For those of you who haven't heard it, this is typically when we gather around and Mike tells his infamous 'Bean Story'. It is a core story to the life of the farm because it really has dictated who we are, why we are at 436 River Road and the direction we are going.
12 years ago now, I was working in my then 20' x 50' garden plot just alongside Earl Armstrong. Thoughts of spending my days in the field growing vegetables had started to take hold and I had begun to make some serious inquiries. So it was in that state of mind when my eldest, Timothy, showed up for a visit. He was 17 at the time and just wanted to check in on Dad to see what he was upto. Being gracious, I offered that he pick a bean or two to enjoy.
Now, Timothy isn't dumb. He is a currently a Critical Care Flight Medic. But up to that moment, our lives had never involved me showing him how food grows. So I had to show him what a bean plant looked like....how to pick the bean from the plant..
...and then he just sort of stared at it, as he held it between his thumb and fingers..
"You know you can eat it" I said to him, half bemused.
He looked at me with a certain disbelief. "Really?"
"Yup. Go ahead"
So then with a look that said, 'Ok Dad, I am trusting you with this one' he tentatively took the absolute smallest nibble possible. As soon as he did his face lit up in recognition.
"DAD!" He exclaimed, "It is a bean!"
Oh my heavens....how far we have come from our food source. If it isn't in a wrapper or plastic something or nother...then we don't believe it is real.
So it was in that moment that I made a resolve to build a farm that would help people connect with how their food is grown. This is why we have gardeners, this is why we are on 436 River Road and this is why we believe in the Community Shared Agricultural (CSA) model.
Now admittedly, this has all become quite a bit more than I envisioned in that moment with Timothy. And perhaps that is a good thing...lol.
Today, we are participating in the Open Farm Tour that was created by our Landlord, the National Capital Commission. It is the last day of summer....which makes tomorrow the first day of fall. People will be getting on a farm wagon for the very first time in their life and seeing how vegetables grow.
So many people...so many years now. This week, not only the NCC farm tour, but we are also partnering with the Ottawa Police Association, who along with CHEZ 106.1 are donating 180 shares of vegetables that they bought from us, to families in need as directed by the Boys & Girls Club.
All because of a boy and a bean :-)
Today also marks the opening of our 2024 season. For those of you who are signed up there will be an autorenew again this year at the end of October. That will be explained in an email as it is something you can opt in or out of. IF you have truly enjoyed the season please seriously consider telling people about us. Our Early Bird sale begins today through to Saturday, October 7th. Sign up will receive a nice bag of veggies that we select to give them a taste and those of you made a refferal will get a $25 'refer a friend' credit. We have also started the Community Share Option for next year and you can learn more about that on our farm website which is at www.mikesgardenharvest.com.
Much more than beans to talk about. Peppers, both sweet and hot are on the horizon. We will have a ton! The Butternut squash has been cut and is curing in the field. Spaghetti Squash and Yukon Gold potatoes are in the mix this week. Woot! A busy, busy day and it is going to be a beauty!
Enjoy :-)
~Michael
