Singing' in the Rain (Barrel?)

Never thought I'd say this, but we love our rain barrels. We picked them up in Thunder Bay at Eco Superior a few weeks ago: two sturdy 220-litre barrels. We paid $60.00 each for them, but if you're a  Thunder Bay resident you get 'em even cheaper if you bring your water bill with you.

Because that's the whole idea behind these rain barrels: to save on tap water when watering your garden, and use free rain water instead. And with the summer heating up it's safe to say our veggie garden is very happy with them. Without this free, clean water our veggies wouldn't be looking as healthy as they do now.

And in cities, rain barrels also help reduce the load on storm sewers and waste water treatment facilities.

The other very cool thing about these barrel is they're a recycled product. In a previous life they were used to store and transport Greek olives. They were slated to go to the landfill, destined to become part of the growing garbage problem our society is experiencing.

Well, not if it's up to the non-profit organization Rainbarrel.ca! They obtained tens of thousands of barrels and retrofitted them with a spigot at the bottom, a 6" hole and a filter basket at the top and a simple yet effective overflow hose which also doubles as a connector in case you're hooking up multiple barrels (as we will).

These recycled barrels are environmentally friendly (in several ways), durable, cost-effective, and people all over Canada just love 'em. Oh, and did  mention they'll save you money in the long run? So give Eco Superior a call (at 624-2140) to arrange a time to pick one up. Or more than one!

The Babees Are Safe

The last 4 weeks have seen little blog action, but we're back again! Not that there was nothing to blog about, but life has just been too darn busy for any weekly updates; and being on an intensive 2-week film shoot followed by a week out of town didn't help much, either.

Still, much has happened and is happening. We'll be offering our "Intro to Solar Energy" and "Living off the Grid" evening classes through Confederation College this fall again, dates will be posted shortly. We're also mulling a full-day "Advanced Wind Power" workshop, and will announce more as soon we have made a final decision.

Our House Tours also prove to be very popular, with a steady stream of folks visiting our place. Word on our Eco B&B is getting around, pulling more and more guests, all of them lovely people we thoroughly enjoy having.

In the mean time, our previous blog about the bee hives that beekeeper Tom placed on our property drew a lot of response, many expressing concerns about the fact that there was nothing in place to scare the bears off. Of course they were correct in this, and of course Tom was aware of this issue as well. So 3 weeks ago he installed an electric fence around the hives, specifically designed to keep bears at bay.

So call us solar geeks, but what we like about it it's a solar-powered electric fence; and I can tell you first hand that it works. In case you're wondering why the hives are sitting on those cement blocks, that's to keep them out of reach of another predator: skunks, of all animals. Skunks love burrowing into those hives with their long sharp claws and aren't deterred by any stinging.

So far we've had a pretty good, almost average summer, making happy bees (and people). Our fields are filled nectar-filled wildflowers and clover is growing abundantly; I can't think of any better excuse to go easy on cutting the grass...

Our New Babees

It's nice to have a lot of land that hasn't been sprayed for decades. Especially if you're a beekeeper and are looking for just that to place your bee hives.

Tom is just such a beekeeper who placed 2 hives not too far from our house today. It's a great spot with lots of southern exposure, mature trees providing shelter from the elements, and surrounded by lots of clover and wild flowers that the bees are so fond of. More hives may follow if this works out as hoped.

Northwestern Ontario holds a unique position in the Western hemisphere; it's the last remaining enclave that is free of bee mites and other diseases that currently kill honey bee colonies on a massive scale pretty much everywhere else. Mono cultures, widespread use of pesticides and large-scale intensive bee keeping practices are just a few of the reasons for it.

So far our bee-healthy pocket has been able to keep it that way, thanks mostly to the ever-vigilant regional beekeeper's association and its inspectors. Bees are an essential component in this fragile house of cards called the environment. No bees means not only no honey, but also no pollination of flowers, trees, vegetables, fruits. You know, the stuff we humans need to live.

We're looking forward to see how these colonies will do, the first official honey bee population on our property. Of course it's not an entirely selfless act, as I'm sure there is some great honey in it for us - from our own wild flowers!
Here's hopin' our resident bear won't find out about it...

The Sweet Smell of... Hay?

For about a week the Nolalu Eco Centre could have passed for a working farm: around us cutters, balers and tractors were very busy clearing our fields of hay. With the poor summer we’d been having, many farmers didn’t have enough warm & sunny days to get their hay in on time.

Moe Thiboutot from Mile Hills Farms was one of them, until he saw our fields. And with the beautiful fall weather we’re experiencing, he didn’t wait long to get his equipment over and get hayin'. Pretty soon the air was filled with the intoxicating smell (and dust) of freshly harvested hay.

Our fields now look like they must have when this property was still a mixed farm. The original settlers who arrived here over a century ago cleared the dense forest of trees, an incredible job considering they only had a horse (two, if they were lucky), their own two hands and some very basic equipment.

It was sad to see the fields slowly growing back in, so we were more than happy to help Moe out. His cattle will have enough to eat this winter; and as things go around here, Moe will barter us something in return.