FARM VISIT - Bizjak Farms

There’s something paradisal about taking a stroll in a place where you can pluck delicious food from the trees. If you take a right off the QEW to Vineland Station, you’ll find yourself in one of the best microclimates for growing tender fruit in Ontario, so you might as well stop by Milan’s farm gate store which he runs with his sister, Mimi and brother-in-law, Ignacio or “Nacho” as Milan calls him. The multi-generational farming operation sprawls over 26 acres of owned and leased farmland and includes the fruit varieties we all love come summertime: peaches, plums, strawberries, nectarines, cherries, apricots and apples. In early spring you’ll find asparagus and sweet peas on the farm table and sweet potatoes in the fall. Children take snow rides on tractors and frolic amongst the fragrant, blossomy boughs - there’s a definite a fairy-tale vibe here!

Along with the fruit and vegetables, Milan seems understandably proud of his goats and handsome Barbu d'Uccles chickens. Eggs are served up regularly to the family and the goats seem good at polishing off any and all kitchen scraps!

By selling a range of produce (along with value-added items like cider and preserves) through a variety of channels—farmers’ markets, the farm store (which includes the 2021 addition of an ice cream outlet serving seasonal fruit flavours), various prepared food businesses and online sites—the Bizjak Farms business model is staying away from the likes of Galen Weston and other large food processing companies in favour of keeping things diverse and in alignment with core values like reducing unnecessary packaging waste and maintaining a minimal spray schedule.

Mural by local artist, Ally Hendriks, on the shipping container which was converted into the farm store.

Supporting soil health through regular applications of local compost is an important activity on the farm, and a stand of elderly cherry trees are affectionately retained despite producing a very low yield. Overall there’s a gentle harmony on the farm between people, animals and plants which is quite palpable. Should you find yourself in the vicinity of this bucolic locale, do stop a while.

Text and photos: Helen Acraman

Culinary inspiration for spring produce

Aline Moraes is a biologist and cook who has worked with organics for many years. In the past she had her own Organic Bistrô in the south of Brazil. Aline loves to support local farmers and eat seasonally. Farmer's markets are a huge part of her life and we are very happy to have her as a volunteer at Sorauren this year! Some of the foods Aline loves to take home from the market include Wandering deli vegan cheeses, Tapiocas from Tapioca Toronto and the amazing fresh produce! She looks forward to seeing you at the Market and hopes you enjoy her Rustic Asparagus Panzanella recipe. Watch this space for more recipes from Aline as the produce available at the market changes with the seasons.

Aline Moraes

Rustic Asparagus Panzanella Salad

This warm salad is great for these days we are having!

Ingredients for Salad:
2 tablespoons good olive oil for asparagus and tomatoes + 1 for toasting the bread
3 thick slices of Spent Good beer bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (or another good sourdough loaf)
1/2 pound of Local asparagus, trimmed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup of toasted walnuts
2 tablespoons of sliced sheep cheese
3 small, Roma tomatoes, cut into big slices
1/2 cucumber, unpeeled, with seeds removed and sliced 1/2-inch thick
20 large basil leaves
10 lettuce leaves
Vinaigrette:
1 teaspoon of microplaned or finely minced garlic (about 2 small cloves)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 lemon (peel and juice)
1/4 cup of olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pinch of ground black pepper
Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 400°. Place asparagus, tomatoes, and a pinch of salt in a greased baking pan and toss to coat. Roast until asparagus is crisp-tender and tomato is super soft, 15-20 minutes, turning vegetables occasionally. 

2) Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over medium heat, tossing frequently until crispy. Add walnuts and reserve.

3) For the vinaigrette, mix garlic with lemon juice and leave for 10 min. Then whisk all the ingredients together until emulsified.

4) In a large bowl, mix the lettuce, cheese, basil, cucumber, bread, walnuts, and vinaigrette. Add the warm asparagus and tomatoes. Toss it all together. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Serves about 3 adults.

Rustic Asparagus Panzanella Salad

A hazy shade of winter.

Covid-19 continues to provide new challenges and place a strain on us all. As we move into 2021 some of us are feeling resilient, some battered and many just plain exhausted by so much uncertainty.

This winter has been very different for the Sorauren Farmers’ Market. Our regular indoor space at the Field House in Sorauren Park was too small to house all our regular winter vendors and the social distancing requirements of Public Health, so we opted to pivot to a FARM BOX programme to help tide us over.

In the past we have enjoyed a lively winter market with great food, music and entertainment. We have really missed our community!

During the fun days of indoor winter markets before the pandemic. Peter and Anna entertain young and old.

Rescued Bears collaborated with us to help animate our indoor winter markets in 2019 and 2020.

