Innholdsfortegnelse for Fall 2018 i Harrowsmith

CATHERINE AGAR grew up on a dairy farm and is passionate about agriculture and food. She has a degree in agriculture economics from the University of Guelph and is currently taking professional writing classes at Western University in London, Ontario. After almost 19 years of doing double time, with an off-farm job as an agriculture lender and raising her family on a dairy farm, she recently hung up her banker’s hat for good. She is enjoying days on the farm with her four young children and tall Dutch husband, along with her Holstein cows and brown chickens. Her recipe for Nutty Berry French Toast was published in the 2014 Milk Calendar and can be found at dairygoodness.ca. MARK AND BEN CULLEN Mark is an expert gardener, author, broadcaster and tree…

After this year’s never-ending winter, summer seems so precious and fleeting. But fall announces itself in such a comforting colour show that it’s difficult not to be seduced by its beauty and bounty. It’s time to get back to our roots, and I already find my menu shifting from the wild greens and the bright berries of summer to the satisfying warmth of soups and roasted vegetables. While gardening editors Mark and Ben Cullen get to the root of the matter with a helpful guide to growing root vegetables (page 48) and cabbages (page 55), our food editors take those roots and turn them into a gorgeous soup, slaw, pickled treat and sweet potato cake (page 71). Plus, cookbook author Signe Langford introduces us to the unexpected wonder of sunchokes…

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah (St. Martin’s Press, 2018) Kristin Hannah’s The Great Alone swiftly transports readers to an inhospitable land synonymous with hatchets and log cabin dreams. Fringe-ists, guns and Bibles are found in equal measure here: “Two kinds of folks come to Alaska. People running to something and people running away from something.” For Ernt, Cora and their precocious daughter, Leni, Alaska was supposed to be the remedy for Ernt’s restlessness since returning from the Vietnam War. Desperate to leave the “lower 48” and its poisons, Ernt trades in their car for a VW bus and the family heads 3,862 km (2,400 miles) north, chasing a gilded vision of split butter clams by the fire, under the midnight sun. Homesteaders quickly warn the cheechakos (tenderfoots) of winters…

This is a shiny new feature in Harrowsmith, and we hope to continue to sit down and have several cups of coffee, virtually, with a few locals, Canada’s best small-town ambassadors. When you’re from “away,” wouldn’t it be perfect if you could simply sit down and learn about a tiny town over a cup of coffee with the ones who already know all the best picnic spots and secret bragging points? The stuff that is often overlooked in glossy tourist brochures? Meet Jenny and Dana … and their take on Selkirk, Ontario. Hello, I’m Jenny Bryce. I’m originally from Stoney Creek, Ontario, but my husband and I moved to Selkirk lakeshore when we were just 19 and 21, respectively, for the construction of the industries at Nanticoke in December 1973.…

In the spring of 2009, Sarah Bowen, a professor at the University of Alberta’s School of Public Health, posted an intriguing call for volunteers to help create a local community garden that would also benefit women in Rwanda. Sarah and husband Eduardo Parada lived near the university’s farm, in suburban Edmonton, and proposed the idea of using a piece of university farmland for a community garden. The university agreed and generously donated two acres of land to what was named the Green & Gold Community Garden—in recognition of the university’s school colours. The first year, a handful of volunteers cleared rocks from what looked to be barren land. With donated seeds and plants, and some rudimentary garden tools, we planted vegetables and sunflowers, lots of sunflowers. That spring it barely…

My introduction to sunchokes ( Helianthus tuberosus ) was as an exotic item on fancy menus, where they were called Jerusalem artichokes. I remained in the dark about the true provenance of this wonderful North American plant for many years. Then, several years ago, I visited Soiled Reputation, the farm of Anthony John, a.k.a. the Manic Organic, in Perth County, Ontario. Strolling through one of the recently turned fields, I noticed tubers littering the furrows—’chokes, whole or pieces—here and there on the ground. I quietly picked up a few, shoved them into my pocket and planted them when I got home. Well, those first, somewhat ill-begotten tubers, failed. Karma? So, I emailed him, confessed my sin and asked him for a few to plant, and standup guy that…

Let’s start by stating the fact that we are all weather observers. Every single day, we decide what we are going to wear and what activity we will do (or not do) based on what we see outside the window and on our thermometers. Some of us even have min weather stations, which allow us to observe and measure temperature, humidity, precipitation, air pressure and wind. These same factors have been used since the very first weather observations were recorded (around 340 BC). Certainly, our weather instruments have improved over the years, and the technology of capturing and analyzing the data has dramatically improved the accuracy of short- and longterm forecasts. Having said that, forecast accuracy will only improve if the amount of data increases. What do I mean by…

