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Should pot production be allowed on farmland?
It’s a plant, but should marijuana be grown on farmland? Local municipalities are responding to that question in different ways with a series of bylaws aimed at preventing or allowing medical marijuana...
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Farm photo of the week (Nov. 10, 2013) – Sea of cranberries
The B.C. cranberry harvest comprises about 12 per cent of the North American crop, according to the BC Cranberry Marketing Commission. About 80 farm families cultivate 6,500 acres, which yielded more...
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News – Ag minister under fire in ALC process
If you’re following the discussion over a leaked cabinet document that proposed massive changes to the Agricultural Land Commission, you’re going to want to read the next chapter. CP is reporting B.C....
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Petition –“Hands off” B.C.’s ALC
An IntegrityBC petition asking the provincial government to back away from plans to change the Agricultural Land Commission has almost 1,900 signatures this morning. The group is also demanding Ag...
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News – Non-browning apples could be the first of many GMO fruits from...
The Okanagan non-browning apple has been in headlines this week, with opponents beginning a 32-city campaign to make B.C. “GE free,” while the United States moves one step closer to approving the...
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What’s in season now? (November)
If you’re trying to eat more local food, this availability chart from BCfresh is one of the best references out there. In November, it’s pretty easy to find B.C.-grown beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbages...
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Caught red handed – Pickled beets recipe
It’s windy and rainy, and instead of working, I wish I was pickling beets. I know, that sounds a little odd. I blame a friend who recently posted her excitement about pickling beets on Facebook. I must...
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Where can I find B.C. beets?
If you want to buy local, B.C.-grown beets, options abound! Most of the root vegetables available in B.C. grocery stores this month are local – just look for the “Product of British Columbia” or...
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Want to farm? Small-lot farming workshop comes to Langley
This is one of those assignments that will feel more like leisure than work. I’m looking forward to attending the Langley Sustainable Agriculture Foundation’s first community-based workshop on...
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Farm photo of the week (Nov. 17, 2013) – B.C. kiwi harvest
This week’s farm photo is of the kiwi harvest at George Petkov’s kiwi vineyard in Abbotsford. Unlike most of B.C.’s fruit and vegetable crops, which were harvested under unseasonably sunny October...
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Feature – Kiwi fruit in the Fraser Valley
Some said it wasn’t possible. Kiwi fruit? Not in B.C. But Macedonian immigrant George Petkov is proving them wrong, with an eight-acre Abbotsford farm that produced 45,000 kilograms this year. It’s...
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News – Marijuana: Farm product or pharmaceutical?
As new federal government regulations on medical pot production loom, many farmers are wondering if marijuana will soon be a common crop on ALR land. Several municipalities – Chilliwack and Langley...
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News –“Pat Pimm has united us all”
Great story in the Globe and Mail today about the continuing fallout from a leaked cabinet document proposing a reduction of ALC powers, tabled by none other than B.C. agriculture minister Pat Pimm. In...
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Field to table – Cauliflower cheese soup recipe
I was following this guy through part of Abbotsford yesterday and you could say it inspired me. Cauliflower soup is on the menu tonight! (And no, my cauliflower did not come from the roadside, although...
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News – Ag announcement this morning
A major government agriculture announcement is planned for this morning. The embattled B.C. ag minister isn’t scheduled to speak (although the news release comes from the provincial agriculture...
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News – Agrifoods export program gets $4.3 million boost
B.C. farmers are set to benefit from a $4.3 million agrifoods export program announced this morning on Granville Island. The B.C. Agrifoods Export Program will provide matching funds to support...
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TOP 5 Christmas tree farms in the Fraser Valley
The hunt for the perfect Christmas tree is a tradition for many. To compete with cheap U.S. imports, many local Christmas tree farms now emphasize the tree-hunting experience, adding festive bells and...
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Feature – Imports chop B.C. Christmas-tree profits
(A version of this feature was originally published in The Province in Dec. 2010. I’ve reposted it here to better explain the complexity of B.C. Christmas tree farming. For a list of the TOP 5...
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Farm photo of the week (Nov. 24, 2013) – Blueberry fields forever
I’ve often thought blueberry bushes would make great landscape shrubs because they have such wonderful colour in fall and winter. But B.C.’s blueberry farms are more than pretty, they’re also...
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Feature – Take a tour of a medical marijuana grow-op
I was invited to visit a cutting-edge medical marijuana facility in Maple Ridge last week and gladly accepted the offer. Here is a story on what I saw. Maple Ridge is preparing a bylaw to allow medical...
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