Suzanne’s Hot Stuff Delivers Heat and Flavour

Suzanne Schmidt is confident, straight-forward, and also a great cook.  Her flavours are rooted in  her Guyanese background and all include heat, but her products deliver more than that burning sensation.  Her products are carefully crafted to showcase flavour, featuring sweet mango, lemon and pineapple, savoury garlic and onions and… Continue reading

Victory Garden Supply Opens in Fraserville

  The traditional red brick centre-hall plan home in Fraserville is the new home of Victory Garden Supply.  The company itself is not new- it has been operating as a wholesaler in Peterborough, servicing the commercial horticultural industry since 2012.  The beginnings were humble.   Operating out of a mini-van, owner… Continue reading

Local Farmers Donate Hay to Counterparts in Need

With some local farmers harvesting a fourth crop of hay, it’s safe to say that hay is in abundance in our neighbourhood.  Not so in Northern Ontario, or out west. Extreme drought and heat conditions have left livestock farmers contemplating how to shrink their herds given the lack of feed… Continue reading

Drew McFadden’s Unique Chick Fostering Business

Two years ago, thirteen-year-old Drew McFadden returned from the Millbrook Fair with two chickens. The chicken coop in the yard near his house had not been occupied for decades, but he quickly converted it to a comfortable living space for his new charges.  The renovations also took into consideration Drew’s… Continue reading

Gypsy Moth Infestation Prevention: Round Two

  This has been a bad year for the Gypsy moth.  While we usually see outbreaks of this pest every seven to ten years, 2021 will be the second year in a row of a severe infestation in many parts of Ontario. At the larvae stage, the creatures chew holes… Continue reading

Small Growers Satisfy Appetite for Local Food

Pictured is Harmony Evans, of Wild Ginger Farms, with her constant companion, Meekin, in her half-acre plot on the edge of town. She is one of my young farmers including Amanda Rice, of Spring Bloom Orchards, Cody and Kelsey Armstrong, Eban Hancock, and Merridey Senior, of Puddleduck Farm, who are… Continue reading

Supporting Local Artisans and Craftspeople

As you can imagine, when you buy from big retailers, already wealthy shareholders and overpaid executives barely even notice. It is a very different experience for local artisans, a customer really does count and is cause for celebration because you are truly making a difference in real people’s lives. Not only are… Continue reading

Nourishing the Body and Soul

Spring Bloom Orchard is a new family farm operation launched in the fall of 2019 by Amanda Rice and her father on Carmel Line in the fall of 2019. As the name suggests, the operation produces annual and perennial flowers to produce cut flower bouquets throughout the season, as well… Continue reading