In mid December 2020, we introduced the Red Cross Food Hamper programme which encouraged us to think about ways we can keep working towards supporting folks experiencing food security issues. For a wealthy country like Canada, it is sad to acknowledge that the basic right to nourishing, culturally appropriate food is not being met. More than 4 million people struggle with the burden of food insecurity, with a disproportionate number of Black, Indigenous and racialized Canadians identifying as food insecure.

We send our gratitude for the donations received via FARM BOX for the important work being done by Black Creek Community farm and Afri-Can Food Basket. We will be working towards offering a subsidized BIPOC farmer spot for a new farmer at Sorauren Market in 2022.

The Canadian Red Cross Grant allowed us to provide nourishing, locally sourced food hampers for our vulnerable community members most affected by COVID-19. It also meant we formed a new relationship with the wonderful folks from the Bike Brigade, a growing group of Toronto cyclists who have mobilized to get food and essential supplies to folks that need them. The option to have our hampers delivered by non-polluting bicycle delivery was the kind of help we needed!

We were impressed by the Bike Brigade’s commitment to bicycle delivery, even during snowy conditions!

Some of the faces of the folks that produce your food. Now more than ever, support for strong, local food systems is so important.

The Roncesvalles United Church really saved us this winter. They provided warmth, encouragment and support at a time when we were without a home. We are so grateful for this inclusive space, led by Reverend Anne Hines, and we think Roncesvalles is fortunate to have such a groovy church.

From their website:

“We're BIG on LOVE and finding your true gifts in the world. We're big on joy, wonder and joining together to make the world a better place.”

That’s a sentiment we can really get behind! No matter the weather, we can always come together to work for the issues and community we care about. Let’s keep at this important task of taking care of one another. #SolidarityNotCharity

Roncesvalles United Church and some of our kick-ass volunteers.

Sorauren Farmers' Market partners with most delightful local artist

It’s hard to meet new people during Covid-19 but Sorauren Farmers’ Market was lucky enough to connect with local artist and market-goer, Wenting Li. The result of many emails and zoom meetings is a truly magical new tote bag for our community which we are excited to offer in our online store! A great deal of effort and love is evident in the whimsical and thoughtful illustration—we enjoyed the experience of working with Wenting so much that we hope to make collaborating with local artists a new Market tradition!

Wenting Li Shares Thoughts on the Design:

My favourite pre-pandemic memory of Sorauren Farmers’ Market is of spreading out an eclectic selection of market food upon a hill in the park, and sharing food among friends. With this tote design, I wanted to showcase the wonderful people who make a market unique – both vendors who come to share their wares, and those who enthusiastically appreciate them. Leafy greens, a pair of cherries, fresh baked goods, a jar of preserves, honey, momos and other market items are given character by those who come to the market.

Artist image photo credit: Andrew Moreno

Artist Bio: Wenting Li is an illustrator, muralist and comics artist working in Toronto/Tkaronto. You can find her work in publications like The Walrus, at local zine fairs, and on certain street corners in the city.

Thanks to local business Private Press

Fall Flavours - Katrina Gall

Katrina Gall is a Chef and Wine professional. A Toronto local, she is the founder of A Glass in Hand, a resource to help people understand and enjoy food and wine.

I’ve already seen some leaves falling off the trees. At first I became sad and anxious, but then I became slightly excited for what is to come…sweaters and fall food!

Squashes, apples and comfort food are some of my favourite things of fall. I get excited for the days when we can make apple crumbles and eat them outside with a cup of coffee and a blanket. Here are a couple recipes for quick dishes to make on the side of dinner or ones that could even be the main course for your meal.

This first recipe is a great way to use all of the produce currently in season. You can find most of these things at the farmers’ market or at grocery stores throughout the city. You can always roast vegetables and add them to a green salad to change the texture of the whole dish. Root vegetables are something that are always available, especially during the winter months, so they are pretty much my go to when picking veggies to roast. Sometimes I even like to make a whole salad of just roasted vegetables and serve it by itself.

I think a leafy salad is almost like a blank canvas to add whatever ingredients you want to make it different. Feel free to mix up the ingredients as the seasons change, adding and subtracting different fruits and vegetables as they become available.

LATE SUMMER SALAD
4 Carrots, peeled, cut into wedges and roasted
*I did mine for 20 minutes at 375F with olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper
2 Peaches, peeled and cut into thin strips (julienne cut)
3 Radishes, washed and cut into thin strips (julienne cut)
1 head Radicchio, cut into wedges and roasted
*I did these for 10 minutes at 375F with oil, salt and pepper, just to get a bit of char on them
Lettuce greens, arugula, romaine lettuce
5 basil leaves, torn and tossed in at the last second

Dressing:
3 tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. Jam (whatever kind you got, maybe strawberry or peach)
125ml Olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
*You can add avocado, eggs, bacon bits or some nuts too, to add more protein to the salad

1. Roast carrots in the oven and allow them to fully cool down before mixing them into the salad

2. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and toss with salt and pepper

3. Add the dressing and serve

I love blended soups. You can use up so many items in your fridge when you are making it, even the ones that might be close to going bad. Vegetables might have to be cleaned a bit more and the brown bits might need to be cut off from the fruit, but it still can be used in a soup. Once all the ingredients are in the pot and blended up, no one will ever notice the flaws.