SEASONAL HIGHLIGHTS WINTER 2018–2019 The entire province gets locked into colder-than-normal temperatures. This will be a winter more reminiscent of the 1960s and ’70s, with a consistent flow of cold air from the northwest. Precipitation overall will remain normal. Chances for heavy snows mid- to late January and into February. SPRING 2019 It will start off colder than normal but will quickly work itself to above-normal temperatures. Storminess will bring precipitation levels to above-normal levels, especially at the start and end of the season. SUMMER 2019 Hotter-than-normal temperatures will make the summer rather enjoyable for those who enjoy an ice-cold lemonade in the shade. July and August will be rather uncomfortable, as a couple of heat waves should impact the province, especially south. Precipitation levels should remain normal overall, despite…

SEASONAL HIGH REGION LIGHTS 6 WINTER 2018–2019 Expect normal temperatures in the most southern areas of the Yukon. Everywhere else, much colder air will take hold with several polar vortex outbreaks crossing through the area. Precipitation amounts will be higher than normal. SPRING 2019 Colder-than-normal conditions will continue into spring, and the sun will have difficulty making its presence known, as stormy conditions are expected to follow. Conditions may be closer to normal the farther south and west you go. SUMMER 2019 Temperatures return closer to average, yet precipitation levels may run slightly above average. The season will be rather unsettled with fluctuating periods of fair and stormy skies. FALL 2019 Expect temperatures to run slightly below normal overall, even though there will be a couple of warm spells in…

ORGANIC Describes plants and seeds that have been grown without chemical pesticides, herbicides or fungicides under sustainable conditions. “Certified organic” is more official and means the grower has passed a rigid test that proves the product is grown organically. UNTREATED Ensures that the seed has not been dusted with fungicide to prolong shelf life. SPECIES The parent of myriad varieties and cultivars. VARIETY A variant on a species, with special characteristics such as hardiness, unique flavour, colour, productivity or growth rate. It can happen by chance or deliberate hybridization (select breeding). CULTIVAR A cultivated variety that will not come true to type from saved seed. Instead, it is reproduced by vegetative propagation (cuttings). In common language, cultivar and variety are often used interchangeably, although it is technically incorrect to do…

We became empty nesters a few years ago, and the house started to feel much too big unless the kids were home to visit. We liked the idea of having less house to maintain, so we took the leap and downsized. We assumed that going smaller would be easy. My goodness, we were so wrong! We began our marriage in a tiny postwar bungalow and had twice moved to larger homes. Over 25 years, we accumulated everything related to raising two children, one dog, several fish and a hamster. Add to that pile, our obsessions with reading, gardening, crafting, a few sports, cooking and woodworking and, yes, we had a full house. We did some purging before selling, but once we bought the smaller abode, the pace to edit everything…

Premier Kathleen Wynne’s Liberal government and her predecessor, Dalton McGuinty, imposed this change on Ontario’s rural communities. Even municipalities who officially declared themselves unwilling hosts of the Wynne turbines, like Prince Edward County (PEC), are unlikely to stop renewable energy development. Real estate agents marched with picket signs and homeowners wore T-shirts with images of their houses, destined to lose value. Naturalists raised tens of thousands of dollars to hire a lawyer to fight the construction of wind turbines in a government-designated Important Bird Area and endangered Blanding’s turtle habitat. But a lot of people were pleased with the government’s initiative, especially farmers who could pocket $10,000 a year by allowing wind turbines on their property. Many erected solar collectors with the MicroFIT subsidy that guaranteed a premium rate to…

Back in the previous century (1988–90), we ran a small but busy restaurant on a major highway in logging country. The restaurant was in Mine Centre, Ontario, on Highway 11, midway between Fort Frances and Atikokan. A good portion of our clientele made their living from pulp cutting and related jobs. Most of the logging was on company limits, and men working for contractors drove from their homes in nearby semi-civilization. Other cutting areas were on Crown lands where the Ministry of Natural Resources subdivided the bush into woodlots of 5,000 cords. These lots were cut by individuals with one skidder, and their wood was hauled by private truckers. Most of these cutters lived too far away for a daily commute, so from Monday to Friday they camped in small,…

