Meet a Reader | Lindsay, a Canadian sod farmer
Today we're meeting Lindsay, a sod farmer from Quebec, and you guys, I am so so impressed with how much food she and her husband grow for themselves...don't miss the list in her answer to question #4!
Here's Lindsay:
1. Tell us a little about yourself
Hi there! My name is Lindsay from Quebec, Canada. I am part owner and operator of our 6th generation farm. We farm sod (yes, like actual grass) and more recently, we started running a garden centre!
My husband and I also have a 1-acre vegetable patch that we use to preserve our own food and help to reduce our grocery bill during the summer.
We have two kids aged 8 and 4 and spend a lot of our time on our farm or enjoying small-town life!
Growing things is my passion. I love soil and plant science and I feel very blessed to be able to do that every day for work. I also love helping to teach people how to garden on their own and preserve to save money!
A lot of the time, it’s a lot more complicated in our minds than in actual execution.
In the cold wintertime (I mean, Canada, right? Ha ha), I like to quilt in my spare time. I am a 34-year-old who loves some traditional hobbies.
2. How long have you been reading The Frugal Girl?
I have been a long-time reader of The Frugal Girl and originally found the blog from a search engine result of “cheap meal ideas”.
The WIS, WWA quickly became favorite posts. I also loved the simple breakdown of meals and the idea of as little food waste as possible! Discarded food is like throwing away money in my eyes.
3. How did you get interested in saving money?
I had never before had personal debt until after getting married. While a beautiful day, the chokehold I felt by trying to pay it off while also living a newlywed life weighed on me. Once it was paid off, I vowed never to be in that position again. I wanted to be able to tell my money where to go versus the other way around.
As time went on, I loved the challenge of pinching every penny and attempting to do things as nicely yet frugally as possible. Seeing the number in savings grow, became a game. We’d set up “savings goals” for items or vacations we’d want and a timeline to do it.
So began the challenge of achieving that goal as fast as possible with still being able to eat, have a house and enjoy life a little but not go into any debt.
4. What's your best frugal win?
Easily, our garden!
This beautiful patch allows us to really tighten the purse strings on our grocery budget. We live quite a distance from any large grocery stores so planning our food is of utmost importance.
It is not an option for us to just “run to the store” for a missing ingredient. So we plan our meals from what we’ve grown ourselves (both animal and vegetable/fruit) or what is in season during that time of year.
Some items we no longer buy from the store because we grow or produce ourselves:
- potatoes
- garlic
- dried herbs
- onions
- salsa
- marinara sauce
- pizza sauce
- pickles
- apple chip
- apple sauce
- frozen veggies (corn, carrots, and beans for example)
- maple syrup
- beef
- chicken
- eggs
- zucchini
- jam
- pesto
The other win would be our learning of producing maple syrup!
9 years ago, I was dealing with fertility issues. My doctor at the time recommended cutting out all conventional sugar for 90 days. I did this and saw huge benefits in my health. Not only was I pregnant, but I also had cleared up my adult acne, improved joint pain, and just felt healthier.
The only problem is, good sources of local honey or maple syrup are expensive! Being surrounded by acres of land, I looked at our maple trees and declared, “We can do this!”
That spring, we tapped 50 trees and haven’t looked back! Now, we are able to produce all the sugar in the form of maple syrup we need for the year (50 litres) for almost free!
5. What's one thing you splurge on?
Our side-by-side or as some refer to it as our ATV.
This was saved for and paid with cash but is both necessary and fun. We are surrounded by acres of fields so it is a form of entertainment to take it for a drive around in the evenings.
But also an important tool in making maple syrup, maintaining the garden, and checking crops.
6. If $1000 was dropped into your lap today, what would you do with it?
Not a fun answer but I would stock up on pantry staples!
It’s no secret that the cost of food is much higher this year. I’d love to channel my inner squirrel tendencies and stock up on some of those staples we use but can’t produce like salt, butter, flour, and yeast.