With that being said, here is an easy recipe for a blended squash soup. Try it on a rainy or sunny day with some fresh bread from the market and butter. It’s a classic and I know it’s probably played out, but who cares? It’s probably played out because it really does still taste great and becomes a staple in most kitchens through the colder months.

SQUASH AND APPLE SOUP
I Butternut squash, cubed
2 Pieces of old celery (I didn’t even bother cutting off the browning ends)
2 Piece carrots, peeled and cut into medium dice
1 Onion, cut into medium dice
3 Apples, peeled and cut into large cubes
¼ cup White wine
5 litres Water
1 sprig dried rosemary
1 Bay leaf
2 tbsp. Greek yogurt
4 tbsp. Olive oil
2 tbsp. Smoked paprika
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
Toasted pumpkin seeds for garnish

1. In a large pot, add oil on medium heat

2. Add in celery, onion, carrots and brown well

3. Add squash, apple and garlic

4. Once the vegetables are brown, deglaze the pan with the wine

5. Add the water and bring to a boil

6. Add all herbs and paprika

7. Cook on low heat for about 45 minutes or until all the contents are soft

8. Using a hand blender, blend until fine and place back on the heat (this is the time when you can choose to cook it down more, depending on the consistency of the soup you would like)
   *I reduced mine slightly because I thought it was too thin

9. Add yogurt, season and serve

10. Top with toasted pumpkin seeds and good olive oil
    *if the soup needs a bit of sweetness you can always add a bit of maple syrup

The Smells of the End of Summer - Katrina Gall

Katrina Gall is a Chef and Wine professional. A Toronto local, she is the founder of A Glass in Hand, a resource to help people understand and enjoy food and wine.

For anyone who cooks or enjoys eating, the best time of the year for food in my opinion is the end of August/beginning of September. The sun still shines throughout the day, but the nights are cooler and more comfortable. Everything everyone has worked hard to grow over the past few months has come to fruition and gives you its best and most delicious side.

Farmers Markets are the one place in the city where people can go to talk to a farmer for information on seasonal produce. Some of us are not fortunate enough to have our own green space, especially in the many buildings of the city. It’s a great resource to connect with food and understand how it all works a little bit better.

I wanted to give everyone a recipe that is both simple and fulfilling. This is a recipe that can be eaten as a side or served as the main course with a protein of your choice on top. Panzanella salad is a great way to use the summer produce and the leftover bread you have lying around your countertop. Traditionally the name comes from Pane (bread) and Zanella (the dish it was traditionally served in).

I love to use tomatoes that are different types and colours. It looks stunning all put together! Whether it’s some tomatoes you have grown yourself this past year or some from one of the vendors at Sorauren, it’s going to be very tasty.

Grilled Corn Panzanella Salad
Ingredients
2 Cobs of Corn (grilled)
2 Cucumbers-peeled and cut into slices
4-5 Tomatoes, all of different sizes (cut into wedges or halves)
6 Basil leaves-finely chopped
Italian or French style bread (torn and toasted with olive oil, salt and pepper)

Dressing
75ml Balsamic vinegar
2.5 tbsp Maple syrup
125ml Extra Virgin Olive oil
2 tbsp Grainy mustard
1 Shallot, finely chopped
1 bunch Chives, finely chopped

Method
-To make the dressing, combine mustard, syrup, vinegar in a blender and slowly add oil in a stream until combined (if you don’t have a blender, you can easily use a whisk and a bowl)
-Stir in shallots and chives, season with salt and pepper and set aside
-Shuck the corn and grill it on the BBQ or on your stove top, if you have gas range
-Using a knife, cut the kernels off the cob onto a cutting board
-Cut the tomatoes and cucumbers into pieces of a desired size
-Combine corn, bread, tomatoes in a medium to large bowl. Add the dressing and cut herbs (you may need to add a little bit more salt depending on your taste
-Place ingredients onto a serving platter and finish with whole pieces of basil
*half the fun of making a salad like this is the presentation, so have some fun and enjoy what you are creating!

Simple seasonal recipes from Lisa Giraldi

Lisa Giraldi - once a butcher and baker, she now grows and preserves in Warkworth, Ontario. She resides with her boyfriend Derick and their barn cats Kitty and Marlboro.

Derick and Lisa at Sorauren Farmers’ Market

Lion's Mane 'Salad' 

One of my favourite things about farmer's markets are the food conversions - with customers and fellow vendors alike. I love consuming a well written cookbook, but there's something equally delightful about discovering food through personal connection. One summer we were selling mushrooms at Codrington Farmer's Market and our friend Tina shared the following recipe with us. We both ooo'ed and ahh-ed over her recipe - and then we went home and made it later that week. It was just as delicious as she described. This recipe is delicious on bread or toast or with lightly sauteed kale.