The theme of Harrowsmith’s 2019 Almanac is “connecting to your roots,” which deeply resonates with me. I’ve come full circle, and it happened without my being fully conscious of it. I grew up in Vermont and often spent summers at my grandparents’ 100-acre farm in western Michigan, where they grew everything they needed. Then the big city beckoned me for school and work, and I settled into a lovely life in Canada. I got married and raised four wonderful daughters and a stepdaughter, but I always yearned to be back in the country. Life changed, though, as it does. My marriage ended. After spotting a “for sale” sign at the side of a road, I bought a farm and relocated my family. It felt like coming home. Together with my…

SOMETHING’S BREWING IN GUELPH I am writing as a curatorial volunteer at the Guelph Civic Museum. From September 2018 to February 2019, the museum will be hosting an exhibit that currently has the working title Brewing Changes Guelph. As part of this project, we are trying to locate the May/ June 1978 issue of Harrowsmith, which features a well-known Frank Appleton article related to craft brewing. I am wondering whether you are aware of any resource that can assist us in our search for this article or, even better, a copy of the magazine. It will be of great benefit in our efforts to launch a successful brewing exhibit. Best regards, Miriam Vince, Guelph, Ontario Editor’s note: Thank you to Amanda Robinson-Lingenfelter of Maple Ridge, British Columbia, who swiftly responded…

In 1969, I was a keen teenager and stargazer finishing my high school education and thinking about the study of engineering. It was a no-brainer that my interest was focused on something far, far away. And a lot of people around the world were in the same state of mind. I watched the launch of the Apollo 11 spacecraft on my parents’ old black-and-white TV, with the rabbit ears in their best orientation. My memory has been rewritten by subsequent replays, but the best coverage came from CBS, with Walter Cronkite. From the fiery launch of the mighty Saturn V rocket on July 16 through the long drift to the moon until its arrival in lunar orbit three days and four hours later, most news was rather vague. In the…

You don’t have to be a magician for a kid in your life to think you are. Just dig up a potato or pull a carrot from the ground and watch their eyes widen in wonder. Witnessing a familiar vegetable reveal itself from under the soil is one of the earliest memories many of us have in the garden, because it makes such an impression. Years go by and we forget this magic when we go back to buying potatoes at the grocery store because they’re just so cheap and we’ve forgotten the thrill of digging your own. Adulthood can be too practical that way. That’s why it is important to try a new twist on your favourite vegetables. Not only does growing your own yield fresher, healthier and more…

I have an entire kitchen cupboard full of recipes. It’s a combination of favourite recipe books, magazine and newspaper clippings (some of which I’ve organized in plastic page holders in a binder), old Milk Calendars, and ancient recipe cards from my mother and grandmother. I treasure the recipe cards the most because they have the power to instantly recreate childhood memories of watching my mom baking or the special times when she let me help. Though she is no longer with us, I keep my favourite memories alive by turning to her recipe cards for inspiration in the kitchen. When the call went out to dairy farmers across Canada in 2013 asking us to submit our family recipes featuring dairy ingredients for the next Milk Calendar, I jumped at the…

SEASONAL HIGHLIGHTS WINTER 2018–2019 Overall, this winter will be drier and slightly colder than normal. Most of the storminess will be deflected to the north and south, but there will still be a couple of chances for decent snows in December and January. SPRING 2019 Marginally warmer-than-normal temperatures will transition into spring as well as drier-than-average conditions. The number of sunny days will outnumber those that are cloudy. SUMMER 2019 Temperatures will remain seasonable to slightly above average. Precipitation will be closer to normal, with some wet/stormy spells in each of the summer months. A rogue tropical system will likely affect coastal areas late August/early September. FALL 2019 At least two tropical systems will help keep precipitation levels above normal. Temperatures will remain seasonable overall, but there will be a…

SEASONAL HIGHLIGHTS WINTER 2018–2019 Overall the season will have colder-than-normal temperatures. Alberta may be closer to normal cold temperatures, but it will also be stormier, as the polar jet should be blasting through the province most of winter. Precipitation should be at normal to slightly below levels for the rest of the provinces. SUMMER 2019 Expect a warmer-than-normal summer with below-normal precipitation. July and August will bring some severe storms, which will likely produce tornadoes and hail damage. SPRING 2019 March and April will continue with below-normal temperatures, but there will be the occasional warm-up to lift the spirits. A steadier warm-up in May will end up making the season average overall. Precipitation will be above normal. FALL 2019 September and October should be cooler than normal. November should be…

