The fair is the oldest and largest state organic organization in the county and receives thousands of visitors from all across the United States. It originated in 1977 and occurs every third weekend in September.

There are no carousels, merry-go-rounds or cotton candy stands at this fair, though. Instead, MOFGA is about helping organic farmers and gardeners and connecting health food lovers with environmentally friendly farming measures.

Along with farming booths, the fair boasts its fair share of environmentally friendly organizations, including the Natural Resource Council of Maine (NRCM), based in Augusta, which strives to create alternative forms of energy and release America’s use of fossil fuels. The booth, like the fair, was alive with young students.

“I woke up at 6:30 a.m. this morning. I scraped off my car from the frost and headed up here,” said Molly Masterton, who drove two hours from Bowdoin College. An environmental science student, Molly says she interned with NRCM this past summer and was particularly excited for her first visit to the fair.

“I never realized how cool this place is,” said Masterton, who came up with four other Bowdoin students. “And it’s a great place to get our message out here.” While many environmental organizations graced the fair grounds, there were still a large variety of other booths and events offered.

The Common Ground Fair lets fairgoers network with organic farms, browse the numerous vendors and demonstrators and learn about sustainable living. Saturday and Sunday mornings when most attend, people were treated to delicious, organic Maine-grown food, beautiful Maine crafts, agricultural products, lively music and exotic booths.

Among them was Tom Taylor-Lash, who owns Gramps Blueberry Farm in Hancock, Maine.

“I’ve been here since early Friday morning, and I’ll be here until Sunday night, but I really think three days at the fair beats any amount of time at work,” said Taylor-Lash, who normally works at the L.L. Bean outlet store in Bangor. “I’ve been coming to this fair for the past 14 years, and it’s a great chance to meet people and sell our blueberry products.”

In one tent, old-time new England contra dances took place. Fiddle and guitar music intertwined, and scores of people hit the make shift hardwood floor to dance the afternoon away.

Others not interested in dancing could be spotted listening to the fair’s keynote speaker, Will Allen, a small town farmer who managers Ceder Circle Farm in Thetford, Vt., who spoke about getting rid of chemicals in food. He said that often, large scale farmers use genetically engineered organisms and chemicals in their crops in order to make a greater profit. “It’s all in an effort to pad their wallets and control the American farm enterprise,” Allen said.

In another booth, fairgoers sampled Zlaybi, a Lebanese fried dough, homemade falafel and a local granola mix.

The booths all differed greatly. There was one for homeopathy and natural food, and across the way was a massage booth. In the next tent over, the political action committee was adjacent to the pro-life booth.

The hypnosis booth attracted a lot of attention.

“Yes, I suppose it’s a little bit odd to see a hypnosis tent at the Common Ground Fair, but you see a little of everything, don’t you?” said Ernest VanBorssche, who owns and operates a hypnosis office in southern Maine. “People come to us with issues ranging from insomnia or wanting to quit smoking or something like that. We work with them through music and discussion, but they have to want to come to solve their problem.”

VanBorssche said that despite the unusual topic of his booth, he had many fairgoers stop by and even buy several of his CDs. “I think in this day and age, people are trying new opportunities,” he said.

A Native American set up a native healing booth in one corner. He goes by the name Fredda and said his goal in life is to create healing food and herbs for people with any pain.

“Whenever people have a health problem, they come to me and I help them out,“ Fredda said. “I’ve treated just about everything, except lyme disease, but I could probably help that as well.”

Fredda left to burn some incense so he could cleanse the area before giving a speech later in the afternoon. By the late afternoon, people were beginning to slowly file out, except for the volunteers, who work from the early hours of the morning to the late hours of the evening. They help with parking, picking up garbage, working in the kitchen and assisting with booths.

Somewhere between the sheep dog trials, fiddlers and manure throwing contest, fairgoers will realize this is tradition. As the Maine slogan goes, this is “the way life should be.”

After going to the volunteer tent to get my free admission, T-shirt and meal in exchange for four hours of my time, I found that all of the volunteer work had been taken by 10 a.m.

Wandering over to the livestock area, there was a demonstration on how to bomb proof -or train – your horse. I hung around here for a few minutes, watching a Percheron/Welsh Cob draft trot around the ring to the sounds of a young woman’s clicks and chirps. The mare had no ropes or halters attached to her and still followed the girl around the ring as though she was the herd leader. After the girl pulled a plastic bag over the horse’s ears like a hat, a loud speaker caught my attention.

A short walk away, I found a sheep dog demo in progress, but it wasn’t what I expected. Inside the pen, I watched the shepherds use a breed of animal for herding sheep that I had never seen before. Several humans worked together to chase a group of sheep around a course and into a pen. After nearly 10 minutes, they finished up with two of the sheep and five pinto-colored ducks trapped between three cones. The shepherds congratulated the group for making excellent time, and then showed how sheep dogs could manage to complete the same tasks in about five minutes. Obviously, these dogs were far better at their job than the people were. These sheep dogs would work 24 hours a day if their shepherds didn’t “turn them off,” giving them the signal to play. Once they heard the right whistle, the dogs were free to catch frisbees, entertain themselves with a soccer ball and mingle within the crowd to receive scratches and praise.

