Your organic farm in the Eastern Townships
It is difficult to speak of anything other than rain these days. There has been so much of it these last few weeks that some sections of our fields just aren’t draining. You can forget the use of most farm equipment in the soggy patches. Given the nature of our soil, tractor treads would take…
After last week’s proverbial April showers, we were hoping not only for May flowers, but for drier days propitious to planting. So far, though, May has been a disappointment: a short sunny break (four days), followed by diluvial rains since Tuesday noon. For farmers with loamy soils, a few days without rain will not suffice…
March 23rd marked the start of our greenhouse season. Leeks and onions first, followed by artichokes, celeriac and sweet peppers. Early April saw us seeding cut flowers, which we hope to offer this summer, and a few slow-germinating herbs (marjoram, rosemary)…then beets (soon to be transplanted outdoors) and tomatoes (candidates for a longer greenhouse stint).…
We’ve spent the past three months carrying water from house to barn for the four sheep we bought from our friend André last December, feeding them hay and grain. Three months of effort that have paid off big – in the guise of the recent arrival of three lambs, with a fourth expected any day.…
March is a difficult month for vegetable farmers – a real no man’s land. It snows, it rains, it snows again, and daily temperatures go up and down like a yo-yo. It’s not as if we could begin fieldwork anyway – even without snow the soil will remain waterlogged well into April, and no self-respecting…
It is time to overcome our writer’s block. Two months have sped by, far from the computer, but never far from the farm and farmwork. We had left off at fieldwork to be completed…We never did get around to mulching the garlic with straw; it will have to wait until spring. To avert boredom during…
Our last basket delivery is already upon us…the season has flown by and the first frosts have arrived, a boon for fall vegetables that thrive in cooler weather (Brussels sprouts, for example). September was wet, cold and generally unkind to our last lettuces, though, so regretfully, we’ll have to wait until next year for another…
Alkékenge or more poetically amour en cage in French, bladder cherry from its Latin root – physalis, Chinese or Japanese lantern, winter cherry – there are countless names for the delicious ground cherry. Planted in the month of May, the plant reaches gigantic proportions in August, yielding large quantities of berries which are meticulously harvested…
Picking up where we left off is easier said than done. Notwithstanding recent cooler temperatures, the summer was a hot one. Everything that could go to seed did, to the frustration of those hoping for more lettuce in their baskets. The cooler weather heralds the return of broccoli and some leafy heads. The tomatoes continue…
July was an intense month – justification of sorts for our radio silence. It can’t get any busier than July, when crops are still being planted even as harvesting is under way. Added to the demands of crop logistics are those of basket fulfillment, and editorial activities such as these. We are heading into our…