A knob of butter

1/3 lb Lion's Mane mushrooms, very finely diced.

A good scoop of mayonnaise

Salt and pepper to taste.

Working with a medium-hot skillet, fry the diced Lion's Mane mushrooms in the butter, until crisp and brown. Depending on the size of your skillet you may need to do this in batches (if there are too many mushrooms in the pan they will steam rather than fry). As they cook, add a good shake of salt and pepper. When they have finished frying, remove them from the stove into a bowl to cool. When they are cool to the touch, add the mayonnaise and mix together until it forms a chicken-esque or egg-esque salad. Taste a little and adjust the salt and pepper, as you wish.

Lion’s Mane mushroom Hericium eranacious at Codrington Farmers’ Market.

Pablo's Tomato Sauce 

Many years ago I was an intern at Wheelbarrow Farm. There were five interns and a baby that year - and all of us loved food. Many of my fondest memories from that summer were meals shared together around the picnic table (mid-day: hot, sweaty, dirty) or around the kitchen table (later in the evening: tired, sore, with a drink in hand). One intern, Pablo, was a particularly good cook and this recipe (passed along to him by an old friend) was one of his simplest yet most memorable. Pablo described it as the 'mac & cheese of pasta sauce'. Over a decade later, I still believe it is the best way to celebrate the first tomatoes of the season (and many others after that!). This tomato sauce wants to be eaten with pasta, a thick slice of sourdough bread or brown rice vermichelli. 

Photo: Lisa Giraldi

A Good Handful of Tomatoes, maybe 5-7. (Paste tomatoes make wonderful sauce but I have used many other varieties with great success - I would only avoid the green varieties of tomato here.)

1/3 c butter (either unsalted or salted is fine, just adjust your seasoning accordingly)

Half an onion, diced

Salt and pepper to taste 

Throw everything into a pot and let it simmer gently on low for an hour or so. The butter will melt, the onions will soften and the tomatoes will gush into each other - you can leave this for up to a few hours but be careful to stir occasionally as the tomatoes sometimes burn to the bottom of the pot and the clean-up that ensues almost diminishes the beauty of the sauce itself! Remove from the heat and season as you like - here I always add salt and pepper, sometimes fresh garlic, basil or thyme, sometimes a little smoked paprika - and blend it with a hand blender or leave the tomato and onion bits chunky, whichever you prefer. It will keep in your fridge for a few days (if you can bear not to eat it all that night!)

Lisa and Derick at Summergreen Farm

Birdsong Gardens

Birdsong Gardens

Text by Eric Lee
Images by Helen Acraman

Driving north on wide and busy Keele Street, approaching Sheppard, it is hard to imagine that off to the right, behind some trees, is the oasis of Downsview Park and its community of farmers. Kathy Horne, proprietor of Birdsong Gardens, came here when her ambitions outgrew the space she had at her house in Toronto.  But arranging to garden at Downsview Park is not a simple thing, so first a little background on it: the Park came into existence in 1995 when the Canadian Forces Base Toronto was shut down. It is owned by Canada Lands, a federal Crown Corporation, not the City or Province. In 2011 they did an experiment with Urban Agriculture which gave rise to the current community of farmers.  It was deemed a big success, but in the grand scheme of Park development, the farmers will eventually have to move from the north to the south end of the Park.  

Dahlia’s growing at Birdsong Gardens.

The Park has two major Urban Agriculture tennants one of which is Fresh City Farms, which in turn rents land to sixteen farmers.  The terms are a combination of cash and labour, about 60 hours per month, at Fresh City - not an insignificant chunk of the working month!  Fresh City makes some of its resources available, including water and compost, but for a fee. This is clearly a business proposition for them and their tenants have to to be similarly businesslike.    Kathy’s operation is set up to produce crops for sale which is one criterion that is often used to distinguish Urban Agriculture from gardening. This has been her sixth year of farming here.

Those are the facts and circumstances, but now we can get to the fascinating things Kathy does with her two plots that total 1000 square feet.

Flowers, herbs and vegetables grow together in one of Kathy’s plots.

Unlike most farmers, and especially those at Downsview, her crops are both fruits-and-vegetables and flowers.  This tends to add an aesthetic quality to her stall at the Farmers’ Market that is not a feature at most others.  It is then not surprising that images from her stall are used on the home page of our website.  There is even crossover between the decorative and nutritious in the corn with coloured kernels that is both beautiful and suitable for grinding or (different variety) for popping.  The corn is left to dry on the stalk, which requires ingenious techniques to keep birds from eating it while letting air circulate to avoid rot.

Strawberry popcorn!

