Get Me To The Market!

Have you noticed? Local country markets are sprouting up just about everywhere. More and more people are aware now of the the many benefits locally produced produce and baking offer. Here in Nolalu the local local market went into its second year, with even more vendors than before. It found itself a new place, too, on the Nolalu Community Centre's parking lot, well visible and easy to find, every Friday from 4:00 - 7:00 pm.

So next time you're heading out to the lake or going for a drive in the country, stop by at the Nolalu Country Market for delectable pies, fresh veggies, baking, plants, even some arts and crafts. You'll get to meet the folks who grew/baked/made it all themselves, you know it's as fresh as it can possibly be, and you're supporting the local economy. Oh, and did I mention it's healthier and tastes noticeably better, too?

Buying local is a big part of a greener life style. Everyone benefits of a strong and healthy local community, it's a win-win situation for everyone. And as far as shopping experiences go, buying at a local market sure beats going to any super market, any time.

You'll find the Nolalu Country Market every Friday afternoon from 4:00 - 7:00, until October 1st. And if you're not in this area, go shop at any of the many other local country markets! Enjoy!

(for the latest info, visit the market's Facebook HERE.)

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...

Nolalu's Very Own Country Market

Noticed how Farmers Markets and Country Markets just seem to pop up all around us? Same for the small rural community of Nolalu: as of yesterday we now have our very own Country Market, thanks to Leo Hunnako and Jacomyn Gerbrandy who made it happen!

You'll find it every Friday from 4:00 till 8:00 pm at the intersection of Hwy 588 and 590 at St. Urho's parking lot (a variety & hardware store, restaurant, bar, gas station and golf course all in one).

This first edition had 6 vendors selling their wares from the back of their trucks and vans, from plants and vegetables to handmade soap and artwork - and much more. More vendors will join as the growing season progresses.

Local markets selling locally grown food and handmade items are a wonderful addition to  any community. You know you're getting excellent value for your money and whom you're getting it from (not some anonymous multinational but your hardworking neighbour), the money spent stays in the community, you don't have to travel all the way into town (smaller carbon footprint) and it's just plain fun to hang out and chat for a bit. And should you feel like something to eat or drink, Jacob's Cafe is only a few steps away.

Local markets are also a significant step on the way towards food security. Food prices are rising at the same pace as the steadily rising price of gas (oil). Here in our part of the province most of our food gets trucked in from enormous distances, making that food more and more expensive - not to mention what it does to the quality of the food and the carbon footprint involved. Country markets can be an answer to this issue.

Hope to see you some Friday afternoon at the Nolalu Country Market. You can't miss it, just look for the signs!

Must Be Spring

This weekend we "sprung forward" to Daylight Saving Time, and we had the Seed Swap event in the Gillies Community Centre. All sure signs that spring will be soon upon us. That, and the fact it was a steamy 13C.

The Seed Swap is a wonderful local initiative, bringing people together to share, well, seeds for their gardens. Healthy, wholesome, pesticide- and genetic manipulation-free seeds. This local event has expanded beyond seeds, and now includes composters, local beekeepers, water awareness, planting & growing tips and much more - anything related to feeding a small community in an environmentally sustainable way without "big agro".

We went home with a good collection of new seeds, lots of new ideas & inspiration - and something unexpected: a brand-new cold frame, donated to us!

A cold frame, you may well ask, what the bleep is that? It's a glass-covered frame used to protect plants and seedlings from frost as well as for hardening off seedlings before they go into the ground. Very low-tech and very effective.

Our spiffy cold frame before going outside to help germinate veggies

This particular cold frame was designed and made by Jessie Pineault, a grade ll student at ESC de la Verendry in Thunder Bay. He did a great job on it, using left-over acryllic sheets used for window insulation.

So thanks to Jessie, we'll now be able to get a head start on our veggies, grown from organic seed-swap seeds!
Life can be good. Must be spring...

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.