7. What frugal tips have you tried and abandoned?
The cash envelope system! We live too far away from a bank to make this a possibility!
I think it is easier to set a budget beforehand and become disciplined enough to only spend that amount.
8. What is something you wish more people knew?
I think it’s important to learn that to be frugal, also means to be patient. In this fast-paced world, where everything is at our fingertips at the click of a button, there is a sense of peace and satisfaction that can come from being patient in your money decisions. This patience allows you to really decide if the item is not only right for you but also worth that cost.
The big kicker: that practicing of patience doesn’t come overnight and so many elements around you will direct you to do differently. Don’t be hard on yourself, take it one day and one dollar at a time, and know that little money savings do add up to a lot!
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Lindsay, thanks so much for participating in this series! I am amazed at how much food you produce, especially given that you have a short-ish growing season up there in Canada.
And I love what you said in your last answer: that patience is such a key part of making good money decisions. I agree 100%!
One question from me: do you sell your sod directly to consumers? Or do you sell it to landscapers and retailers?
Hi Lindsay, So nice to meet you. I am on the other side of the border from you in Massena NY. Montreal is approximately an hour and a half from us. We have been there dozens of times over the years. It is so beautiful and I can definitely relate to the long, cold winters you have. Your gardening skills are impressive. I, however, do not possess a green thumb:) Any tips on planting something basic such as green beans in a raised bed? Type of soil, how deep or far apart to space, watering, etc.....I'll take any advice I can get at this point. Also, do veggies like carrots, beets, squash, etc....do as well as lettuce, broccoli or cauliflower in a raised bed? Not sure about the "root" veggies vs. the ones that grow above the soil and if they all do well in a raised bed or not. Thanks for any information you are willing to provide. It is greatly appreciated. Have a great day and thanks for allowing us a peak into your life:)
@Vicki Skonieczny, In our previous house we had two raised beds and planted a lot of root veggies in them : carrots,beets,turnips, radishes,and they grow BEAUTIFULLY in the nice soil you have in the box vs. any hard earth you might be trying to plant it. (In Arizona the earth in the garden is hard caliche..the raised beds were the best gardening we ever did!) but I am not in any way as experienced as Lindsay.. I,too, am in awe of how much she grows in a short season! I got a sense of peace just reading this blog today.. a small town, a simple life..ahhhh…. how to bring some of that into a typical suburban lifestyle..many ways we can when we try..
@Vicki Skonieczny, Hey neighbor!! Thanks for commenting. My biggest advice to anyone is to start small! Perfect that item and then move on to the next experiement. For example, we decided to only eat greens (lettuce) we grow ourselves. This means learning to do it in early spring and what can last with some frost. And then go without for winter months and enjoy other items like our frozen veggies or canned items. Check out my instagram. I give tips and tricks and also tons of saved stories on my profile answering lots of those questions. @homegrownsmalltown
@Madeline, Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. We have two beds as well. Any chance you know the size of yours and could tell me how much/many types you grow in each bed? Our soil here is mostly clay......UGH!!! May I ask what you use for your soil? And do you cover yours with mesh or fencing of any type? We have a lot of deer all year round, as we have almost 3 acres and woods on three sides as well.
@Lindsay, Starting small sounds like a good idea:) I will definitely check out your instagram. Thanks for your response and again, so happy to have "met" you today! Have a great week!
