Erntedankfest Bardowick

A Tradition with Roots in the Middle Ages

Bardowick boasts a long history as a vegetable-growing location. As early as the Middle Ages, Bardowick gardeners supplied the Hanseatic city of Lüneburg and provided for its saltworks. Today, the Bardowick Vegetable Growers' Association (Gemüsebauverein Bardowick e.V.) maintains this tradition with annual festivals, the highlight of which is the Harvest Festival on the third Sunday in September. The festival combines a church service of thanksgiving for the harvest, the preservation of rural and craft customs, and folk festival conviviality into a characteristic format that has made the village and the region famous far beyond the district.

Parade with Artfully Decorated Wagons

The centerpiece of the Harvest Festival is the grand parade on Sunday afternoon. Dozens of harvest and themed wagons are decorated by Bardowick gardening families, clubs, schools, and friendly communities with vegetables, flowers, grain, and autumnal produce. Brass bands, dance groups, drum corps, and festival floats from friendly shooting clubs march between the wagons. The parade winds its way through the historic village center of Bardowick and ends at the festival grounds 'Auf dem Worth', where hundreds of spectators line the route.

Crowning of the Root Queen and Musical Program

After the wagons arrive, the festival program begins. The emotional climax is the crowning of the Root Queen around 5:30 PM – a young woman from Bardowick who will represent the village's horticultural tradition as an ambassador for one year. Brass ensembles, international music groups, dance formations, and folk ensembles perform on the festival grounds and in the large marquee. A special jury awards prizes for the most beautiful harvest wagons and honors the young talent of the clubs. As darkness falls, the evening dance begins in the marquee with a DJ and live band – a highlight for young adults and dance enthusiasts.

Organizers and Program Around the Festival

The Bardowick Vegetable Growers' Association (Gemüsebauverein Bardowick e.V.) organizes the Harvest Festival with the support of the municipality and numerous local clubs. The festival Sunday is often framed by a Harvest Thanksgiving service in the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Bardowick – one of the most significant Romanesque churches in Northern Germany. Markets, carousels, food stalls, and game booths complete the program, transforming the village center into a lively folk festival for a day.