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ARLINGTON GARDENS IS A MEMBER OF THE CSA FAMILY FARM NETWORK

… or Réseau des fermiers de famille (RFF). CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture, often referred to simply as “organic food baskets,” is a concept which links consumers to local organic farms. You become a farm member for the season by pre-purchasing a share of the season’s harvest, while your farmers deliver baskets of fresh produce to a drop-off point in your neighbourhood each week.

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2022 WILL BE OUR 13TH SEASON GROWING ORGANIC FOOD

By ‘organic’ we mean food grown in living soil and produced without synthetic pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, or GMOs (genetically modified organisms). In North America and Europe, only certified organic food may be sold as such. At Arlington Gardens our vegetable and fruit production is certified by the organic certification agency EcoCert Canada.

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WE GROW ORGANIC VEGETABLES AND SMALL FRUITS

… primarily for the Greater Montreal market. Our production includes more than 60 kinds of vegetables of different varieties, as well as berries (bluberries and black currants), ground cherries and watermelon. It varies from week to week throughout the season.

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WE DELIVER OUR PRODUCTS JUNE THROUGH NOVEMBER AT LOCATIONS

… in the city and at the farm. Weekly CSA basket deliveries are made mid-June through early November at three neighbourhood drop-off locations on Wednesday and Thursday, two Montreal public markets Friday through Sunday and at the farm Wednesday through Sunday. In July 2016, we began operating a farmstand at Atwater Market; in 2019 we opened a second farmstand at Jean-Talon Market. In 2022, we’ll be at both public markets from early July through early November.

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WE FARM 25+ ACRES ORGANICALLY

… and serve 400+ CSA members and several hundred more customers at our farmstands. We began with approximately 50 CSA members in 2010 and have been growing steadily ever since. Every year we look forward to seeing existing customers return for another season and welcome new ones with open arms.

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WE ENRICH OUR SOILS WITH COMPOST

… and green manure. The farm soil is a sandy loam, which is typical for the region. It is, for the most part, well drained and ideally suited to organic vegetable and fruit production. The farm is comprised of mostly arable land, with some wooded areas near the river bed and between large expanses of field.

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WE PERFORM CROP ROTATION TO COUNTER THE EFFECTS

… of pests and disease. Crop rotation is the very essence of organic farming. We practice a 6-year rotation at Arlington Gardens, by plant family (solanaceas, brassicaceas, allia & cucurbits, mixed vegetables and green manure). While using crop rotation might sound old-fashioned, it is a much more effective and sophisticated system than relying on chemicals.

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WE DO NOT USE SYNTHETIC PESTICIDES OR FERTILIZERS

… nor do we use GMO seeds. Our commitment to organic farming stems from a deep-seated concern about the nefarious systemic effects of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers on the global food chain, and a belief in the importance of preserving seed, and food, diversity. Our farm activities are in keeping with this concern and belief; they include an ongoing focus on biodiversity through hedgerows and other farm landscaping projects.