@Vicki Skonieczny, If you are going to live in your current home for years to come, you may be interested in how our raised beds function in northern Alaska. Ours are scavenged large animal watering troughs, although we started with three foot tall, three feet wide, 8 or 10 foot long wood beds when first we switched to raised beds. The first year we get a trough, we use it as a compost dumping ground. Everything organic goes in there and I don't worry about ratios or sizes of the organic matter---we dump from the start of summer, all through the winter, until the following spring. Then we cover it (never bother turning the contents) with purchased soil. Usually it takes about 4 inches to cover everything and pack it down. Then we plant shallow rooted crops the first year. Over the summer, it will settle as things compact and decompose, so for the next three years of so we end up topping things off with more soil but eventually it stops settling. By the third year the decomposition is sufficient that rich compost has resulted and we can plant anything, even deeper crops like potatoes. Each year we did one raised bed, until we had ten of them; only then did we have to start a regular compost pile since we did not need more beds. I have taken the temperature of our soil and it is warmer by about 10 degrees than our ground level soil, which is a huge thing in terms of getting better and earlier yields. It is easier to weed these beds and they defeat voles (not true with the wood beds because those tiny claws could still get purchase and vault into the taller beds, but metal defeats them). Recently we tore down our final wood raised bed and the soil that started as organic garbage was so rich that our neighbor hauled the gigantic pile off to use to start her own garden.
@Lindsey, WOW.....never even thought about anything other than the typical standard wood raised beds. Totally not doing those now. Yes, this is our final "retirement" home so thanks so much for the detailed, useful information. I so appreciate it.
@Vicki Skonieczny, You can get shorter watering troughs. We ended up with the tall ones because we found one on Craigslist for very cheap. (YOu do have to drill some more drainage holes in the bottom, about 12 the size of half dollars works for us). However, a few years after we got the first bed, I ended up having to use a wheelchair a lot and the tall beds mean I can still garden no matter how decrepit I get.
@Vicki Skonieczny, P.S. If you are interested in what the beds look like planted, and Kristen is willing to give you my email, I can send you a few shots of what they look like planted.
@Lindsey, That would be great. I'll just give you my email: ski1556@yahoo.com. Let me know yours, so I will know it's not Spam:) I would love to know what you grow in each bed too.
What a cool interview, Lindsay! I love reading about others who love to garden, preserve, limit waste, and live frugally. Your acre vegetable garden is intriguing to me because I'm still trying to figure out how to best utilize our garden space. (Our entire property is just under an acre, but we have a good-sized garden for the size of our backyard.) In your growing climate, are your potatoes and onions able to last all year or do you do two crops a year? Do you have to do something special when you store them? I'm in Michigan, so we're definitely not warm all year either!
My kids and I recently read a book all about making your own maple syrup, so it was neat for me to read about you doing it with 50 trees.
Thanks for sharing with us!
@Ruth T, Hi there! Nice to "meet" you! It has taken many years to profect this system. We grow about 500 pounds of potatoes a year and split them between my brothers family and us. The key is to keep them dirty (no washing at all) and storing them in a cold storage like area. We use our garage as it allows them not to freeze but stay cold and dark and dry. The onions are similar but they do get a wash. Our onions will last until February and potatoes until April.
@Ruth T,
I think the bottles with "gold" are the maple syrup? They look so tempting don't they! Wonderful for Lindsay and family to have their own harvest!
@Lindsay,
Perfect! You just made me feel so much better about that batch of potatoes sitting in my basement that I hadn't gotten around to washing yet. Now I can look at them without feeling like I'm slacking! 😉 Thanks for answering my questions. That sure is a lot of potatoes you grow!! Awesome job!
When I read sod farm, my jaw dropped as I grew up in a rural county in SC where there were several 1000 acre sod farms and until I met dh, I had never heard of another one. His parents lived in South Georgia and that is literally the biggest farming staple in their county. A few of them are still growing for football and soccer stadiums.
Do you grow year round? I am fascinated by this since all I ever knew was it being grown in hot and humid Southern climates.
@Jennifer, Hi there! 🙂 We do not grow all year. Our growing season is from May until November because otherwise, we are under a ton of snow! So it takes us 2 years to grow a crop of sod before it can be harvested! 🙂
We have a bunch of sod farms here on Long Island.
I admire your energy, Lindsay! I do some gardening but I'm hampered by poor health. Farming sounds so appealing to me--close friends started farming in upstate NY in their late 50s!--but I can't hack the life. So thank you for sharing with us and your son is totally adorable.
