacek, who can be reached for bookings at broccoli@ennessifarm.com.

Instagram: ennessifarm

Facebook: ennessi.farm

Photography by Zahra Anwer