By Owner and Farmer, Tam Andersen The wrens chirped happily, perched amongst the branches of the Mayday tree next to our kitchen window as I mused over my cup of coffee today. The wrens were picking Mayday berries for breakfast. Their Why. I was asked the question the other day. Why? Why do I farm? It’s been 29 years since …
Farmer Tam’s Field Report The wind picks up this afternoon, bringing life-giving rain! I dug my raincoat out of the closet, and strolled through the garden this morning humming…. Hallelujah, hallelujah …. as, I’m sure all arugula, the beans in the garden, the trees, and even the bees are humming today. Yes, even the bees were thirsty! There were about …
How’s the Farm Doing? My brother Bill stopped out a couple of weekends ago for my Mum’s 81st birthday party. It had been a while since I had seen him. He’s my favorite brother. Actually, he’s my only brother. He is gentle and thoughtful… a truly generous man who approaches his work as art. He’s the genius builder behind the …
Spring is here! With the last round of snow melted away, the warmth of the sun is working wonders. The volunteer self-seeded spinach is ready to pick! The fall seeded lettuce is up. The winter onions are bursting to life. As are the weeds. There’s lots of moisture in the earth, and warm weather ahead, with a sunny week forecast. …
There’s nothing else quite like it in Alberta: a farm using direct marketing, education and tourism to be sustainable beyond the growing season. The owner of Prairie Gardens and Adventure Farm is an entrepreneur who calls herself “director of fun.” Lesley MacDonald has the story of this month’s Woman of Vision.
The Winter Lament… The fields are empty now at Prairie Gardens except for two perfectly straight, yet strangely fluffy, rows of white mysterious mounds. It’s the Kale, covered by a blanket of snow! Otherwise, the fall fields are done, abandoned, save for a flock of wild partridge, a coyote, the snowy white weasel that I chanced a glimpse of – …
At Prairie Gardens we are always excited to offer our gourmet Field to Fork dinners. We recently came across an article on the Air Canada enRoute website for Canada’s best new restaurants. Coming in at Number 4 were Edmonton’s Range Road Dinners, featuring Chek Blair Lebsack!
Meet the Pumpkins if you dare Midnight is your fuzzy black cat and she’s out past curfew again. You sigh on the porch swing and muster yourself to go find her. You close your eyes for just a moment before tiptoeing into the spooky pumpkin patch – where Midnight likes to hide. At first you don’t see them under the …
Pico de Gallo is a condiment (authentic Mexican salsa) that is made with fresh chopped cilantro, tomatoes, onions and chilies. It can be used just like a salsa for dipping tortilla chips, as a side dish or a condiment. One advantage that it has over salsas is that there is less liquid and that makes it a perfect filling for …