The flowers also support the food crops by attracting pollinators and birds.  She says that the presence of birds indicates a healthy garden. So the name Birdsong Gardens is no accident and touches on both the pleasure of the song and the contribution of the birds when they visit.

Each thing that she grows seems to have a story behind it, of why it is interesting to her, how she came to grow it and the challenges involved in cultivation.  Everything is connected, in ways that are more interesting the more questions you ask.

Greenhouses are primarily used by Fresh City Farms but Kathy also uses a small part to start seedlings in the springtime.

Kathy is committed to the practices of permaculture and regenerative agriculture, which mainly involves making soil microbially healthy.  Therefore she does not till, which would disturb the soil’s structure. Cover crops and mulches (including black plastic!) are used everywhere; there is very little bare soil to be seen.  The cover crops help retain moisture and when cut and left in place turn into compost, which saves buying it from Fresh City and the labour of spreading it. She will have to, in a way, start over again, and with a more difficult subject, when the Downsview farms are obliged to move to a different part of the Park that has more clayey soil.

One of Kathy’s experimental crops, Upland rice.

Kathy is always experimenting with things, some of which, such as a middle-eastern green called jute mallow (Corchorus olitorius) from which Molokhia is made, with the hope of return and others, such as upland (sticky) rice, simply to see if they can be made to grow here.  The experiments don’t always yield commercial quantities but do provide discoveries for Market patrons who are alert to the unusual, and may take home something that is available nowhere else.

Kathy at her table at Sorauren Market during the summer.

Hitting the Reset Button at Sorauren Farmers Market

John Richmond

Our Story 

13 years ago, at a time when the local, organic food and urban agriculture movement was experiencing a re-birth thanks to  - among other things - great shows on the cooking channel, celebrity chefs like our own Jamie Kennedy here in Ontario (who sometimes joins us at the market and who was the keynote speaker at our founding meeting) and Jamie Oliver in the UK, a growing awareness of the importance of eating well and the impact of industrial ag on our environment; a group of us the neighbourhood (Graeme Hussey, Ayal Diner, Melissa Benner and myself) came together with the idea of starting a local food cooperative grocery store where we would be able to shop for our favourite local meats, veggies, fruits, dairy and other items as well as a selection of other healthy foods, soaps, treats and the usual things we bought at local stores before Uber Eats, Amazon and on-line shopping so radically changed how we live, work and shop.

Our idea (and dream), the “West End Food Co-op” came - and went.  Specifically, it closed its doors last year although the organization that predated WEFC - the Sorauren Farmers Market - remains in place at Sorauren Park every Monday afternoon from 3-7. 

When we began researching how to start a business - a “social enterprise” - a cooperative business owned by the workers, customers and farmers - we quickly realized that starting such an innovative business would be both time consuming and tricky.  But in the days before “local food” was as ubiquitous as it is now (even No Frills sells at least some local foods and features Ontario farmers in its marketing) the response from people in Parkdale, Roncesvalles, and High Park was amazing. We quickly had more volunteers and offers of help than we knew what to do with.

Starting a Market 

I remember well the day Melissa Benner, the daughter of a farmer and someone who worked on the family farm herself, suggested we start a Farmers Market before a grocery store.  What a great idea! With a lot of elbow grease and a little of our own money we were off to the races and soon joined by other folks we knew in the local food movement.  

In the beginning the market was small and volunteer run - and a lot of fun.  My partner Paula Larrondo and I raised both our girls Michaela and Maya at the market - helping out every Monday after work/school.  Other volunteers did the same and some farmers brought their babies and little ones to market and we helped out with the childcare. It was a dream come true and aside from being a great place to buy local, healthy food directly from the folks who grow it - folks like Daniel from Cutting Veg, Tony from Wheel Barrow Farms, John and Irina from Bees Universe, Henry and Sarah from Field Sparrow Farms and John and Inge from Clover Roads Farms all of whom are still with us - it was a great place to experience community. 

Saying Goodbye 

The market has been a success but unfortunately the co-op was not.  West End Food Co-op is not the only Co-op to close or be sold off in the last few year - Eat Local Sudbury has gone and the Ontario Natural Food Co-op was sold to wholesale supplier from BC, Horizon Natural Foods, a for-profit company that was itself a co-op at one time. 

Whatever problems food co-ops might be having these days in Canada, Farmers Markets are a growing and expanding - if small - part of the food sector.  A real success story. 

Our market became independent once again last year when the Co-op closed.  But that’s not as easy as it sounds. Those of us running the market - myself as a volunteer, other volunteers you probably know well if you are a regular shopper like Eric, James and Randy, some of the vendors/farmers and Helen Acraman our Market Coordinator - started almost from scratch in terms of learning how to run a registered (that was an adventure in-and-of-itself) non-profit organization.  And it’s still a learning curve for us six months after receiving our “articles of incorporation” from the Province of Ontario.