I had no idea there were sod farms on Long Island!
Heck, we have sod farms in the Hamptons. The grass is of course much classier than regular sod. ha!
I think probably because one, sod doesn't last all that long once it's been harvested, and two, grass grown somewhat locally is more likely to thrive when put down. But Lindsay will know a lot more than I will.
@Rose and @Kristen, there are sod farms in Central and Western NY, too. There's a huge one in Batavia right next to the Thruway.
Hey Frugal girl! We do sell to the homeowner, contractor or store! We also supply those sources with grass seed and fertilizer and soil!
Lindsay, I enjoyed your interview from start to finish. (I'm particularly in awe/envy of that garlic crop, having just yesterday planted the modest dozen cloves that should take care of my modest 2023 garlic needs as an older single woman.) You're living one of my fantasy alternative lives, and doing a fine job of it.
@A. Marie, Thank you!! 🙂
Hi Lindsay,
Great to read from you! I had to scratch my head: who are your buyers? Meanwhile you answered but "Soccer clubs" came to my mind first of all (we had a small local upheaval a few years back when pranksters moved the center white circle to a neighbouring competitor for New Year's Eve Prank. I believe the impacted club filed for theft of the (painted white) sod, but became a laughing stock in the region).
Alexander Pope would have known how to write a nice poem on the Theft of the Sod
@J NL, Lots of people doing home lawns, new builds (houses or other), sports fields, golf, etc!
Super fun interview! (Also a big fan of Quebec, from a New Englander.)
I'm impressed by your garlic. I've tried to grow it but we only get tiny, tiny cloves, so now I just really grow it for the scapes. Any suggestions on getting larger garlic cloves/bulbs?
@BettafrmdaVille, Do you happen to plant in the Fall? Our garlic just got planted this Saturday. Also, in the spring we do a nice compost or sheep maure to the plant to REALLY give it lots of nutrients to grow big! Genetics also play a big part, only plant the biggest cloves the following year.
Hi Lindsay. Thanks for sharing. Beautiful pictures. I have zero planting skills. In my first apt in Brooklyn, I killed a snake plant. I admire others who grow things though. Good luck to you and your lovely family.
@Anita Isaac, Ha ha! Thank you for the morning giggle! Thankful for lots of local farmers that can supply delicious garden goodies to those that can't grow!
Wow - point #8 really, really spoke to me. Changing my thought process from "you're short of money" to "you're short of patience" makes for a lot less self-condemnation and makes things easier to save for. Thank you!!!
@Sharon, It's easy to get caught up in this fast paced world where all the answers and things we need (looking at your Amazon ha ha!) are so quick! Have a great day!
Love everything about this post, I live in Deux Montagnes Quebec, and am a lone frugal neighbor. I enjoy Kristen and her gang!
@Maria, Salut voisin! Merci pour votre commentaire! Content que vous ayez apprécié la lecture ! Passez une excellente journée!
@Lindsay, you give me inspiration to continue on my frugal path! You too, bonne journee!
I loved this post. Nice to meet you!
@Stephanie, Nice to meet you too! 🙂
Hi, Lindsay,
That is a huge garden. I'm in awe of it - I have some years where my garden turns out, and some years where I get almost nothing. I take it yours must do well most or all years, if you are practically living off of it for food. Apparently, your superpower is producing food! You mentioned you buy butter - I was a little surprised at that. Is producing butter something you are considering, or is that just too much on top of everything else? I know dealing with milk cows/goats is a special effort.
I grew up with molasses (aka cane syrup) as the natural plant-made sweetener and enjoyed watching the cane grindings, but I've always thought real maple syrup was far better tasting. I'm betraying my southern heritage, I know, but I do like maple syrup better. And you can produce your own! That's wonderful.
I think avoiding debt, especially right now, is a smart thing to do. Keep up the good work! It was a pleasure to meet you.