After giving them a quick pat, I managed to squeeze myself out of the crowd and stumble into the fleece tent. It was here that I bought a skein of “bunny blend” made mainly from angora rabbits so I could make a hat. I traveled through the fairgrounds for quite some time, discovering all kinds of things that piqued my interest.

Learning that I could sleep easier and keep my face moisturized, I bought some dried lavender and chamomile for myself. I made out with far more than a dozen free bumper stickers, pins, magnets, coasters, pamphlets and even a comic book, all about causes that I believe in.

I argued with a Willie Nelson look-a-like about the legalization of marijuana and talked about democratic high schools with an old friend. Numerous petitions floated around for different causes while I sampled just about every fragrance of soap from the Carrabasset Soap Company. When I came to the vendor giving out free samples of his organic maple-roasted cashews, I remembered how hungry I was.

Up until this point, I was having a marvelous time at the fair checking out all of the livestock exhibits and seeing the sights. However, I hadn’t been thinking about the fact that MOFGA had that word “organic” in it’s name. What is organic, anyway? In addition to a pledge not to use pesticides or herbicides, it involves the health of the dirt where you’re growing the plants and raising the animals. You also need to make sure that you’re not disturbing the natural microscopic life that lives within the soil. That’s something I can appreciate – who likes upset microbes?

Armed with this knowledge, I wandered into the many lanes of food vendors to pick an organically grown lunch. The only downside to the food was the price. Sadly, one major problem with organic food is that it costs more to produce it. For example, if a farmer doesn’t use herbicides, then this increases the amount of manual labor needed for pulling weeds out by hand.

Even so, it seems that most farmers don’t mind the extra work. Lisa Turner, 47, of Freeport, Maine had great things to say about growing organic food and about the fair itself.

“Let’s just say I’ve been here a s–ton of times,” she told me. Her favorite part of the fair is the “Ag-Talks” – agricultural lectures for those not up on their organic farmer lingo. “Truth be told, I really just come back for the strawberry creampuffs,” she said jokingly. Her employee, Gail Taisey, 28, told me that she loves watching the sheep dog demos and that her favorite food is the lamb kebobs, “which are kind of connected,” Lisa said, chuckling to herself.

I found dozens of fruits and vegetables that had been judged by certified experts. However, there was something odd about the number of blue ribbons. There seemed to be just about as many blue ribbons as there were entries. Fortunately, I was able to talk with one of the entrants for a few minutes about why there were so many.

“All of the varieties must be named,” Amy LeBlanc said, who showed me her first place Jack-Be-Little pumpkin – the small kind that fit into your palm. There is a given set of criteria for each variety that is used to judge the entries, such as smoothness of shoulders on the JBL pumpkins. Judges also look for insect damage, poor nutrition, disease, size and color differences and immaturity. “First place goes to all entries that are well-grown, good examples of [a] variety,” Amy said. This made me realize why there were so many blue ribbons – every entrant was just damn good at taking care of their produce throughout its entire organic life.

I asked Amy about her cherry tomatoes that had won the “Judge’s Pick” and were planted in a small window box found in many local apartments. She said that they were a very unique variety called “Andrina” that were originally grown by Joe Cavanaugh, whose Web site is called “History You Can Eat.” The plants that he produces are all grown from seeds that are of the same genetic makeup as when they were first cultivated years before. She offered me a few of the seeds from her plants and told me to get help starting them. With a little luck, I may be able to get a few to grow. Who knows, maybe next year I’ll be able to come back to the Common Ground Fair and win the “Judge’s Pick” with my very own Andrina cherry tomatoes.

The Hudson Museum has been coming to the fair for eight years, and this time brought a large collection of Native American books and resources. The Hudson Museum, which raises awareness for northeastern Native Americans, works closely with the Maine Indian Basket Makers Association, hoped to promote a basket sale and demonstration occurring in December. Gretchen Faulkner, director of programming and development activities at the Hudson Museum, hopes to raise more “awareness and interest in the culture of Native Americans.” For more information on the Native American exhibits, stop by the Hudson Museum Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. or Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The other museum exhibit at the fair, the Page Farm and Home Museum, had a booth for the 11th straight year, but it was the museum’s first time in the Folk Art Tent. Patricia Henner, the director of the museum, says that she thought having a booth at the fair was a good way to “have visibility for the campus.”

This year, the museum brought two collections of stenciled and painted tin ware, an art form that was popular back in the 17th and 18th centuries. The exhibit, which is featured on the second floor of the Page museum, also featured a place where interested onlookers could try their hand at stenciling a bookmark. Henner says that the Museum wants to incorporate “Maine collections and themes” and is thinking of offering a “stenciling workshop in the future.” For more information on the stencil exhibit, stop by the museum Tuesday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The third exhibit, the Maine Folklife Center, has had trouble gaining visibility around campus. Even though the MFC has had a booth at the fair for 11 years, many students do not know what the Folklife Center does, or even whereit is located on campus. University of Maine professor Sandy Ives organized the Folklife Center in 1992, combining the Northeast Folklore Society and the Northeast Archives of Folklore and Oral History, which he founded in 1957.

