I came to Newfoundland for the first time just over four years ago. I can still vividly recall taking the ferry across from Nova Scotia in the late winter, listening to the groaning sounds of the ice around the boat. Within two months of arriving I made my first trip to Bonne Bay, a remote fjord on the west coast of the island. I went to learn about the food system and fisheries in the region as part of a PhD program I was beginning at Memorial University that fall.
Maple syrup conjures up images of towering arboretums in places like Quebec or Vermont, but it’s a little known secret that the rugged and hardy maple trees of Newfoundland make darn fine maple syrup. With nothing more than a half dozen maple trees, some old salt beef containers and a handful of 25 cent metal tree taps, you’re good to go and can expect to end up with over a dozen bottles of hand made maple syrup.
Spectacular vistas, whales breaching, ice bergs floating by, and a foragers paradise. We are blessed with many wilderness areas that offer abundant edible plants. I rarely go on a hike without stopping to have a little taste of this or that. In this post, I will touch upon some of the edibles currently available in our wonderful wilderness.
Thanks to the listing from Seeds of Diversity, I was able to locate a gentleman in Newfoundland who has a great deal of experience growing a wide variety of potatoes here. Last week, I recieved by my set of samples from George, and here's what my benefactor told me about the varieties:
Red Dutch: A very dry, yellow flesh red from Holland in the 1940’s. An excellent potato. Late maturing.
Northern White: A white flesh variety, from Quebec apparently, from the early 1900’s. Very high yield. Good taste.
Doing a germination test is a great idea before planting seeds that you're not sure are still viable (able to grow). That may be the case because the seeds are old, or have been exposed to water, light, heat, insects or other conditions that aren't ideal. Germination tests give you a good idea of how resilient your seeds are, so that you can make a plan for how many of them to plant or whether it is worth planting them at all.
Check out this awesome event happening next month! I'm signing up my garden, so come on down and visit on the 20th! Email local.feast@gmail.com to sign up your own garden or just sign up for the FEASt newsletter (in order to get the map to the 'open garden day')
-Rick
FEASt (Food Education Action St. John's) is planning an 'Open Garden Day' on Sun. Sept 20th, 1 - 5pm, to be followed by a Local Food Potluck Picnic (& Autumn Equinox Celebration) at Bannerman Park, 5pm - 8pm.
Keynote Blogger: Emily Doyle, FEASt (Food Education Action St. John's)
Three years ago I became involved in the local movement towards food security. I have worked on industrial pig and chicken farms and have learned a great deal about the industrial agriculture system, now referred to as conventional agriculture. In Newfoundland, I dream of days living off the coast, farm animals in the back, bulk buying and local governance and community. In a way, that is what is being proposed by the local food movement - which makes a strong case for exploring alternatives for community enhancement and sustainability.
Years ago, people had a different type of knowledge, one that is perhaps being lost due to its current undervaluation. We live in the days of the oil economy and who knows where we would be without oil. The days of the past are remembered for their harshness. But absolutes are what we are dealing with here - this is good - that is the past. Starting locally and at odds with mainstream economics and culture is a challenge. Many of our lot work for free and try to live simply. Building capability from the ground up and moving slow we aim for small steps. A garden attached to every school and hospital, the ability to walk to work and shop, knowledge of planting, harvesting, preparing, and storing - a cyclical concept. But I'm just learning how to grow my sprouts - it's a life process.
When I was working on a farm in Birchy Bay, my closest friend was my father's partner's mother and she is a woman who remembers living with no electricity and a well in the back. When I speak to her of organic agriculture she does not understand the rave - her conventional agriculture is organic agriculture, seaweed, fish, etc... ... Ahhh, to learn from the past!!
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