Summer - Where has it gone?

This summer may have been not have been the warmest but for us it has been the fastest.  I don't wish time away, each year it just seems to be speeding up.  Now we are at Labour Day weekend and planning for the fall season.  Our Harvest Festival will be happening each weekend in October.  Our pumpkin crop is looking great.

Our farm is open Saturday, Sunday and Labour Day Monday.

Our corn maze opens this weekend, a tradition that goes back over 20 years.  Come and get lost.  The corn is at least 10 feet tall.  Wagon rides to our Fairy Tale Lane and Forest Trail will be available Labour Day Monday from 11 till 4

The cool and occasionally(like almost every Tuesday) wet summer days have been comfortable to work in and have had good and not so good effects on our crops.  It benefited our strawberry crop, extending it into late July but has destroyed our tomato crop - blight has turned our tomato plants black.  This happens on the first year we were planning our first annual Celebrate Tomatoes weekend, September 6th and 7th.  We won't have pick your own this year but we will still have some tomatoes, thanks to the southwestern Ontario weather being more co-operative.  Look for some of our favorite recipes using them.

Come on out for a visit.  There is always lot's of fun on the farm.  We are open weekends in September - Saturdays 9-5, Sundays 10-6, and this Labour Day Monday 9-5.

Admission Saturday and Sunday $3.50/person 2 years plus, Labour Day Monday $5.50 + HST includes the wagon ride and trails.

Celebrate Honey, Monday August 4th

Come enjoy our 3rd annual Celebrate Honey day on the farm.  Learn more about bees and the honey they make, and the beekeepers who manage it all.  Sample a selection of our honey, you can taste the difference.

We will have wagon rides available on Monday to our Fairy Tale Lane and Discovery Forest walk.  Visit the animals, play in the Barnyard Adventure area.  Relax, enjoy the view and the breeze.  It's cooler in the country.

Pick your own beans are available as well as fresh picked in our market.

Our farm is open this weekend Saturday, Sunday and Monday from 9-5.
Admission for activities
Saturday and Sunday $3.00/person 2 years plus
Monday $5.50 + HST/person 2 years plus (includes wagon ride and trail walk)

Summer Marches On

What a comfortable summer we have had.  The weather has helped immensely in extending our strawberry season.  Alas, all good things must end and we have now closed our pick your own strawberry fields.  The boys may have some at their farmers' market booths but they are starting to focus on other fruits.
We've been making jam with our frozen berries... a good way to continue to enjoy the berries. You can find it in our market.

Our farm will now be open weekends only except for booked groups and scheduled birthday parties.  We will reopen weekdays mid September.

Check out our website for more details on our Joy of Summer events page.

Strawberries and peas are fantastic

Our strawberry and pea crop is now abundant, picking is easy and the flavour is great.  We will be open daily with fresh picked and pick your own strawberries and peas.  We will have berries for the Tuesday, July 1st Canada Day holiday and will be open 9 - 5

Our activities are expanding, the tricycle track will be up and running this weekend.  Come on out for a nice relaxing time in the country.  

We've started to bake our pies and cookies.  This year we are making a cookie ice cream sandwich, mmmm...

Father's Day - Celebrate Family

Enjoy the best farms have to offer – good food, fresh air and time spent with family and friends.  Father’s Day is a great time to celebrate not only Dads but families.  Come walk our forest trail and be enchanted with our Fairy Tale Lane.  Our farm animals love visitors and are happy to show off their babies.

Our market will be open.  Fresh picked Ontario strawberries will be available along with home preserves, apple cider, honey, our own fresh eggs and more.  Our pies will be ready soon but sorry not this weekend,.  We're still working on our kitchen.

Family Day Admission $3.95 ages 2 years plus.  All parents have free admission when accompanied by their children.   Farm is open Sunday June 15th 9:30 till 5

Our pick your strawberry season will be starting soon.  Keep in touch for details.  Call 905-887-1087

Open House Victoria Day Monday and Auction Sale

The day is upon us and ready or not we will be open Victoria Day Monday 9 till 5.  Our auction sale begins at 10 am and has a mix of almost every category you can think of.  Combining 2 farms makes for a lot of extra stuff.

