KARS – The 2026 Ottawa Carleton Plowmen’s Association Plowing Match is expected to bring together competitors from across the region, with modern tractors, antique equipment and horse-drawn plows competing for class honours. Matches like this are more than demonstrations of agricultural heritage: competitors accumulate points that can help them qualify for the International Plowing Match and Rural Expo and, for the top competitors, potentially advance toward Canadian and world-level competition.
The Ottawa-Carleton event begins on Sept. 11 at 11:00 a.m. with a VIP plowing competition followed by a plowing workshop. The workshop gives participants an opportunity to learn about the techniques involved in competitive plowing while the main Saturday competition features modern and vintage tractors as well as horses.
On Sat., Sept. 12, the main events get underway, starting at 10:00 a.m. and run until 3:00 p.m. The awards presentation takes place at 5:00 p.m.
Antique machinery and agricultural displays are also an important part of the event. In previous years, visitors have been able to see historic tractors and equipment alongside the competition, providing a link between today’s mechanized agriculture and the farming practices of earlier generations.
The match also recognizes competitors in numerous categories. Recent competitions have included classes for conventional and reversible plows, antique tractors, antique mounted plows and horse-drawn equipment, along with special prizes recognizing such accomplishments as best-plowed land, best open split, best antique plow person and champion horse plow person.
Plowing competitions have deep roots in the Ottawa area. The Ontario Plowmen’s Association’s historical records show that Ottawa-Carleton hosted the International Plowing Match as early as 1918 and again in 1932.
The Ottawa-Carleton Plowmen’s Association itself has maintained the tradition of an annual local competition, moving the event from farm to farm and giving competitors an opportunity to demonstrate skills that are increasingly uncommon in an era of highly automated agriculture.
For spectators, however, the attraction is not simply the competition. The match offers an opportunity to see working farm equipment, vintage machinery, horses and skilled plowers in action while celebrating the agricultural heritage of the Ottawa Valley.
The 2026 match is being organized by the Ottawa-Carleton Plowmen’s Association, with the Cranberry Creek Dairy Farms, owned and operated by Eldon and Betty Lindsay, Anne Lindsay and Jake Meeks and their extended family serving as hosts. The association is part of the Ontario Plowmen’s Association’s Zone 6, which includes Ottawa-Carleton, Stormont, Glengarry, Prescott, Russell, Leeds, Grenville and Lanark.
The plowing site at Cranberry Creek Dairy Farm Ltd. is located opposite 6713 Second Line Road, Kars, Ontario. Refreshments and lunch will be available on site.
