FENCE’s annual Holiday Barn Tour will take place tomorrow. It will feature seven local barns:

Morning Meadow Farm in Landrum

Follow Your Bliss Farm in Green Creek

Barking Fox Farm in Tryon

Green Creek Miniature Horse Farm

Silver Moon Ranch in Green Creek

Freer Farm in Green Creek

Bickford Farm in Campobello

Activities along the tour will include a hands-on polo demonstration at Morning Meadow Farm, a miniature horse carriage driving exhibition at Green Creek Miniature Farm, an equine wellness presentation by Dr. Bibi Freer at her Freer Farm, and lunch at Motlow Creek Gardens.

Proceeds from the 2009 Holiday Barn Tour, presented by Morton Buildings and Equine Sponsor, Carolina Storage Solutions,will benefit FENCEs nature education and outdoor recreation programs. Tickets may be ordered by calling 828-859-9021; by visiting www.fence.org; or at nearby locations including The Book Shelf and Down To Earth Garden Center in Tryon; Cottage Books, The Farm House and The Hay Rack, all in Landrum; and in Saluda at the Purple Onion.

Morning Meadow Farm

Mr. and Mrs. Ray Norden completed Morning Meadow Farm in 2007, after relocating to Landrum from Florida.

Cindy Norden had a long career in television with NBC, CNBC and as a field producer for Martha Stewart, while Ray Norden was a professional polo player.

Their 12-stall barn reflects polos emphasis on practicality and function, with a wide center aisle and a generous tack room housing Mr. Nordens polo equipment.

Guests on the tour will meet the 31 year-old mare Spiral, who in her career has been a polo pony, a dressage horse, and a fox hunter. Visitors will also be treated to a hands-on polo demonstration by Ray Norden.

Follow Your Bliss Farm

Jack Lingafelter and Marcy Wrights Follow Your Bliss Farm in Green Creek will join this years FENCE Holiday Barn Tour on November 28, presented by Morton Buildings and Equine Sponsor, Carolina Storage Solutions.

Wright and Lingafelter just recently completed their new two stall barn. When asked how old it was, Wright replied, Just old enough for cobwebs! Wright spent a long time researching barn designs and features. She knew she wanted the barn to be a sanctuary both for the horses and herself. She wanted it to be easy to maintain and to make use of as much green technology as possible.

With that in mind, Wright worked with Danny Owens, of Daniel Owens Construction (the builder of their home) to design and build her dream barn. The barn is in close proximity to the house, so Lingafelter and Wright decided to use the same materials and exterior color scheme as their home.

In addition to two stalls, there is a horse trailer bay, a tractor storage/workshop room, half bath, lots of built-in cabinets for storage, hay/shavings/tools storage space, wash stall, and what Owens early in the process named The Gathering Room the heart, literally and figuratively, of the barn.

Ascot Earth Systems installed an underground cistern that collects 2,000 gallons of water off the barn roof with just one inch of rain. A three bin, forced-air manure composting system was purchased from O2 Compost. This system renders the manure into compost in 60 days. Another green aspect is the non-petroleum based paint used to seal the hardwood used extensively throughout the new barn.

Follow Your Bliss Farm is home to three dogs and two horses, Oskar and Roy.

A collection of Jolly Fine Horses will be for sale from Jackie Harriss clay studio. These little horses are reminiscent of a cross between a Chinese Tang Dynasty horse and a Thelwell Pony.

Also on display at Follow Your Bliss Farm you will find Wire Horse Sculptures by Kitty Jackson, whose work graced the cover of a recent Chronicle of the Horse magazine. Other artists whose work is represented in the new barn will be on hand to answer questions.

Barking Fox Farm

Mr. and Mrs. Stephens began work on their barn in 1997 after moving to the area from Georgia. Their elegant main barn was stick built to their own design on 43 acres, along with a smaller barn to the rear which has now been completed.

The eleven stalls have a granite dust base covered with shavings, housing several of the Stephens own horses. The barn also houses a fully-equipped apartment displaying paintings by Mrs. Stephens.

New to Barking Fox Farm are two beautifully decorated guest cottages adjacent to the barn. In between the barn and apartments is a small patio with a sitting room to relax after a long day of riding. Just completed is a riding arena.

Barking Fox Farm is home to seven horses, five dogs and four cats. One horse that you will see on the tour is Pearl, a 17 hand Percheron (French Draft Horse). Pearls owner is the Stephens son, Billy, who enjoys riding her in the ring or on the trails.