Time to Celebrate Spring and it looks like the weather is co-operating.  We'll have our farm animals to visit, wagon rides, crafts, cuddle corner and our market is open.  Sorry, no pies just yet as we have our kitchen still to work on.  We do have tarts and cookies. We haven't finished setting up all our fun stuff but it's coming.  Hot dogs and sausages will be available for lunch.

Interested in booking a school tour?  Myrna will be available to talk with you about our programs.

Check out the progress we've made and the beauty of the farm.  Our next big event will be Celebrating Family on Fathers Day.

Hope to see you Monday.

Our new spring lineup is complete!

They've all arrived; our farm babies are here.  School tours have started and the children are having a great time visiting the farm and animals.

The pigs arrived Wednesday and one has already acquired it's name, Scooter.  The last to get off the trailer, he just couldn't wait and he was off and running out the barn and around the fields.  Somewhat stressfull but funny to as we followed this wee little pig running around the fields. His foray into freedom ended succesfully for us anyway as we caught him.  He was glad to be reunited with his siblings.

So much for the pigs; in contrast, all the other animals seem sedate.  We have 2- week old Brown Swiss calves and bottle feeding will soon progress to bucket feeding as they learn to drink without the nipple.  The difference in size between them and the 3 calves, now steers as they are now a year old, is awesome.

Come on out for a visit to our open house and auction sale on Monday the 19th.  Check out what we've done and find out what is in the works.

Warmth and sunshine are the ingredients for a smile

It sure is easier to be happy when you have an amazing day like today.  The snowbanks are finally losing their battle and are succumbing to the inevitable spring melt.  We knew it would happen one day.
With the thaw we are able to bring up more of our outside buildings and equipment as they are released from the grip of winter.  The train, playhouse and puppet theatre have arrived home to Greenbank.  There is still more to do but these were definitely milestones and farmer Jim is starting to relax just a little bit.

Couscous, one of our goats you love is now a mom.  She had a bouncing baby boy Wednesday April 2nd and he is growing like a weed.  Oh the energy of youth.

We will have an auction sale here in Greenbank Victoria Day Monday May 19th.  Come and join us as we will also have an unofficial open house so you can see what we've been up to.  
          Our official opening for the season will be for strawberries approx mid June.

School tours begin the first week of May.  There are spaces still available.  This year we are beginning tours for the high school level.

We're organizing a calender of events for the season.  Stay tuned for complete details.  

                                        A little drive for a whole lot of country.

An Invitation to our Customer Appreciation Days Dec 14th, 15th and 21st, 22nd

We are truly thankful for the support expressed by our customers; the stories you have told us, the place that  the farm has had in your lives.  Some of you have already brought in pictures for our memory board.

It has been 27 years of making the effort to connect with you and share our joy of farming.  You have been telling us through your stories that it has been a worthwhile one.  Many of you will keep in touch and make our Greenbank farm a new tradition.

We want to thank you.  The next two weekends we will have cookies and hot cider for refreshments as we chat about the times past and future.  There are specials on many of our products to help make stocking up for Christmas and winter more economical.

Our apples are a big reason why many of you come in this time of year - they are all on special for $1.50/lb including the Honey Crisp apples.

Our e newsletter will be starting up soon and we will keep you posted on the move and what we are up to.  It will be a very busy winter and spring this year.

Come in for a visit, dress warmly.  The atmosphere in the market is warm and welcoming but without a major source of heating the temperature is just a bit warmer than outside.

October Harvest Festival Happenings

Fall is now in the air with the cool breezes and cold nights.  Halloween is quickly approaching and the fun continues.  Our pumpkin crop has been amazing this year - in quality, size and numbers.  Our pumpkin corral just keeps filling up to give you a great selection of pumpkins.