  “Recipe” for A Successful Market

If you’re like my Dad, a hard working business guy who still remembers food rationing during and after World War II, then you might be one of those many folks who feel the food system in Canada is pretty good.  

Our farms and stores in Canada provide us with a wide selection of product at relatively affordable prices in comparison to many other places in the world.  Food prices in Canada are among the lowest in the world relative to income (that is if you are not living in the far north).

And while the market has been home to many of us who have concerns about the agro-industrial food system - both farmers and customers - it has also been home to folks who are just looking for some nice cider, a meal after work with the kids in the park or place to have some delicious Tibetan momos and hang out with friends.  I like to think our market is many things to many people - an inclusive and welcoming space that helps many people meet their needs - including some people who experience food insecurity and know that volunteering will help them access healthy local food at a lower price or even for free.    

Starting Again

Going forward we have a lot of exciting ideas I hope you will want to be part of.

We want to start a bokashi composting pilot project, grow a few veggies in the park, hold a founding meeting where customers, volunteers, staff and vendors can see how the market is set up and comment on our bylaws, policies and budget and we hope to follow the lead of our friends and supporters at Friends of Sorauren Park and start of youth version of the market so we can let young people gain some hands-on experience in learning how to run a business.  

When we began the market 11 years ago we had a large number of volunteers from the neighbourhood.  Somehow we drifted away from that model but we need to return to our roots. We need more volunteers from the neighbourhood and return to being a truly neighbourhood farmers market.  If you live in the neighbourhoods surrounding the market please consider dropping by and saying “hi” - we’d love to have you and whatever time you can spare to help us make Sorauren Farmers Market an even bigger success.  

Have a great summer and please come by the market info table and say “hi”.

Cheers!

John 

BABALINK FARM - What does a farmer do when it is too wet to plant?

I forage on my farm. Native, edible spring flowers that I am picking right now include violets ranging in colour from purple to white. The leaves are also edible - I especially like the tiny new leaves, some of which have not quite unfurled. Violet harvest lasts a few weeks in part because there are a few native varieties that bloom at slightly different times.

The edible, native, Eastern Redbud Cercis canadensis flowers are ready to harvest for a short time. On my farm they are opening as I write this. Trees in the city may already be done. Eastern redbud is in the Fabaceae (legume) family. Which is why the flowers taste a little like fresh green peas.

Fortunately we have wild greens on the farm. Stinging nettles come up early. I am picking (with gloves) the tops right now.  My new favourite way to eat them is with pasta, sauteed onion, green garlic, sorrel butter, Parmesan - a touch of cream and always a bit of hot pepper. Chili flakes or Cayenne - whatever you choose, stinging nettles and a touch of hot pepper are a great match!

Find Pat Kozowyk of BabaLink Farm to the west of the square starting this week at Sorauren. Watch this space for a violet jelly recipe and Pat’s market table for her jewelled jars very soon! Scroll down to see a post all about her farm from our Farm Visits 2018.

Heartwood Farm and Cidery

Brent Klassen and Val Steinmann

Photos by Puck Graafland
Text by Eric Lee

Our last visit on the July 8, 2018 tour was to Heartwood Farm and Cidery, northeast of Guelph near the intersection of highways 124 and 125 in the part of Erin called Ospringe. The entrance way is beside what appeared to be heavy woods and stops at a group of buildings some distance from the main road where we were greeted by co-proprietor Val Steinmann.

Heartwood is a complex place and there is much more to it than I expected, knowing, from the Market, only its cider. One of the most interesting and exciting things about the visit was listening to Val describe its growth over time and interconnectedness of the different parts of the farm. Val describing how things fit together.

While of a similar bent to Pat Kozowyk of Baba Link with respect to permaculture, Val is a bit more inclined in conversation to name branches of the movement and refer to particular theorists and their works. This helped me to add some conceptual pegs to my thinking and provided starting points for further study. Among the pegs is the idea of the Forest Garden, in which edible perennials are grown at several levels, from root, to ground, to shrub to tree in a single area of land. To a naive eye such as mine the area can look wild, not cultivated, but Val pointed out the several crops that are growing not only at the same time but in the same space. It requires adjustment to what one expects a farm or garden to look like. 

Many of the concepts and practices that are part of what is now called permaculture date far back in human history. Some of them resonated for me with what I understand Indigenous people in Canada are talking about in their relationship to "the land" and I want to study that further.

While not certified organic at this point Heartwood may consider it in future, especially for the orchard and cidery.

Val describes permaculture principles practiced at Heartwood

The story of Heartwood is in many ways the story of its people. Before acquiring the land Val and Brent lived in Toronto with their three young children. Val was a community organizer, Brent in management. Like others who have had city careers they remarked, in their own ways, on how in farming one must do a few things really well but be "good enough" at many others: Brent seems to miss the specialization sometimes but Val embraces its relative absence.