@JD, Thanks for your lovely comment! Most animals, especially cows, are not great for sod fields! They will actually ruin it. For now, it will be a sacrifice and we'll buy it and any other milk products we need.
Oh the taste of maple syrup is so special. It is a lot of work but such a sweet reward! 🙂
As an American it just kind of floors me as to how expensive some things are in Canada vs the US (e.g. the postal system being the biggest example I can think of.)
Patience is definitely a virtue lost on some people. Just yesterday a family member of mine was complaining about how he was lacking any extra spending money and yet earlier he had told me about all of the items he bought on eBay which, for all intents and purposes, were just clutter and trash to me. Now had he had a little more patience he could save for the items he really would enjoy instead of the quick dopamine hits.
@Battra92, For my winter hobby of quilting, I will actually take a drive to the US to buy fabric as the expense too great here!! Thanks for reading! 🙂
Hi Lindsay! I was wondering, how far away is your nearest grocery store? I've never lived very far away from one. Do you have to freeze things like cheese and milk between trips?
@Sarah C., The closest store is 30-40 minutes away but the prices are too expensive there so I will actually wait 3-4 weeks between trips and do a big trip to the one that is an hour away. I will fully stock up! We do freeze a lot of our dairy products and I am very careful to check best before dates and find the ones with the farthest out date. A freezer is a BIG tool in helping us live a rural life.
Glad to meet you, Lindsay! Nice photos. I always wondered who lived in the beautiful green parts of Canada I have driven through. You are very right about patience, too. I have made a practice of waiting to buy something, and half the time I forget all about it. I didn't need it after all! The other times, by waiting, I can refine my choices and buy once, with no returns or complaints. Hand in hand goes "inner driven" v. "outer driven" purchases. What I decide I need at home, with no ads or pressure, is probably what I need. What is suggested by an ad, probably not.
@Kristina, Exactly! It's a hard lesson to learn as the world around us is so fast paced. But being intentional has so many benefits!
Good to hear from you, Lindsay! I am in awe of all that you produce on your land. The maple syrup looks wonderful! Your picture of your son by your garden is so sweet. What wonderful life lessons he is gaining by helping with your harvest. Thank you for sharing!
Such a fun meet the reader, as I am also from Québec (Eastern Townships). Loved hearing about your garden and the intentional life you have crafted for yourself.
@Mary, my partner and I love the Eastern Townships! For a couple of fall trips, we went looking for the bistro as described in Louise Penny's books. (We stayed in both North Hatley and Knowlton.)
I loved reading about your garden!
@Lynda, Thank you! It's fun to share my passion with others!
This was such a fun post to read! I’m very impressed with your food-providing skills, both in the garden and with the livestock. And couldn’t agree more with the idea that to be frugal means to be patient. It’s so true, and that is the reason behind some of my frugal fails. There are times I throw caution to the winds and that’s sometimes not a good thing, financially. I have adhd and impulsivity is one of its hallmarks. Maybe if I thinks of it as a question of patience that will help.
Thanks for sharing! I really enjoyed reading about your life. From a fellow Canadian on Vancouver Island.
@Jem, Hello fellow canuck!! Thanks for reading along. It is hard to be patient when everything is our lives tells us to do the same. But I've always liked going against the norm! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your story, Lindsay!
I agree with you about needing to be patient to be frugal. I am not very good at keeping track of my successes, but when I do choose to celebrate something in my mind, (like a single giant carrot when the others near it aren't! or a good pair of yard sale jeans when I had been looking for a few months), the good feeling stays with me longer.
@Heidi Louise, That is beautiful way to look at it! Brining joy to sometimes even the smallest successes! I love that mindset
Hi Lindsay Thank you so much for sharing about your life. I am so impressed with all you grow! The tapping of maple trees reminded me of "Little House on the Prairie." I think the first book in the series when they lived in Wisconsin (the "big woods") talked about that. Now I am going to have to go back and re-read that part of the series. You cracked me up talking about your inner squirrel. I was definitely a squirrel or a chipmunk in a past life!
