BBQ's - A delicious tradition with family get togethers.

Celebrating Canada Day gives us a good reason to connect with family, friends and neighbours. What better way then with a BBQ.
Have you tried our beef yet? We have amazing beef patties, seasoned and unseasoned that have been getting rave reviews. We've made sure we have a good supply at our Markham location for this weekend. There is also a nice selection of our steaks (we also have Leadbetters Cowboy Steaks), pork sausage and chicken. To round out your menu - new potatoes have started and there are lot's of greens for salads. Asparagus is still in season but will end soon.
We're looking forward to sweet corn which will be ready about mid July.

Strawberry Update
The picking in Greenbank is fantastic. This is the prime weekend to pick. Supply and berry size are good and the flavour - delicious.
We'll have a good supply of fresh picked berries in our Markham market. Pick your own peas are available in Markham.

HAPPY CANADA DAY

Best Strawberry Crop Jim's Ever Grown!

Hi everyone,
Picking is now underway at our Greenbank Farm. Jim reports that this years crop is the best he's ever had. The plants are healthy, strong and bursting with berries. The berry's are a good size and very flavourful. The varieties we are picking now are Wendy and Cavendish.
We've had plenty of rain but we see very little stress on the crop. We have not had to spray for insects or disease so far.
Come on out. The picking is great. We are open (weather permitting) Mon to Friday 8 till 8 and Sat, Sunday 8 till 5. We'll be open Tuesday July 1st 8 till 5.

For everyone who can't pick we have fresh picked berries available at both our farms.

Sweet peas are now open for pick your own at our Markham Farm. Along with all the fun stuff to do, our sweet pea patch is ready for picking. Nothing like them for a snack. Our Markham Farm will also be open Tuesday July 1st from 9 till 6 with all our weekend activities happening.

Spending Canada Day on the farm; what a great way to celebrate our country!

Pick Your Own Strawberries in Greenbank

TUESDAY JUNE 24TH we will be opening our Greenbank farm for fresh picked and pick your own strawberries. We'll be opening at 8:00 am Tuesday. The berry crop is looking fantastic and with a few warm days there'll be a bounty of ripe berries.


Fresh picked berries are available at our Markham Farm. We are open in Markham daily 9 am till 6 pm. If you wish a large # please place an order in person a few days ahead. Availability is always dependent on the weather and time of season.

Strawberries are Here!!!!!!

Strawberry season is always eagerly anticipated. Strawberries are the first sweet fruit of summer and that is just around the corner. The weather this year has been a challenge but we've been lucky. Our berry crop in Greenbank has just missed hail a few times, survived two frosts (Jim was up at 2 am irrigating them to protect them from freezing) and are now getting just a little too much rain and cool temperatures. This has slowed down the ripening of the berries.

We now have fresh picked strawberries in our Markham farm market. Ours have just started and supply is somewhat limited although that will change. Supply will become bountiful as the season progresses as there is an abundance of fruit on the plants just waiting to ripen. Our patch in Greenbank looks really good this year and we're looking forward to a good season.

Markham Farm
The drought of the last two summers has done in our strawberry patch in Markham. We will have a good supply of fresh picked strawberries at our Markham location but will not have any available for pick your own there. Pick your own strawberries will be available at ourGreenbank farm only sometime after June 22nd. We will also have fresh picked berries available in Greenbank. Special orders can be placed at either location. Please give us a few days notice.

Peas (sweet and sugar snap) will be available for pick your own in Markham at the end of June and green and yellow beans throughout the summer.
Our Markham market will continue to carry a good selection of our own produce and that of other Ontario farmers along with delicious baked goods, preserves and our meat - beef, pork and chicken.

Lamb update
It has been a busy spring for lambing. 13 have been born, 2 are in need of bottle feeding. All are doing well and we're very pleased. The two bottle fed lambs are Victor and Houdini and they just love to see everyone, especially at meal times. They are two of the most coddled lambs I have ever seen.

Come and enjoy a visit. For the most up to date info call for a crop update at 905-887-1087

two new sets of twin lambs

This week has been very productive for our ewes. Thursday Molly had twins, they're doing well and today, Saturday, Betty had twins. Eight lambs born to 3 moms in the past week.
Mother's day weekend is turning out to be beautiful. With the warm weather earlier in April the trilliums and marsh marigolds are blooming in our Enchanted Forest along with the trout lilies. It makes for a nice walk especially with the cooler temperatures keeping the bugs abated.
Happy Mothers Day to all moms.

Quadruplet Lambs born May 2nd

After weeks of anticipation, Ewenice has given birth to quadruplets. They arrived in quick succession the morning of Friday May 2nd just in time for our season opener.
No assistance was required in the delivery but the lambs were so small they were each given two assisted feedings on their day of birth. Avery (helping out her Mom because it was a PA day) was very helpful in getting the lambs dried off and warmed up.
Mother Ewenice was not overly happy about being milked and needed farmer Susan to hold her steady so farmer Leslie was able to milk some colostrum from her. The colostrum was as thick as glue so we milked a goat to add to it making the colostrum more fluid. The lambs were given two tube feedings Friday to get them off to a great start.
They have been independent of any of our help since then except for one which gets bottle fed to supplement what it can get from mom. All are getting along and snuggle together in the nursery corner of their pen.
Thanks to Avery for her help and Brandon, her brother, who through the whole process was out in the poultry shed cleaning it for the arrival of new chicks that day enabling farmer Leslie to devote more time to the newborn lambs. Baby animals are thriving on the farm this spring.
Come on out- visit the calf, the kids, the lambs, the piglets and the chicks along with the sheep, goats, cow and laying hens.
Our market is now open for the season. The farm is open to the public in May Thursday till Sunday and Victoria Day Monday from 9:00 am till 5:00. As the season progresses the hours will expand.

it's Markham Fair time

Since our last posting we have had a lamb born, a bouncing baby boy. He arrived Saturday September 15th to our ewe in the middle pen. We are expecting one more lamb to be born this fall.

Come on out and visit us at the fair. Markham Fair is a great 4 day fair, this year September 27th till the 30th. We have a tent at the east entrance.

We're gearing up for our October Harvestfest beginning Thanksgiving weekend. The staff have been training hard to make for a great harvest season. Check out our website www.forsythefamilyfarms.com the week of October 1st for more details.

Our school tours have begun and the grade 3's who have come for our soil workshop had some great weather and lot's of fun. Their mission - learn all they can about soil and then create a poem, poster, song... to teach the inhabitants of the planet TRID on how to save their planet. Healthy soil is the key to survival. There will be lot's of young students out this October for our pumpkin tours.