SEASONAL HIGH REGION LIGHTS 7 WINTER 2018–2019 ENSO-neutral conditions will keep the polar jet running straight through this area, so expect much-colder-than-normal conditions with a barrage of storms that will ride along the northern branch of the jet stream, leaving above-normal precipitation levels. SPRING 2019 A cold and snowy start to spring will slowly transition to more seasonable temperatures. The jet stream will continue to deliver a train of low pressure systems, keeping the precipitation levels slightly above normal. SUMMER 2019 Temperatures will be at normal levels overall, yet precipitation will trend to lower-than-average levels. The sun will help erase the memories of the stormy winter and spring. FALL 2019 Temperatures will tend to fluctuate from warmer-than-normal to colder-than-normal levels throughout the season. Precipitation levels will range between normal and…

• Your passed-down-through-generations HBC point blanket could be worth thousands of dollars. Value is determined by age, size, colour, pattern rarity and condition. • HBC point blankets were used in 1928 and 1934 for Admiral Richard E. Byrd’s expeditions to the Antarctic. • In the 1930s, Col. Charles Lindbergh and his wife, Anne, wore point blanket coats on their flight to Europe by way of Greenland and Iceland. • The Beaver was founded in 1920 to celebrate HBC’s 250th anniversary. Essentially an in-house newsletter, it expanded to become a highly respected Canadian history periodical now known as Canada’s History. • The original 1670 HBC royal charter, handwritten on five pages of vellum (sheepskin) parchment with elaborate calligraphy, still exists and remains the legal, founding document of the Hudson’s Bay Company.…

After 20 years of sharpening chainsaws by hand with a file, I gave up doing it after I discovered how fast and effective electric saw chain sharpeners can be. This approach makes good sense if you cut more than recreational amounts of firewood, and not just because it’s three or four times faster than sharpening with a file. A properly machine-sharpened saw chain is very effective. It even cuts better than a new chain. Chainsaws are completely useless when they’re dull. And the difference between a dull chain and a sharp one comes down to the shape of the tiniest tip of each cutter. Getting this small but crucial detail correct is what electric sharpeners do so well. The kind of sharpeners that make sense for serious chainsaw users look…

Imagine walking across your land with a forked branch from a willow or apple tree in hand when suddenly the branch is all but whipped out of your clutches. By doodlebugging, divining or dowsing, in the tradition of our grandparents and great-grandparents, you have discovered a supply of fresh, abundant potable water—the location of your well. It has taken me a lifetime to become a dowser/diviner, but it’s something I have always been. Sound odd? Let me explain. We do not become dowsers. Inherently, we are dowsers. Many moons ago, my friend Donna came for a visit. After refilling her water bottle, she drew her pendulum out of her dress pocket, swinging it over the water first in one direction and then the other. I was intrigued. While sharing her…

I’VE BEEN STARRY EYED FOR A LONG TIME. GROWING UP IN THE COUNTRY, I TOOK DARK SKIES FOR GRANTED. I THOUGHT EVERYONE COULD SIMPLY STEP OUTSIDE AND SIT UNDER A CHANDELIER OF STARS LIKE I DID. MY MOM ROUTINELY PULLED US OUTSIDE TO OBSERVE SOME PLANETARY EVENT OR METEOR SHOWER. On January 28, 1986, I was a young witness to the space shuttle Challenger disaster. Our entire elementary school was assembled in the gym, cross legged on the floor, eyes trained on the television on wheels that was rolled around the school, classroom to classroom, as needed. When the microwave-sized TV was parked in the gymnasium, it was a big deal. Everyone expected this moment to be monumental, but not in the catastrophic way that it was. The Challenger exploded…

Really and truly, the plan for the day was just to go and get some new chickens. Six chickens, to be precise; six beautiful, homestead-raised Gold Laced Wyandottes. Sadly, in spring 2017, we had lost several of our young birds to a very hungry coyote mama who had babies to feed. So, it was time for a top-up on the chicken front. I tracked down the owners of Bedrock and Brambles farm, owned by lovely young couple who, among other things, raised beautiful chickens. Saturday was supposed to be seamless: drive north, meet Andrew and Kira, visit a genuine homestead and get chickens. With cat carriers in hand, three chihuahuas on our laps, coffee in holders, sun shining and GPS loaded, we started the day innocently enough. But this is…