When Val and Brent began living on the farm fourteen years ago, their first product was maple syrup from sugar bush that covers part of the land. The farm is 42 acres and includes several distinct areas that I'll describe in order from the distance from the welcome centre where we began our tour. After the sugar bush came cattle on pasture that had been converted from grain crops - more about the conversion below. For a time some interns raised vegetables and sold them via a CSA, but they moved on and that land has been converted to orchard. The farm now also supports goats, pigs, chickens, and bees and uses horses for pulling.  The chickens run quite free and Val notes that while the varied diet they provide makes them healthier it also leaves them vulnerable to predators such as coyotes, against which the herding/guard dogs are not 100% effective.  The animals remain Val's main focus, along with rebuilding the soil, while co-owner Brent Klassen concentrates on the orchard and cidery.

Part of the orchard area

Walking from the hospitality/cidery building to the barn

Chickens in the barn

Potbellied piglets

Tree crops are not limited to apples. They also grow cherries, plums, the cherry-plum cross "chum", and the (hopefully) blight-resistant heart nuts, chestnuts and hazelnuts. Some of these nuts are native to the area but may have been removed in clearing the land for traditional agriculture.  Restoring these trees is one part of another practice at Heartwood whose name was new to me: Regenerative Agriculture, although a little later research led me to understand that that is only a tip of it, that it includes many techniques for restoring biodiversity, building soil and retaining water, several of which are practiced at Heartwood, and, I now understand, at Baba Link.

Much of the juice for cider is purchased from other growers because it takes four years or more for trees to bear fruit and many of Heartwood's trees are not yet mature.  The juice is first fermented in 6,000 liter tanks and then transferred to smaller "tubs" where flavourings such as hops and pepper for Heartwood's distinctive brands are added. Bottling is done in the same room.  The operation is very tidy and I think the "good enough" must be restricted to areas outside the cidery.

Tubs where the hops, pepper and other flavours are added to the cider

The fruit and nut trees have been introduced little by little and near the relatively forested part of the land.  They aren't arranged in a grid but rather follow the contour of the land.  The area with fruit trees is also planted with berries, and with companions such as comfrey, and all with natural or cultivated ground cover rather than bare earth.  This pattern is similar to the practice at Baba Link Farm and can be called a Forest Garden.

After the sugar shack, hospitality room, cidery, barn and fruit plantings, there are large open areas now used for pasture.  Prior to Val and Brent's acquiring the land they were cultivated with the standard cycle of corn, soy and wheat. The land was not abused by the standards of that practice, but had become depleted.  Val is using a number of techniques to nurse it back to health, including rotating cycles of grazing cattle and planting rows of protecting trees between sections of pasture. In describing this work she cites some of the well-known permaculture theorists, in a somewhat wistful tone because she cannot be as ambitious as they sometimes are in, say, re-arranging the landscape with berms and swales, but is still realizing the objectives of regenerative agriculture. Val embraces the generalist approach that lets her orchestrate many elements of this diverse place.

Val and Brent are as active as time allows in the science of composting (there is apparently much more to it than the simple "compost happens" techniques I use in my garden) and they, like Pat Kozowyk at Baba Link, participate in studies sponsored by Ecological Farmers of Ontario.

Heartwood is very welcoming of guests and gives many organized tours, so if you want to visit get in touch to join or arrange something.

We felt welcome in the tasting room!

Healing Hands Farm

Photos by Puck Graafland
Text by Eric Lee

Our second stop on the July 8, 2018 tour was Healing Hands Farm, a little to the west of Guelph.

Farmers Dan Fuller and Michaela Cruz have only been farming since November, 2017 but the land, two acres of a larger property, had been a horse farm for thirty years and then was not farmed for ten years. Dan and Michaela have only a two year lease after which it is expected the entire property will be planted in nut trees. Thus, they have found the soil to be very rich, and thickly covered with weeds, but as short-term tenants they would not see much benefit of effort spent building soil;  nonetheless are adding compost. 

Dan and Michaaela in front of their “summer place”

The land is basically open, with a gentle slope, without trees or other features. They have had to clear luxuriant weeds, including bindweed, (which they've done very effectively, without chemicals, by tilling twice and then covering the area with black plastic for a time to prevent regrowth - as at the left of the picture below). The planted areas are arranged in rows and rectangles, "traditional" to my uneducated mind, and very different from the other farms we saw that day that had crop trees when the current farmers took them over and have since developed incrementally over a number of years.

Part of the land, extends just to the cultivated area

Sprouting shed, made with re-used, and a few new, materials

They follow organic practices and would like to certify (that process takes several years), and note that they put in the effort and dedication to organic at this point without the marketing benefits.

