August Farm Update & Stories

Agriculture, Staff, Stories

From your farmer, Clémence.

August has arrived! We are so impressed by how quickly the summer is unfolding. We welcome August to the Sennevile farm with a bittersweet feeling. It seems like just yesterday we were putting our greenhouse up. July was a very busy month, especially the last two weeks as we finished the last wave of seedlings and planting of storage crops.

We still have a few important weeding projects to complete, which are an important part of the end of the season. The weeds don’t necessarily affect the growth of this year’s crop, as most crops are well established by now. We weed at this point in the season to reduce the amount of weeds in following years.

Farm Olympics

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What do farmers do for fun on the weekend? They play in the Farmers Olympics held annually at Tournesol Farm in Les Cèdres. This is a photo of everyone’s favourite event: Tractor pull, organic farmer style, where the farmers pull a cultivating tractor in neutral over 50 m.

Meet our farm interns

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Justine Spits

After spending a few years in the Maritimes working on her PhD in geography, Justine arrived in Montreal and fell in love with Santropol Roulant. She became an engaged volunteer and also one of our organic basket members. Justine had spent much time volunteering on different farms during her numerous bike tours around Ontario and the Maritimes and was seeking a more in-depth farm experience. The Roulant farm was a perfect combination of what she loves about the organisation and her desire to farm.

Justine hopes to bring farming skills to build a strong resilient homestead either back home in Europe or in rural Quebec. As the season unfolds, she realizes that there is very little else in the world she would rather do but farm! It’s always heartwarming to hear.

Justine’s favourite vegetable is Butternut Squash and, with patience, she will be rewarded in the fall months.

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Samuel Bergeron

Sam arrived late this the spring with great enthusiasm. He is a graduate of the Farm technology program in Victoriaville, a unique program that trains young entrepreneurs in organic vegetable production. Graduates of the program have spent the last three years interning on different farms and learning from teachers who have significantly contributed to the organic agriculture movement in Quebec.

Sam has found fertile ground at the Roulant where he can put into practice his last few years of the program. He has an eye for greenhouse pests and is always on the look-out. Most importantly, he grasps the importance of integrated and global management of an organic farm. He has grand ideas for future projects and we are excited to see how those will develop!

Sam is the farm joker. You can count on him to make the team laugh and play tricks on just about everybody who comes to the farm. His favorite vegetable is the white turnip and will gladly share his numerous recipes with you!

Meet all of our lovely team on the Staff page.

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