Elphinheart Gardens

‘Treat the Land Right’: BC Farmers Search for Solutions As Another Year of Drought Looms - THE SKEENA In Telkwa, B.C., a farmer uses regenerative techniques to combat severe drought, enhancing soil health and reducing chemical reliance.

🌿🌸 Join us for a Plant Swap Party!🌸🌿

Are you a budding plant enthusiast looking to expand your green family? Or perhaps you’re a seasoned plant parent with some leafy offspring looking for new homes? Look no further!

🌿WHEN: Saturday, April 20th

🪴TIME: 11:00-1:00

🌱WHERE: 1-1059 Roberts Creek Rd

**What to Bring:**
- Pre-loved plants looking for new homes
- Plant babies and propagated cuttings
- Spare pots or containers
- Your enthusiasm for all things green!

This event is perfect for plant lovers of all levels, whether you’re just starting your plant journey or you’re a seasoned pro. It’s a fantastic opportunity to meet fellow plant enthusiasts, swap stories, and grow your collection.

So mark your calendars, gather your green friends, come eat some snacks, swap some plants and get ready to have a plant-tastic time! ☘️🌿🪴🌱💚

TODAY!

Sunshine Coast Farmers’ Institute
AGM
Save the Date - Sunday March 24th, 2024
3:00-5:00pm
At Grounded Acres Organic Farm
In-person or online (Details below)

Please join us for our Annual General Meeting followed by a discussion about goals and priorities for 2024 and beyond.

Coffee, tea, and some snacks will be provided.

We’ll have bumper stickers available to take home for all participants with a paid membership.

Reminder to renew your membership at least 2 weeks before the meeting (March 10) to be allowed to vote at the AGM.
E-transfer $25 to [email protected]

How to get to Grounded Acres Organic Farm?

1668 Sunshine Coast hwy, access via Highland road. Second driveway on your right up the hill. Park anywhere on-site or on Highland road. The meeting will be upstairs in the first building on the right (above the farm stand). Access via long outdoor staircase.

Sunshine Coast Farmers’ Institute

TODAY!!!

🌱🌼 Join us for the 30th Annual Seedy Saturday and seed exchange! 🌼🌱

It’s that time of the year again when our community comes together to celebrate the beauty of gardening and the power and joy of sharing seeds. For nearly three decades, Seedy Saturday has been a cherished tradition, connecting gardeners old and new in a celebration of growth, biodiversity, and community.

At this year’s event, you’ll have the opportunity to participate in our beloved seed exchange, where you can trade your favourite seeds with fellow gardeners. It’s a wonderful way to discover new varieties, preserve heirloom seeds, and connect with the rich history of our local gardening community.

In addition to the seed exchange, our event features a wide array of activities, including farm and artisan markets where you can find local goodies, seedlings, seeds, and growing mediums. Whether you’re an experienced gardener or just starting out, there’s something for everyone at Seedy Saturday.

So mark your calendars and join us as we continue the tradition of Seedy Saturday, honouring the past while embracing the future of gardening in our community. See you there! 🌱👩‍🌾👨‍🌾

One Straw Society
Sunshine Coast Seed Saving Collective

Linda Gilkeson || West Coast Gardening || Gardening Tips Linda Gilkeson's West Coast Gardening books, talks, workshops and tips on organic gardening, insect, w**d & disease management.

The Bizarre Salem Tomato Trials

We’ve all heard of the horrific Salem Witch Trials, right?

More than 200 people were accused of witchcraft between 1692 and 1693 in Salem, Massachusetts. With over 20 being executed.

However, one Salem Trial that is rarely mentioned is the Salem Tomato Trial – although this one happened in Salem, New Jersey.

Yes, tomato, those juicy red things people put on your burgers or in your salads.

They held a trial against tomatoes.

The Backdrop

Tomatoes, shortly after their introduction to the western world, were long considered to be a poisonous fruit.

After all, red in nature usually means danger.

Also considered to be a “sinful” food due to its mild aphrodisiac properties, the tomato didn’t get much love between the 1500’s – 1800’s.

John Gerard, a barber/surgeon and one of the fruit’s earliest cultivators stateside, believed them to be poisonous because they contained low levels of a toxin called tomatine.

Whilst tomatoes do contain very low levels of toxins, we today know they are far from harmful.

Safe to say, Gerard’s views went old-timey viral and for centuries the red fruits were widely considered to be unfit for human consumption.

The Tomato Trial

So, with all that backdrop, and full-well knowing how much the people of any Salem love a crazy trial, it should come as no surprise that tomatoes were put on trial in the town’s courthouse in 1820, to answer for their toxicity.

One man, Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson, refused to believe the tomato was poisonous.

In fact, he’d been holding competitions to see who could grow the biggest tomatoes every year. The good Colonel even offered a prize to the winner.

Not only that but he’d even been eating them regularly – what a madman!