Storing Our Daily Food

Summer (or what passed for it) is winding down; there’s a crispness in the air, the first local frost warnings have been issued and regional Fall Fairs are popping up around us. It’s also that time of year when it’s hard to keep up with all that our garden is producing: potatoes, carrots, beets, chard, Brussels sprouts, cauliflowers, rutabagas, onions, cabbages... you name it.

Of course there’s no way we can eat all this bounty as it suddenly becomes available, it’s just too darn much. We’ll have to find a way to store it for the winter, but the fridge is already full… Sure, we’ll cook & freeze some of it, but not everything can be stored this way. Besides, the freezer is getting full, too.

Many homesteads all over rural Canada had (have) a root cellar or cold storage room. They’re small rooms that can be kept at just above freezing by controlled venting to the outside, while warmth from the house or thick earth berms prevent it from getting too cold. No power required…
Since our straw bale insulated garage usually doesn’t get colder than around –6C in even the coldest of winter, we figured it would be a good place to build our own cold storage room there. So we built one, well-insulated to keep the warmth in (sorry, no straw bales this time – just left-over fiber glass batts). A 60 Watt light bulb can be switched on for some additional heat in case the temperature dips too low.

Our cold room is pretty much done now, awaiting its shelving. It’s a bit of an experiment, we’ll have to see how it goes. But if it works, we’ll be eating the fruit (okay: veggies) of our labour until spring!

Our Daily Food

To continue this blog’s food-themed focus: today we had our first full home-grown organic supper! Beets, chard, lettuce, carrots, potatoes, zucchini… Sure, we’ve been eating plenty of veggies from our garden for weeks now (despite this crappy summer), but this time everything on our plate came from there! No pesticides, nothing genetically altered, no chemical fertilizers – just Mother Earth doing her thing (okay, with lots of help from Jacomyn).

Not only is this food very healthy and extremely flavourful, there’s also something intensely satisfying about growing and eating your own food. We’ve become so alienated from our food sources, we often don’t know where it comes from, who grew it and how it was grown. The food and fertilizing industries are colossal entities, only designed to make profits for their share holders – at any cost.

We’re lucky here in Nolalu where we have plenty of space and good enough soil to grow our own. Friends and neighbours around us provide us with organic eggs, chicken meat, beef, pork and even more veggies & fruit than we can ever dream of growing ourselves.
All we need now is a way to store all this yummy goodness for when winter comes…

A Greenhouse For –40C Winters…?

Our North Ontario winters are crazy long & cold. If you want to do any serious vegetable gardening, you’ll need some sort of greenhouse to beat the short growing season – or it will beat you. Add to this free trade and low oil prices, and it’s no wonder that most of our produce here is trucked in from vast distances, losing much of its freshness and nutrients in the process.

Some people are getting a little nervous about that. For with oil prices steadily climbing, so has the price of that trucked-in produce. And with energy and environmental crises breathing down our neck, they are beginning to wonder what may happen if those crises will make it impossible to get our food here. How will we feed ourselves then?

Enter Nolalu resident Leo Hunnako. Leo’s got a Big Idea: to build a greenhouse for North Ontario’s mind-numbing cold winters. Yep: winters. You know, our long plug-your-car-in, square-tire winters. That’s when Leo’s greenhouse will be happily producing fresh organic veggies. Solar powered, almost all year round. Mind you, this is not your (grand) daddy’s greenhouse. This one’s super-insulated and sheltered from the biting winds. Lots of thermal mass will retain the sun’s warmth that pours in during our short but sunny winter days. Solar hot water collectors will store even more solar heat that gets piped through a sand-filled wall and underneath the veggie beds. Insulated double pane windows will be covered up with more insulation material at night to keep the warmth in.

It’s scheduled to be operational by early October, the first of its kind. The idea is that with Leo’s help (and after extensive testing) many more will follow. We can’t wait to see how it will perform.
Our survival may depend on it.
Leo Hunnako can be reached at leoh @ tbaytel.net (first remove the spaces in the email address - spam protection)