@Beth B., Thank you for the inspiration. I have been wanting to read that book as I've been told before about the first book and my life being similar and now Im going to!!
Lindsay,
Loved reading your profile. While I didn’t grow up on a farm, my parents always had a big garden. There’s nothing better than fresh food or frozen/canned food from your own garden. And you are so right about being patient.
@LDA, The taste of a garden fresh carrot or tomato is like none other!! Such an appreciated taste in the dead of winter and when I start thinking/planning garden for the next season
Hi Lindsay,
I enjoyed reading your post very much. You are beautiful inside and out! Love the picture of your son with the missing tooth grinning with his fresh carrot. He is a little cutie. I am impressed with how you and your family live. You embody the gift of patience from farming to quilting. God bless you and your family.
Vicky
@Vicky Mac, Thank you! I am so blessed for the opportunity to live this way and pass it down to our kids so that the knowledge is not forgotten or lost. Blessings to you as well.
Wow, Lindsay!!! You are amazingly smart and talented! Such an impressive job raising your family in such a wholesome way.... God bless and reward you.
P.S. My heart soared to the seventh heaven of excitement when I started to read the title, then sunk to the utter depths of despondency when I read the "a" in "Lindsay." (okay, okay, I am exaggerating!).
Lindsey with an e, please know that even if you never decide to write a post, there is one reader here in Alabama who still will be anxiously awaiting your posts and comments. They are soooo insightful, uplifting, and sweet.
@st, Thank you for your lovely comment! 🙂
Also wonder if maple syrup could be a commodity to sell if the wood lot could sustain increased production. I suspect price per pound might net a nice return (and a way to stock up on those pantry items mentioned). Natural and especially unrefined sources of sugar are growing in popularity and a wise choice in the kitchen.
@Gary L, We actually do sell a small amount of it or gift it as presents at Christmas. We also like to use it for bartering here with a local beef farmer!
I love this series because it is so interesting to see lives so different from my own.
I am so impressed by how much Lindsay can grow and preserve!
@Loraine, Thank you!! I couldn't imagine anything other than our rural ways. Thankful for family that was able to pass down their growing/preserving knowledge.
Hi Lindsay, thanks for a great interview! I'm amazed and happy that your family farm is going strong for six generations! I'm afraid that US government policies have strengthened big agriculture companies and squeezed smaller family farms out of business for decades here, south of the border.
You are so right about patience -- so difficult to be patient but pays off so often.
@Elaine N, Hi Elaine (Ps. Great name. Our daughter is also named Elaine)! We are thankful here to live in a rural community that still thrives on small town living and farming. Hoping it stays that way for many generations to come.
Wow, your cold weather gardening is so inspiring! And the canning. Kudos!
@Becca C, Thank you! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your story. I so admire the virtue of patience, since I am sorely lacking in that area. I have found myself yelling at my garden to grow faster, so the idea that you have the patience to garden AND quilt is something I really admire. My first thought upon reading your piece was that your child is very fortunate to be experiencing such a rich and deliberate life.
@Lindsey, Thank you for the lovely comment. I feel blessed to have been given this knowledge to be able to pass it down to our children so that it is not lost.
Quebec is one of my favorite places to visit. I'm looking forward to going again within the year.
"produce all the sugar in the form of maple syrup we need for the year (50 litres) for almost free!" I love me some maple syrup but I'm wondering if you factor in the cost of the fuel to reduce the sap to syrup?
@WilliamB, Great question! Actually, we are surrounded by bush so we used cut and dried wood from our bush in our evaporator to produce the syrup. We invested in a small evaporator 9 years ago and it is paid us back, that is for sure! We use empty liqor bottles donated to us and we wash and reuse! The post of buckets and spiles was the biggest investment.