This will be the last weekend for our October Harvest Festival.  Weather permitting we will have all our activities happening including pony rides and horse drawn wagon rides.  Dress for the weather, dress to have fun. We are cooler on the farm with the open fields.

Sunday October 27th is special with Geissbergers Farmhouse Cider arriving with their award winning mobile cider press.  We have over 4 bins of apples to press into cider and you can view the process. Come see how it is done.  The fresh cider will be available for purchase at the farm.

The apples are fantastic this year.  We now have over 7 varieties available in the market, fresh picked, including Honey Crisp, Ambrosia, Jona Gold and Fugi to name a few.  We also have some incredible Bosc pears.

Come and enjoy.  Our farm will be open until December 24th.

Celebrate Honey Monday August 5th

Anytime is a good time to celebrate honey and in a sense we do that each day.  It has become an annual tradition for us here at the farm to really focus on honey bees and the work they do each year on the August holiday Monday.

Use your senses to learn more about bees and the honey they produce.  Sample the different types we offer.  We still have a limited supply of our Spring Blossom honey.  Our beekeeper is preparing to harvest the first of our Wild Flower honey this week and may have it delivered by the 5th if all goes well.

Come and join us Monday August 5th for a sweet experience!

 

Summer and the Farm changes with the seasons

The seasonal changes can be seen in our market with the variety of fruits and vegetables available.  Variety is the spice of life.

Strawberries are in their last week but raspberries, cherries and blueberries are coming in. Peas are at their peak - sweet and sugar snap are bountiful right now.  Beans are just beginning as is sweet corn.

Soon the market will be jammed with an amazing selection of Ontario grown produce.  Foodland Ontario has a good chart to help guide you through the seasons of availability and we have it in our market.  Ask for one, they are a handy resource.

New in our market is SHELDON CREEK DAIRY milk and yogurt. Check out their website at www.sheldoncreekdairy.ca  We have two new dairy calves for you to visit, they arrived last week. Gingersnap is a red Holstein and Biscotti is a black and white holstein.  Seems we have a cookie theme going with our calves as they join Oreo as part of our farm family.

We're busy at Greenbank with the summer crops.  Tomatoes have been staked and tied (backbreaking but it got done) and we're trying to keep up with the weeds.  This weather is phenomenal.

Had enough rain yet?

Opening Day is Here

The last few weeks are a blur - getting the farm ready, coping with the cold and wet weather - would it ever end?

The sun and the warmth have arrived just in time - school tours have started, the farm and market is now open for the season.

It is such a beautiful time of year.  This morning at first light it was like a switch was flicked and the birds started singing.  A little early for my liking but beautiful just the same.  The robins are about, building their nests and fattening up on the worms.  The days are longer allowing us a slow relaxation into evening and the ability to do just a bit extra outside after dinner.  The grass is green and the buds are now visible on the leaves.  I've got some early spring flowers blooming.  Yeh Spring!!!

Hope to see you soon at the farm.

Looking to the Future, Reflecting on the Past

The new year is here and it is a white one.  Looks like we'll have a lot more snow than last year.  I don't mind, I mainly hibernate this time of year - cooking, cleaning, book work and just trying to slow down a bit.  Jim grumbles about having to plow it; I think the fresh air is good for him.

Last year was a year of change and challenge.