Pamela Dean, archivist for the MFC, says that the center focuses on “the traditions and cultures of Maine, as well as recording over 5,000 hours of oral interviews from Maine citizens.” The center also teaches oral history classes from time to time, and wants to let students know what is offered. Dean says that she is hoping to start a “series of radio programs that will draw from the interviews in the archives.” Along with the oral history, the MFC also has over 10,000 images and photos and encourages students to visit the center anytime, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in South Stevens Hall.

All three exhibits received much attention over the three days of the fair, and provided good opportunities for publicity and awareness about the different programs and exhibits at the University of Maine.

The fair was held this past weekend in Unity. People came from all over to try organic foods and enjoy the rural fall farm scene of Maine.

While parking is difficult at the event, fairgoers can take a tractor from their car to the entrance gates, taking in the beginning sights of Maine’s fall foliage season along the way.

Every type of organic food imaginable at the Common Ground Fair was a treat for all who attended. Those who were there tried everything from Korean and Greek foods to home-grown vegetables.

One sight to see was a solar-powered bus sponsored by “The Juice Joint,” a store in Unity that offered a variety of unique drinks, including apple cider and fresh organic smoothies.

“The solar juice stand really brings you and the earth together,” said Anne Barrett, a marine science major at the University of Maine. “My favorite drink there is called blood. It is made with apples, beets, ginger and lime all pulverized in a juicer. ”

Many UMaine students attended the event as well as students from other area high schools and colleges.

“It was fun,” said Barrett. “It is really great to learn about farming and agriculture in Maine. It has a different feeling from other fairs. The emphasis is not in carnival rides but education and awareness for the earth.”

Barrett said she has been going to the fair for years. She also said that in past years, she has volunteered at some of the children’s exhibits.

There was a wide age range of people at the fair. The young and the old came together to celebrate organic foods. Those who were not into the organic side of things still enjoyed themselves. There were plenty of events, including live music and games to entertain the crowd.

Country music dominated the music scene at the occasion. Those who wanted to avoid the music simply grabbed a cup of hot chai, cocoa or steaming apple cider, and laid down on the grass to gaze at the starry New England sky.

Predominately farm country, Unity made for a perfect fall fair setting, according to fairgoers. The booths at the fair included everything from wood chopping, clothing and jewelry, to homemade quilts.

One of the favorite attractions of fairgoers was the livestock, which included llamas, goats, mules and pigs, among other farm creatures.

“There were the usual fair animals like poultry and sheep,” said Barrett, “but there were also more exotic animals like highland cows and alpacas. It is really interesting to see people still making a living from drafting horse teams.”

Barrett also said the fair was more organized than in the past. “Since moving the grounds to Unity, MOFGA has still been trying to even out all the glitches,” she said.

The “freaks” included old hippies, new hippies, punks and all sorts of political activists. However, the estimated 60,000 fairgoers in attendance came from every walk of Maine life to see the 650 vendors, exhibitions and demonstrations on the fairgrounds. Some 1,500 volunteers kept the fairgrounds clean and events running smoothly.

Dozens of entertainers took to various stages, from the Maine Organization of Storytelling Enthusiasts to the lively Inanna Sisters in Rhythm. There were demonstrations teaching fairgoers about growing garlic, chainsaw maintenance and virtually everything in between.

Vendors were also selling MOFGA-certified, organically grown fruits, vegetables and flowers. MOFGA does not permit use of processed sugar on the fairgrounds, so prepared food was sweetened with honey or other organic means. There was no soda or other pre-packaged food.

The fair featured a debate between gubernatorial candidates John Baldacci, Jonathan Carter, and John Michael as well as one between Chellie Pingree and Susan Collins, with the future of Maine agriculture as the central topic.

Near the organic fruit vendors, local organizations showed off various technological innovations. UMaine Engineering brought along a solar-powered truck and an electric sports car they had built.

“[The fair is] a golden opportunity to showcase our ideas and accomplishment to the general public,” said Brendan Browne, a second-year engineering student. Browne said the fair was helpful in attracting potential donators and cited lack of funds as a roadblock to building a new, more efficient vehicle. Browne spent Saturday and Sunday explaining to fairgoers “the superior power and efficiency that electric vehicles have over gas.”

Under the social and political action tents, various organizations, private schools, political parties and bookstores passed out information to the curious. Fairgoers could collect pamphlets from Amnesty International, the Green Party, midwifery organizations, an anarchist collective and a magnet school in Limestone.

College groups came from all over New England making up a large percentage of the fair volunteers.

“The fair just gets bigger every year,” Suzy Varin, a student at the Maine School of Science and Mathematics said.

Varin, whose family belongs to MOFGA, has been attending the fair for years. Varin volunteered in the children’s area for four hours, and like all volunteers received free admission, a meal and a Common Ground Fair T-shirt.

“I probably have 10 of these shirts at home from other years I’ve been to the fair,” Varin said. “I guess I’ll just add this one to the collection.”