Before they became farmers Dan had construction and city jobs and Michaela was a plant science student at U. of Guelph and had worked with PACT Grow to Learn. Farming is a huge change in way of life for them but they seem to have the right temperaments for it. In their case, what is "right" has included arriving with an open mind, not too many expectations of how it ought to be, looking at all the many problems and things that need to be done as interesting challenges (that will sometimes be stalled in frustration), and accepting that some work will not have a professional finish.  Their previous work and study, while different, or at a different level in Michaela's case, have proved valuable.  After less than a year they are "over the hump" and can consider taking some off-farm work.  That is no small accomplishment. I agree with visitor Agata's remark: "I love how you can just set up and grow - not without its challenges - but look what you did!”

Dan and Michaela have been able to start without much money and have improvised shelter (shed, and tent for summer), a produce cooler (trailer + air conditioner) and a seedling greenhouse with only $20 worth of new materials. Dan remarked at one point: “If you had all the money in the world it would just be boring. I think… you’d just make the easy choices”.

Salanova lettuce, with irrigation dripline

Asian greens growing under protective cover

Healing Hands' contact with coyotes is that because a neighbour released pet rabbits into the wild there are now many of them and the green crops are just what they want; I hope some coyotes will soon see the opportunity here.

Baba Link Farm

Photos by Puck Graafland Text by Eric Lee

Our first stop on July 8, 2018 was Baba Link Farm in the southern part of Flamborough district of Hamilton, near Burlington. We were guided and spoke with Patricia Kozowyk who you will know from her presence at Sorauren Market.

The land has been in Pat’s family since 1953 and she and her partner bought ten acres of the original farm in 2002. They have been Centre for Systems Intergration (CSI) certified organic since 2008.

Baba Link now grows fruit, especially apples and pears, and berries, and vegetables including beans and squash (a complete list is on their website). They do not raise animals. They try to nourish and protect crops using only what they produce on the farm.

Beet sprout protected by farm-sourced mulch

Pat Kozowyk

If you think of a commercial farm as featuring neat rows or rectangles of discrete plantings rising from bare soil you will be surprised, as I was, with how things are laid out at Baba Link. It has a history of orchard crops and berries, especially raspberries and currants. Those are there but they are interplanted with others so that there is rarely an expanse of any one plant.  The reason for this was soon forthcoming, but first let me back up a moment to introduce one of the themes of our visits: permaculture.

When we began organizing this tour I wanted to ask farmers about permaculture, which "Garden Jane" Hayes defines generally as "the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally (and otherwise) productive ecosystems that have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural systems." I expected (for whatever wrong reasons) awareness of it but not widespread adoption in commercial settings. What I found was that it is deeply entrenched and practiced in a wide variety of ways. Some farmers, such as Pat, are more inclined to "walk the walk" than "talk the talk", about which there are many variations and, yes, controversies, and in what I write I here I don't mean to attach her to specific terms unless she used them.

How permaculture is realized at Baba Link includes:

• You don't see very much open ground. Plants are generally mulched with farm-sourced cover. This helps hold moisture so regular irrigation is not needed and prevents unwanted plants ("weeds") from getting the light they need to sprout. You need an eye sharper than mine was at first to see how intensively the land is being used.

• Pat does quite a bit of companion planting (plants other than the crop) to, for example, discourage some insects or provide more nitrogen to the soil. She has a sharp eye for unexpected successful companions and likewise avoids introducing a plant where there are known enemies to it. And so you rarely see an expanse of one kind of plant.

• She takes advantage of what grows in the conditions that exist and doesn't expend great energy trying to force or control a situation. She finds a minimalist approach to intervention, which includes pruning and physical removal of some pests, is most rewarding.

Pat notes that farmers must pay attention to many changeable factors and that one cannot assume or even expect sameness from year to year even in an established orchard. One thing that can be counted on is that factors usually balance over time unless there is a disruption. She mentioned a reduction in a berry crop caused by heavy rain the previous fall leading to a spike in the squirrel population that in turn ate the berries. This would have been brought back to balance later in the year by an increase in coyotes had not new human residents in the area felt the need to hunt, possibly the coyotes. Unexpectedly, to me anyway, coyotes made an appearance at each farm on this trip, but not always in the same role. In the absence of  help from the coyotes she worked around the problem by timing harvests to just before the squirrels' usual feeding times.

I asked Pat whether the approach of taking what comes is efficient enough for a commercial farm.  She replied that efficiency is a big question, but that much effort can be undone by forces beyond one's control and that she often benefits from the unexpected thriving of one plant in conditions that defeat another. The key is to have a complex and overall healthy environment.

One of the delights of the Baba Link market stall year over year is that you don't know exactly what will be available each week as the season progresses but what is there is always of the highest quality. Where else will you see a perfect zucchini with the flower intact?

On the scientific front, the experiments with companion planting that are so evident on the farm have led to a research proposal published by the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario and available on the Baba Link website.