Activities at Barking Fox Farm includes a jumping demo at 9 a.m. Joan MacIntyre will display art, the Humane Society will be on hand with animals in search of their forever homes, and Expressions Florist will have a free raffle to give a way an arrangement.

Green Creek Miniature Horse Farm

Relocating from South Florida, Jeff and Connie Brown built their Morton Barn in 2006, while renovating the existing house and mini barn on Hwy. 9 in Green Creek.

The barn is built for 10 stalls, but with changes the Browns made it currently has six stalls, a large tack room, half bath, wash rack and feed room. Adjacent to the Morton barn is a mini barn which was there when the Browns bought the property.

Jeff renovated it to accommodate their boys. It is a guys only no-girls-allowed barn. It holds their 2 stallions, 2 geldings and their two colts born this past spring.

The main barn holds the Browns four miniature mares, a yearling haflinger, and Connies Hanoverian Dressage Schoolmaster, Wonderland. Dressage and hunters were Connies background before being smitten by the minis.

Jeff and Connie started with miniature horses in 2002. Connie says miniature horses are a wonderful alternative to larger horses as they are all around easier, and just as competitive.

After acquiring their first mini, they enlisted the help of Linda Kern in South Florida and asked, What do you do with these things? They soon found out by attending miniature horse breed shows where Kern was competing, and even attended the Miniature Horse World Show in Fort Worth, Texas, where the best of the best compete.

They observed several types of carriage driving, obstacle, in hand hunter and jumper divisions, halter classes and much more. After that Connie was sold, and purchased her first miniature horse show cart, and the rest is history.

Connie actively competes in miniature horse breed shows as well as carriage shows primarily with our local Carolina Carriage Club, here in the foothills.

One special horse you will meet at the farm is Sweetwaters Little Fantasy, who recently debuted in Dancing Under The Stars held at FENCE on September 5.

She is AMHA/AMHR registered and is a AMHR national champion for the year 2000 in pleasure driving as well as halter classes. She is 12 years old and is currently being used as a lesson horse for children and adults. Jeff and Connie call her their diva as she loves all the attention.

Silver Moon Ranch

Libby Lace, who purchased Silver Moon Ranch five years ago, has modified the property into a working Angora goat ranch and vineyard.&bsp; The four-stall horse barn has been altered into a goat barn with multiple stalls instead of the former horse stalls.

One stall is used currently for the new arrivals and an in-house medical area. The former wash rack is now used for storage. It will house displays throughout November 28 to show the process from goats fleece (mohair) to yarn.

A single goat produces between five and eight kilograms of hair per year. Angoras are sheared twice a year, unlike sheep which are sheared only once. The goats at Silver Moon Ranch were sheared in October.

They will be dressed in coats to keep the fleece clean and perfect quality. Silver Moon Ranch is also home to laying hens and two Great Pyrenees (Charlie and Isabel) who live with and protect the goats.

Freer Farm

Ron and Bibi Freer built their Morton Barn in 1995. The barn has six stalls and grooming/wash rack combo. The unique feature of the Freer barn is that it was one of the first in the area to have an attached apartment.

The Freer Farm is home to six horses, three dogs, seventeen chickens, two (spoiled) goats, six cows, two mini mules, a cat and a parrot, among others.

One horse that you will see on the tour will be Stoli. Stolis sire is Absolute. He is fourteen years old and was born in Spartanburg County. Bibi birthed him, he was a twin and unfortunately the twin did not survive. Stoli was Champion at Kentucky Horse Park. Ron and Bibi have owned Stoli since he was ten years old.

Bibi is currently the owner of Freer Equine so a lot of the animals that come to the farm are in need of rehabilitation. Bibis mission is to combine old fashioned service and compassion with state of the art care and deliver it to the farm.

Bibi will be available for questions throughout the day on new perspectives in equine wellness and parasite control. At 4 p.m. she will be joined by farrier Bill McDaniel for a demonstration and question/answer period on the importance of veterinary/farrier teams in relation to the horses soundness and wellbeing. Common hoof problems will also be addressed.

Bickford Farm

Originally from Greenville, S.C., Mike and Leza Bickford relocated to the Motlow Creek Equestrian Center area in 2005. Their barn was built by Morton Buildings and completed in 2005. The barn was built on a hill with dirt provided by the house construction. It was purposely situated to provide adequate drainage and to always have a breeze.

The barns architecture (roof and masonry) matches the house. Unique features include; heat lamp, hot & cold water in the wash rack, dual storage at the end of the barn, a large tack room with air conditioning, tongue & groove wood and laundry. The barn currently has four stalls with feather light doors that operate off of a pressure system. The stalls and windows are indestructible.