Be that as it may, the general public still believed Colonel Johnson to be a lunatic, and they still believed the tomato to be an ornamental plant rather than one for eating.

A Point to Prove

Knowing something drastic had to be done to calm the fear in the courthouse, Colonel Johnson walked in front of the gathered crowd with a basket of tomatoes in his hand.

With steely determination and steadfast nerve, Johnson – much to the horror of the spectators – proceeded to munch his way through the deadly fruit.

One after one, he made his way through the basket of tomatoes, very much enjoying himself by all accounts.

For those who came to see blood, there was a lot of disappoint to be had.

Johnson, against all scientific and religious belief, stood firm after his healthy afternoon snack.

After this theatrical turning point, the tomato’s supposed toxicity was wholly disregarded.

The food then went on to become something grown in nearly every garden, and served with nearly every meal across the continent.

A tip of the hat to you, Colonel Johnson.

Source ~ https://www.thefactsite.com/salem-tomato-trials/

Local food history!

Celebrate BC Heritage Week with us! 🍓🫐 🍇 Did you know that the Howe Sound Co-operative Cannery operated in upper Gibsons for over 30 years? What started off as a way for local farmers to use excess berries turned into a very successful business that operated through the great depression and WWII. Sold as Malkins Best, the jam won a British Empire Trophy in its first year of production! 🏆 The Howe Sound Cannery was a co-op, meaning that members bought shares and had a say in how the organization was run.
📸- Here we have cannery worker Hazel Chamberlin, sitting in front of a stack of cooling cans of jam (1935).

WEBINAR: Many of us know what a 3 Sisters garden is, but is it really that easy to build? How do they actually work? And what am I doing wrong??

Learn about the ancient science behind the mound-building “biodynamic” method of the Haudenosaunee, how to grow it yourself, and the most common reasons why these gardens fail.

WHEN: Tuesday, February 27

Register here: https://efao.ca/event/beyond-the-three-sisters/

About the speaker: Celeste Smith (she/her) is Oneida from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory and a seed steward, traditional agriculturalist and former professor of Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) at Niagara College. She is the Founder/Director of Cultural Seeds (culturalseeds.com) an Indigenous seed store/rematriation project and Ga Gitigemi Gamik (wewillplantlodge.com) an ecological centre on a permanent Indigenous stewarded site, where women and 2SLGBTTQQIA+ persons can (RE)learn ancestral agricultural methods lost to colonization.

Beyond the 3 Sisters: The Science and Methods Behind Traditional Indigenous Agriculture - EFAO Learn about the ancient science behind the mound-building “biodynamic” method of the Haudenosaunee

🌱🌼 Join us for our 30th Anniversary (28th Annual due to a couple years off with a bad cold) Seedy Saturday and seed exchange! 🌼🌱

It's that time of the year again when our community comes together to celebrate the beauty of gardening and the power and joy of sharing seeds. For nearly three decades, Seedy Saturday has been a cherished tradition, connecting gardeners old and new in a celebration of growth, biodiversity, and community.

At this year's event, you'll have the opportunity to participate in our beloved seed exchange, where you can trade your favourite seeds with fellow gardeners. It's a wonderful way to discover new varieties, preserve heirloom seeds, and connect with the rich history of our local gardening community.

In addition to the seed exchange, our event features a wide array of activities, including farm and artisan markets where you can find local goodies, seedlings, seeds, and growing mediums. Whether you're an experienced gardener or just starting out, there's something for everyone at Seedy Saturday.

So mark your calendars and join us as we continue the tradition of Seedy Saturday, honouring the past while embracing the future of gardening in our community. See you there! 🌱👩‍🌾👨‍🌾

As a new farmer, access to capital in the early years of operation or during periods of significant change such as farm transition or expansion, can be a challenge. The good news is, there are many grants available for beginner farmers in Canada, and we’ve compiled a list of some of our favourites, as well as tips for applying!

Head here to check out our Grants Blog:

How to Apply for Farm Grants in Canada - Young Agrarians Are you a new farmer looking for funding? We’ve compiled a list of some of our favourite farm grants in Canada, as well as tips for applying.

So happy to be working outside in the yard, with this warm spring-like sunny weather. The beginnings of a new woodshed, leaning against the current one. I will be building up another pallet height, then roofing with scrounged scraps. Most likely reinforcing with salvaged 2x4s. The two cribs will be roughly 4x4x8 to hold a cord each. I am always looking for free or inexpensive firewood to heat my home, so it helps if I have more space to let wet wood season for next year. Instead of rounds under tarps scattered through the property…

This is a bucket half full of duck eggs. Because of the cold, I had given my poultry extra thick straw to snuggle into. However, they also used it to hide these eggs. About a month’s worth I am assuming. We have had below freezing temperatures for over a week, so we will have to figure out if any of these are indeed edible. We have only been finding occasional eggs on top of the bedding. Brats!