by Jackie Clark   As you drive through rural Ontario, it’s not uncommon to come across hundreds of acres of uninterrupted corn or soybeans. These vast oceans of monoculture field crops are a relatively modern approach, adopted to accommodate ever-growing farm machinery and demand for uniform commodity products. However, historic and even ancient agricultural practices tend toward more diversity. Cereal species mixtures, called maslins, were widespread in Eurasia and Northern Africa and are still common today in Caucasus, the Greek Islands and the Horn of Africa, according to an October 20 ..read more

Tiffany Lauren of Agápe Farmgates and Trout Lily Organic Plant Nursery discusses collective care, growing culturally diverse crops, and her journey as a farmer.   Could you tell us a little bit about your farm journey? Describe the moment you realise you want to become a farmer. My grandparents, who were biodynamic farmers in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica, taught me the importance of being a good steward of the land. They had vast farms with mainly sugar cane and various fruits, vegetables, nuts, and herbs. They only used machines on their land where sugar cane was growing. In addition to that ..read more

Since 2011, Audrey McDonald has been growing organic vegetables, culinary herbs, tropical plants, and flowers at The Greenhouse Eatery on rented land in Brampton, Ontario.   Beyond growing vibrant Jamaican callaloo and marketing Greenhouse Eatery’s Garlic Bar products (including some seriously delicious black garlic!), Audrey is also dedicated to advocating for local foods and educating her community about their connection to the land. In this interview, we hear a little about how she became a farmer, the motivation behind her work, and her hopes for the future of agriculture.   Coul ..read more

What a year it has been! As the EFAO team begins to set in motion programs and activities for the coming year, it feels important to take a moment to reflect on some of what has been accomplished over the past year. A few highlights from 2023 to celebrate as we head into the holiday season EFAO brought together 2827 participants over 125 events (e.g field days, courses, webinars, meet-ups) supporting knowledge sharing on topics such as seeds, small grains, rotational grazing, business start-up and much more!  The Farmer-Led Research Program supported 32 farmers to conduct 30 research tri ..read more

Congratulations to our winner, the Revitalizing Our Sustenance Project! Thank you to all those who submitted their innovations, and to all the conference participants who voted. See you at next year’s conference! To read about all of this year’s fantastic entries, take a look at the Carrot Cache Prize posters below: The post This year’s entries for the 2023 Carrot Cache Prize appeared first on EFAO ..read more

Please introduce us to your farm! How did Paper Kite Farm get started, and where did its name come from? Paper Kite Farm is a small family Farm in Prince Edward County, on the traditional territory of the Anishnaabeg, Wendat and Haudenosaunee People, adjacent to the Kanien’keha:ka community of Tyendinaga. The Farm began as a means to an end during the pandemic; and to feel grounded and connected during those uncertain times. We lost a lot in the Pandemic and needed to re-centre and start new again with family being the focus.   The name, Paper Kite, took some time to come up with! We w ..read more

Call for Curiosity 2024 Farmer-led research is a flexible and powerful tool that can help improve your farm practices. Working with your farm systems and goals, farmer-led research helps you assess the ecological and economic impacts of your innovations, ideas, and comparisons.   October is a great time to start thinking about your burning on-farm questions!  Do you have an idea on how to improve your farm system and need help designing an experiment?    Are there new crops or varieties you want to trial on your farm?    Do you have a need for a new locally adap ..read more

By Sarah Larsen Download this article in PDF format > Download research report > Micheline Lalonde, grower at the rooftop farm at Avling Kitchen and Brewing in Toronto, was curious about how well fava beans grew on the rooftop farm. “Fava beans were already being featured on Avling’s menu at the time [in 2021] and we wanted to see what type would have the best culinary use,” says Micheline. “We had never grown fava beans on the roof, so it was an easy choice to experiment with them.”   Micheline and the crew at Avling had previously participated in a Canadian Organic Vegetable Im ..read more

Download the paper in PDF format > In 2019, Dr. Erin Nelson and her team at the University of Guelph evaluated EFAO’s Farmer-Led Research Program to better understand how the program—and process of farmer-led research in general—help farmers adopt and/or improve ecological farming practices on their farms.   With a background in International Development and Rural Studies, Erin’s research explores the development of more sustainable food systems with a particular focus on agroecology initiatives in both Canada and Latin America. In particular, she is interested in how knowledge-exchang ..read more

The Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario (EFAO)  is seeking an experienced, dynamic, and enthusiastic individual who is passionate about ecological agriculture to support EFAO’s communications work and help deliver high quality educational events to EFAO members and the broader farming community. Reporting to EFAO’s Communications & Engagement Director, this individual will be responsible for some of the most crucial logistics of EFAO events and communications: the creation of event listings and promotional materials to build awareness and encourage attendance. As such, it is imp ..read more