Salut Lindsay! I spent a year studying French at Laval University. It was so much fun, and I remember the snow! I loved the underground tunnels to get to class! I love Quebec City, how beautiful and historic it is! A little touristy, I’ll admit, but a nice place to go and speak French. I know most Quebecois speak both French and English, but were your classes in French, with English studied as a second language? I live in Florida now, and sod is a very profitable business here. It’s hot and humid, but a crop can grow in a matter of a month or two with enough water. Thanks for sharing your interview! Bonne soirée!
@Susan_SFL, Bonjour! I have actually never been to Quebec City but it is on my bucket list! I actually live in a very english community in Quebec. I went to an english Quebec school and studied french as a second language. I am thankful to be able to use both.
Hi Lindsay! I miss sugaring in New York. It was a lot of work, and often a lot of hours standing by the evaporator in miserable weather, but it also got us outside and doing something when winter was still not over and garden season was months away. Plus, it resulted in maple syrup. 🙂
@kristin @ going country, I always joke it is the job I look forward to the most in winter but when it is over, I am so GLAD it is over. ha ha! So much work but such a sweet reward! I can't wait to see the things my kids remember when they think back on their time spent in the Sugar bush with us.
I’m wondering, do you sweeten your jams with maple syrup? I make berry jam from foraged berries, it takes a lot of sugar. Definitely not fit for low sugar diet.
And about chickens. Do you grow their food?
We had chickens for 2 years, until a fox devoured the whole flock. It was nice as a hobby, fertilized my garden, and I loved watching my kids collecting fresh eggs. In terms of money it definitely didn’t save us any. Store bought feed is expensive. Maybe there’s other ways around it, we just didn’t look into it.
@Natasha, Great questions!
For the Jam, I use maple sugar. So it's a process of boiling down the syrup extra and making it into a crystalized sugar. It is then used just the same as regular sugar.
For our meat birds, they only live for abour 16 weeks before they are processed. They eat a lot of scraps from the garden and food they find around the farm. The layer/egg chickens only live for 13 months, in which time, they are turned into meat birds as the egg production drops. Again, same feeding system. We do have to buy food but getting it from a co-op is much cheaper than a traditional feed store.
Thanks for telling us a little about you! I love to can, and put up many of the things you do! We have two garden beds in our front yard because our back yard is too shaded. From that we grow quite a lot of food that I put up. I can only imagine the work involved with a garden that spans an acre!
@Tammy, Love that! It's such a fun hobby. Especially when your hobby can give you something like delicious food. I love finding new recipes to use canned goods or garden fresh! It feels very rewarding.
Hi Lindsay, I'm across the Ontario/Quebec border, well, a bit of a ways, just northwest of Kingston. I live rurally also and I can't really imagine living any other way. I have two children, both adopted from China. The eldest is 22 and just graduated from university and living/working in Toronto now. The youngest is 15 and in grade 11, French immersion. Are you francophone? Bilingual? Most Quebecers have much better second language skills than Ontarians, I find!
Thanks for sharing about your life, I think the sod farm is a very cool thing. We also have a vegetable garden, it's small but I haven't had to buy tomato sauce of any kind or canned tomatoes for a long time. This year I put in one acorn squash plant and I have 7 acorn squash to cook/freeze! It's amazing how much you can get from even a small bed.
Also, I love the picture of your son with his very dirty jacket, it's a lucky kid who gets to grow up getting dirty!
À bientôt!
Leann
@Leann, Bonjour! We actually have gone that way (past Kingston) to ship sod to a customer!! I was born and raised in a very english part of Quebec. I even attended English school here but french plays a very heavy part of the schooling and life. I am very thankful to be fully bilingual in both languages. Yet to talk to me, have no french accent!
It is so true! I try to remind many who ask about gardening to start small. Because not only is it less overwhelming, but also rewarding! You can grow so much in a small square footage! And, any little bit helps!
Merci pour votre commentaire!
Wonderfully expanding my view of North America! I would like to hear about your childhood, teenage years, parents, the five generations before you, etc., if you have time. Great photos and great insights!
Fellow farmer here! I want to congratulate you on a job well done.