• Dan and James ventured into new territory with Dan developing a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) enterprise and joining the Markham and Whitby Farmers Markets and James joining the Oshawa Farmers Market.  The connections they made and experience gained has been immense.  Jim grew a larger selection of crops to supply them and both participated in the harvest.  We built a new cooler here in Greenbank to accommodate their produce and ours.
• Our market here in Greenbank is looking great.  Gillian, our long term Greenbank employee, appreciated the protection from the weather.  We were able to remain open daily during strawberry season with fresh picked and weather permitting pick your own berries.  We will continue to experiment with being open after strawberry season and build up our farm market business at this location.
• The warm winter and spring then late freeze in April played havoc with the Ontario apple and tree fruit growers making crop shortages the norm for the season.  We ventured further afield, met a new apple grower in Norfolk county who had apples and having a good experience with him will most likely continue to have him supply our apples next year.
• Our dry, sunny summer didn't affect the pumpkin crop - ours was great - it did make for a lot of weed and insect invasions.  It seemed all summer we were trying to find our crops among the weeds.  The weeds just kept coming.  Rainfall varied throughout the province, our area thankfully had enough.  
• Grain and hay prices shot up because of shortages throughout North America due to the dryness and some areas an extensive drought.  This affected us in the cost of animal feed and you may have noticed it reflected in the cost of our chickens and turkeys.  
• It was the rainy fall that really affected us.  With only 5 days in October with no rain our harvest festival days and school tours were damp.  The sunny days were welcomed by all and activity on the farm was busy then.  
• Hurricane Sandi in late October blew down our roadside sign, time to refresh it.  Otherwise the wind, cold and rain from it just delayed school groups and dampened the last days of October.  We're thankful that was all we experienced with the storm.  Tim, a former employee. was called down to New York to assist in the cleanup.  The devastation from the storm was immense, it seems recovery will take years.  
• December was fun - thanks to the hard work of John and Laura and the participation of our staff we took part in the Stouffville and Unionville Christmas parades.  A new experience for most of us.  Thanks to these communities for accepting and supporting us.
• Our soil's water level has fully recovered from the summer dryness.  The rain in December topped it up.  We know because of our wet basement.  The joys of older homes.

The season can be summed up in an appropriate statement from one of our cohorts who grows apples. " It is a challenge to have a business with Mother Nature as a partner. "

Farming is a next years business.  We're re-energizing, reflecting and reworking things.  Always optimistic about the future, we look back appreciating our customers support for us and the boys, and look forward to a exciting and challenging new season.

We wish you all the best for the new year.  See you in the spring.

Ontario Apples are Here

Some farmers in Ontario do have an apple crop. Jim is on his way today to pick up some Ginger Gold apples, a delicious, sweet and crunch early apple from a farm in Simcoe County that escaped the major freeze in April that affected much of the apple, cherry, plum and peach crops in Ontario, New York state, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

We had the pleasure of touring Watson Farms in Bowmanville yesterday along with fellow members of Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association for our annual social. Paul and his family told us of the sleepless nights in late April spent burning hay and straw in their orchards to ward off the freeze. It worked and they managed to save the majority of their apple crop. They have a beautiful orchard and the trees we saw were loaded with apples. We snacked on a Ginger Gold apple right off the tree, mmm.. tasty.

Many growers were not as fortunate in saving their crop. The prevailing mood among the members was not of defeat but in determination to make the best of a bad situation. They are channeling their creativity into how to tell their story and present an exciting outing to their farms this fall. Check with your favorite pick your own apple orchard and find out what they're doing.

Farmers are a resilient group; not all news about the weather is bad. The province is so variable in it's weather patterns that not all farms have been devastated by drought or the late frost. Our pumpkin crop is looking fantastic and we are getting ready for the fall season. Our school tour program is booking up and our Harvest Festival will be happening each weekend in October.
Crops we are harvesting right now - tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant and spanish onions.

We'll be supporting Ontario apple growers by selling only Ontario apples, even though some varieties might be missing. We ask for you to support Ontario farmers; look for and buy Ontario apples. Get outside, visit a farm this fall. Check out www.ontariofarmfresh.com We'll all be happy to see you.

Celebrate Honey Monday August 6th

Our Spring Blossom Honey is now available. Come Monday August 6th, the Civic Holiday, to celebrate all the hard work the bees do to give us honey. Enjoy the farm and all our weekend activities. Learn more about bees and the honey making process with extra activities throughout the day. Best yet sample the different honeys we have to offer. This is the last weekend in August our Enchanted Forest is open. We use the time this month to freshen it up, getting it ready for the fall. So, enjoy a walk in our woods this weekend. The Enchanted Forest reopens Labour Day weekend. Wagon rides around the farm are still available. Check out our website for details.