I’ve never been sure why farmers have to have a truck. My brother-in-law, the cash cropper, never carries anything in his. Sure, he has an extra fuel tank and a toolbox bolted behind the cab. Sometimes he collects a pile of odds and ends through the winter until he makes it to the dump in April. But otherwise, the truck bed is empty. For a long time, I assumed guys chose trucks for rugged performance, payload, traction, economy … that sort of thing. But then a good friend of mine who is an international branding consultant explained that performance is actually a minor consideration for guys like my brother-in-law. Many years ago, my friend wrote TV commercials for Toyota, showing their trucks bouncing through fields in a cloud of dust…

As the barometer dips again, a bowl of piping-hot soup or just-harvested roasted vegetables from the oven offer quick satisfaction. Our food editors share five fun twists for root vegetables that will satiate any craving, from savoury to spicy to sweet. Or, better yet, all of the above, in one decadent sitting. CREAMY CELERIAC AND NAVY BEAN SOUP Makes 6 cups Celeriac, or celery root, isn’t the same thing as celery; it’s grown for its large grapefruit-sized root that looks rather wrinkly, knobby and dirty on the outside. Inside, however, is a lovely dense vegetable that has the full-bodied starchiness of potatoes and yet very little actual starch (only about five percent), so it’s low carb. In terms of flavour, celeriac is definitely redolent of celery, but it’s a more…

The music of singer-songwriter Ron Sexsmith has won acclaim from critics and musicians like Elvis Costello, Paul McCartney, Lucinda Williams, Leslie Feist and Michael Bublé. Born in 1964, Ron formed his first band at age 14 in St. Catharines, Ontario. Initially, he performed covers on the folk circuit, but he soon decided to focus his attention on becoming a songwriter. After moving to Toronto in 1986, Ron continued performing while working during the day as a courier, and in 1991 he released the album Grand Opera Lane, which was produced by Bob Wiseman, Blue Rodeo’s keyboard player at the time. The LP helped garner Ron’s first recording deal, with Interscope Records. A prolific songwriter, Ron released 14 albums between 1995 and 2017. He won Songwriter of the Year at the…

SEASONAL HIGHLIGHTS WINTER 2018–2019 Although the early part of December should bring some mixed-precipitation systems, the polar jet stream should keep most storm systems toward the south. There will be a couple of chances for heavy snow in late January and February, as well as a chance for a significant ice storm in late December and January. SPRING 2019 Spring conditions will likely be slow in coming (early April). Overall we can expect slightly above-normal temperatures thanks to a milder westerly flow, despite a chance for frosty conditions in early May. Precipitation levels should remain average to slightly above average. SUMMER 2019 Temperatures will be seasonable to slightly above normal. June’s cooler temperatures will offset the heat waves that will follow in July and August. There could be a drought…

SEASONAL HIGHLIGHTS WINTER 2018–2019 Temperatures will likely be closer to average than any of the preceding five winters. The coldest part of the province will likely be the most southeasterly areas. Overall, precipitation will be normal or slightly below normal, despite a few periods of heavy rain along the coast. The stormiest areas should be along the Alberta border. SPRING 2019 From north to south, spring should have seasonable temperatures and above-average precipitation. The season should be remembered for being cloudier than normal. Conditions should start to dry out by mid-May. SUMMER 2019 Temperatures will be slightly above normal thanks to a hot August. Precipitation will be normal along the coast but higher than normal inland. FALL 2019 Expect slightly below-normal temperatures despite a short-lived warming trend in mid-November. Precipitation…

No matter how you use a chainsaw, it makes sense to keep an extra chain or two on hand, sharp and ready to go. When your chain cuts poorly, just take it off and replace it with one of your pre-sharpened ones. I keep spare chains in small plastic containers in my saw box, ready to sling on as needed. It takes about two minutes for the swap. Keeping several chains in reserve also makes using an electric sharpener more efficient. Instead of setting yourself up to sharpen just one chain at a time, wait until you’ve got a few dull ones and some downtime to fill productively, then grind away.…

During the spring that I turned 80, I decided to splurge and celebrate this milestone by going on an Iberian Peninsula river cruise. Just before I returned to my home on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, I received an email from a good friend and neighbour, Vera Algoet. She knows that I don’t “do Facebook.” Vera had been checking things on her Facebook feed when she read an unexpected post that she knew involved me. It read: “About 20 years ago I bought a beautiful quilt at an antique show. I never found quite the right spot for it in my home, but kept it because it was so beautifully made, and clearly had an interesting background story. It was made for a boy named Richard Curtis Willmott who was…