Eat Your (Northern) Broccoli!
This past September, I was privileged to attend the seventh annual Circumpolar Agricultural Conference in Alta, Norway. Alta lies just below the 70°N latitude, which […]
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A Time to Be Thankful
Summer ended abruptly this year. When the first snowfall came, I was very thankful that all of our veggies had been harvested. Harvesting is backbreaking
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H2O 101
Now that we are almost at the end of June, I find my plants are growing very fast. I’ve already harvested the first of my
Stopping to Smell the Roses on the Farm
I took a walk today with three young boys. First they followed me throughout the barn while I did the chores. Asking questions and admiring
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Hot Fun in the Summertime
Due to some travelling adventures in Latin and South America, I was introduced to chili peppers in the last 10 years or so. Approaching the
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Some Like It Cold
With the snow blowing around and the temperatures dropping, most people and animals prefer to be indoors. This isn’t the case for the geese and
Rhythms Change as Seasons Change
Iam enjoying our long fall this year. It has allowed us to work on outside projects much easier than if we were knee deep in
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Reap What You Sow … Now!
The sun is shining, the snow is melting off of the roof and it is starting to feel like spring. But we are still in
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Peas Aplenty
I decided to go with the larger package. It is a variety that has done very well in the past. It was almost funny, when
Schwartz on the Job
One of my pet peeves is dogs (no pun intended). More specifically, other people’s dogs that come onto the farm. One reason dogs were domesticated
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Making a Mark(et)
From swiss chard to arctic charr, from jelly to jewelry – all this and more is on offer at the Fireweed Community Market at Shipyards
Ode to Beets
Most vegetables have their share of pests and problems. If it’s too wet, mildew will attack peas or tomatoes. An early fall frost can kill
Volunteers and Other Visitors
Volunteering is something that a lot of people do to give back to their community. Sometimes it is more than that. Some volunteers go a
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Mother Goose
They say birds of a feather flock together. When you visit our barnyard, you will see that the chickens don’t like to spend much time
Will It Germinate?
Children, when learning to garden, show this quite plainly when they dig up a seed to see if it is doing anything. Sometimes this actually
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Better Late Than Never
Spring! There is just something about it that gets the blood moving. It could be the excitement of new life pushing its way up from
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Multi-tasking Time
Springtime on the farm is one of the busiest times of the year. Harvest is busy, too. You’re racing the frosts and fall rains to
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New Life, New Challenges
Well, spring has sprung. I am seeing the evidence of this everywhere. Trees and bushes are starting to bud, grass is coming up and crocuses
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Changing Accommodations
Every spring, we start preparing for chicks. This usually means a rearrangement of how animals are housed. In the fall we usually move everything into
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Moose Meat in the Closet
I don’t keep moose frozen more than 6 months. Dry curing it for a few days, you intensify the moose flavour.
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Flipping the Calendar
In mid-July, I dream of January. For most people it’s the other way around. Cold temperatures have never really bothered me and, after a very
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Talking Turkey
While I grew up on a farm, it wasn’t until after I started farming as an adult that I realized how many phrases in our
Family Ice Fishing – Any Way You
As I walked down the chute, flanked by holes and anglers on both sides, I was struck by the diversity in the crowd. There were
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Living Self-sufficiently
There’s more to farming than feeding animals and planting seeds.” This is a quote from my husband, Al. When he said this a few weeks
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Leading by Example
Twenty five years ago Lucy and Jack Vogt left Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and came north looking for work. They found it in Dawson City. Every
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Hands-On Harvest Celebration
The Celebration of the Harvest takes place at Shipyards Park again this year on Thursday, this time with a special visit from mythologies past. Demeter
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Facing the Frost Threat
One of the most beautiful seasons in the Yukon is autumn. But with that beauty comes the threat of frost. In fact, frost is probably
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Christmas on the Farm
Dashing through the snow, in a one-horse open sleigh, o’er the fields we go, laughing all the way, ha, ha ha. Bells on bobtail ring
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Are You ready for Winter? Winterizing Yukon Style
Are you ready for winter? It’s a common phrase heard every fall all over the place. What does it take to be ready? Vehicles and
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Cool Veggies
Most people associate fresh vegetables with summer, especially in the Yukon. So when my cousin came for a visit near the end of October, she
A Little Horse Sense
Afew people have asked about horses, and with the white fluffy stuff sticking to the ground in the last week or so, maybe this is
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Like a Moving Meditation
There’s a saying Fay Branigan thinks everyone should know: “Feed your body, nourish your brain and soothe your soul through gardening.” For the past two
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Ice-out Lake Trout
The three most targeted fish species in the Yukon are lake trout, Arctic grayling and pike, and are sought after in that order.
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Shrooming in Telluride
Explore the adventure of mushroom picking with Chris Withers in Telluride. Find out about chanterelles and shrimp rusula mushrooms.
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Considering Food Security
Well, it’s harvest time again. Whether you’re a gardener, hunter, berry picker or farmer, the freezer starts to fill up for us all. Not so
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The Juggling Act
Sometimes farming takes on aspects of a circus act more than anything. In early spring, you throw one ball up in the air and order
Changing Quarters
I always enjoy watching the interplay of one species with another. So when Allan decided it was time for the piglets to start using an
Ordering a Garden
January is seed ordering month for me. It usually involves sitting down with two or three of my favourite seed catalogues, my garden journal and
Moving Sienna
With the wind blowing and the temperature almost at zero as I write, it doesn’t seem like a typical Yukon winter at all. But I
Bloom to Bloom
On July 30 and 31, Dawson City will be visited by two judges, scrutinizing the town in the Communities in Bloom (CiB) program, and ranking
Google Gardeners
I made my first real gardening faux pas this week. I cut down the rhubarb. All of it. Sawing through the base of the stalks
Feeding Your Micro-herd
Hi! This is your micro-herd talking. You didn’t think you were keeping livestock, and we can understand that. We are really really small. But signs
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Plucking Our Christmas Dinner
Goose is not an everyday kind of food. Some find it too greasy to eat, but others love it because of the oils. I like
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Mush Rush 101
The mossy floor of old growth forest is soft and damp. I breathe the air; warm and thick. My exhalation of carbon dioxide draws mosquitoes
When it Comes, to Weeding, Err on the Side of Caution
I keep telling myself, it is still early. Because of the warm weather that we have been having it feels like the middle of summer.
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Beautiful Reasons to Wait for Spring
The gardening season is rapidly coming to an end, but if you still have an urge to plant something and the snow hasn’t reached your
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This Waiter Wears Mitts and Headlamp
Mitts? Check. Headlamp? Check. Everything else? Check. I step outside. The temperature isn’t too cold, warmer than previous years but not outrageously so. I can
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Walking Tall Through the Woods
They are two of my greatest passions. The first is going for long walks in the woods behind our house. The second is walking on
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