SWEET CORN IS HERE!!!!!!!!

It is Awesome in name and flavour. Awesome is a gourmet sweet, peaches and cream corn that is a nice combination of sweetness and corn flavour. With proper refridgeration it should stay sweet for a few days. For optimal flavour it is still best to only get what you can eat that day. Currently the corn is from Tillsonburg (southwest Ontario) and as the season progresses in a couple of weeks it will be from our area. PEACHES should also be headlined. With the hot weather I am finding they are sweeeeeeter than usual. This is turning out to be a very sweet posting. I love this time of year for eating as there is a nice selection of berries (yes we still have a few raspberries, don't delay) and tree fruits such as peaches and plums, nectarines and apricots should be in soon. The potatoes are sweet, the carrots, FIELD TOMATOES HAVE STARTED,and they're sweet. The list goes on. Pick your own beans from the field here in Markham, looks like some peas may be ready in the field soon. OUR SPRING BLOSSOM HONEY IS ARRIVING TODAY. Eagerly anticipated and not to be missed the first harvest of the season from our bee hives is coming into the market today. Relish the season - There is an abundance of cucumbers and zucchinis from our fields right now and NOW is the time to make your relish. Don't wait till you feel like it because these crops are fickle and may not be available when you want them. ACT NOW and you'll be glad this winter as you enjoy the taste of the summer harvest in a jar. With the cooler weather here for a few days come on out to the farm. ENJOY THE SWEETNESS OF SUMMER AND THE FUN. Who knows how long before the next heat alert.

Summer is in full swing and its HOT

I know I don't have to tell you just how hot!!! What has it done to the crops? They're growing fast along with the weeds, are ready sooner than expected and ending faster than we want. Strawberry season was a success, we had berries up until Thursday - longer than most growers in the GTA. We'll be getting the field ready for next year as next years fruit buds form in August. We've been spending a lot of time keeping the weeds from overwhelming our crops with some hand pulling and trimming with the weed wacker. Cultivating the fields has become a full time job. Crops we are harvesting right now are- beets, zucchini, cucumbers and beans. You'll find Dan and Molly Wednesdays at the Whitby Farmers Market, and Saturdays at the Markham Farmers Market. James is at the Oshawa Centre Farmers Market on Fridays. Our Greenbank Farm market is open for the season Thursday to Sun from 9 till 5. This is the first year we have remained open after strawberry time. Come visit and see what we are up to. Weekday wagon rides are proving popular, they are available 11:30 till 1:00 at our Markham farm. We are looking forward to SWEET CORN. The early varieties are in but we just don't find them sweet enough. In our opinion anticipation is sweetly rewarded by waiting at least a week for the corn to be trully delicious. We will have peaches and cream sweet corn our markets by Friday July 20th.

Kids and strawberries

Is it hot enough for you. This heatwave can be stifling but it actually is cooler in the country. I was amazed yesterday at the temperature difference between our Markham and Greenbank farm. It felt at least 5 degrees cooler here in Greenbank with the nice breeze we had. This heat is ripening the berries fast so don't delay in getting yours. We're open at 8:30am in Greenbank till 7:30pm weekdays and 9:00 to 5:00 weekends for picking. Have your kids come meet our kids. Piper and Joy are week old twin goats that we have had to bottle feed. They love all the attention they can get. The pictures are from a recent night when they needed babysitting. Zena was very motherly and the kids being young look to all sources for food. You can visit them in Greenbank.

Fathers are special on the farm

A lot of attention is paid to moms and babies on the farm each spring but lets not forget about dads. We're celebrating dads on the farm this Fathers Day with free admission to our Markham farm'n fun for Dads of all ages when they bring their kids. So come on out to the farm Dad and have your kids meet our kids.