Talbotville Berry Farm

Gerry 1 - Mother Nature 0

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 16 May 2016 15:33:00 +0000

Mother Nature can be a bit of a #%&!*! She dropped the temperatures last night and made it freeze. But she was no match for my husband...he pulled an all nighter and saved our Strawberries. All the irrigation pipes were out in the field with their frost nozzles on and the pump was primed! It wasn't Gerry's first all nighter and it won't be his last. He turned the water on around 11pm and let her fly. Once he got her running he stayed up to make sure the sprinklers didn't have any issues and also to keep the pump fueled up. I took some pictures this morning to show you what the plants look like after a night of irrigating during a frost. Click here for more information on how irrigating helps to protect from the frost.

We Are Open For The Season!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 15 May 2016 20:26:00 +0000

There is always so much excitement in the Spring! You never know what Mother Nature is going to do. We always hope for good planting and growing conditions. So we opened on May 6th and I have to say it's been sooooooo wonderful to see all of our customers. It's nice to see familiar smiling faces and new ones too. Like old friends we get to catch up with each other, find out how and where everyone spent their winter, and give and get some heartfelt hugs as well;) Everyone has been asking about our new market and when it's

going to be built. We have let everyone know that we have come to a resolution with the MTO (Ministry of Tranportation), and that we are look forward to share the experience of the build with our customers when they come in. We are excited and want to get going on this project and so does our community.

Look up! Waaaay Up! I took this picture out at our growers' farm when I picked up our first load of asparagus.

If you want to eat local all you need to do is stop into our market.

Sometimes you just want a little sweet treat. These Chocolate Buttertarts will surely do the trick!

It won't be long before our Strawberries are ready. On my nightly farm tour I took this picture of our Strawberries in blossom. I just love this picture soooooooo much I think I'm going to get it blown up and framed.

This year we brought Gunn's Hill Artisan Cheese into our market. Their Brie is perfect to pair with our Red Pepper Jelly.

I Love My Farmer

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 15:29:00 +0000

We love this time of year, when we can finally get outside! We cover our strawberries for the winter with straw, once we start seeing new growth on our plants in the spring we take the straw off. Check out Gerry on his tractor out in the strawberry field. I've already started thinking of all the great things you can make with strawberries. We are going to be planting more June bearing strawberries in about a month or so. We love the flavour and they are great for people who like to come out to the farm and pick their own. We do have a field with the Ever Bearing strawberries but we don't have pick your own in that field. Although we do grow strawberries here on our farm we also support other local growers to meet the demand in our market.

Have you Got Your CSA Yet?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 24 Apr 2016 21:43:00 +0000

You don't want to miss out on $100.00 in free food and programs do you? Shop now Find Out How To Get $100! The deadline is April 30th! The awesome thing is that our cards NEVER expire! Give someone you love the gift of local goodness OR just give it to yourself;)

New Market Update

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 16 Apr 2016 14:45:00 +0000

This is a hard post to make, but, we want to be transparent, we want to keep you informed. We have run into some red tape. Sometimes, even with the most carefully laid out plans, this can happen:( Please know that we are working to resolve this situation as fast as we can. We are working together with some really awesome people to come up with a solution.

We started working on this last summer. The plan was to open on Mother's Day weekend in our new market. We have put so much time and planning into this project. The Ground Breaking Ceremony we had at the end of January was so much fun and the out pouring of local support for our project from our customers, our community, and the media was heartfelt and left us humbled. We believed that we would be breaking ground soon after. The Red Tape we have run into is something totally out of our control.

Although this may be kind of an uphill battle, we stand strong and will put our heads down and push through. I guess as a Farmer you always need a back up plan. I know that everything happens for a reason and that there is always a silver lining. I'm just not sure what it is yet...

We will open in our original market in May and when our new market is completed we will transition into it. We will continue to offer you the highest quality, outstanding value and exceptional service.

Thank you for your continued support

Asparagus

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 01 Apr 2016 15:41:00 +0000

I'm always on the hunt for new and delicious recipes. I loooooovvvvvveeeeee Asparagus! At the beginning of each season I tell myself that I am going to eat Asparagus every day that it is in season. (This Never Happens) If you didn't already know - Asparagus is good for you!

Click here Asparagus Recipes or here Talbotville Berry Farm Pinterest Asparagus Recipes if you are looking for some tasty Asparagus recipes to get you through the upcoming season or to have just in case you are going to visit a friend and want to show up like a Rockstar;)

Almost Time To Take The Straw Off

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 19 Mar 2016 21:45:00 +0000

It's getting to be the time of year when we just can't wait to get out there. We want to start working the land and planting all of the seeds we bought for the upcoming season. We are full of hope and anticipation of things to come. This morning was absolutely beautiful, the sun was shining so bright and you could almost get away without a coat if you were just going out to the barn. But that's not where I was going! I was on my way to check out our strawberries;) I guess I can't wait for spring! I just threw on some flip flops, I didn't care! Not gonna lie, it was a little muddy, but I just wanted to get out there. Check out what I found! Our Strawberries are starting to green up, I am going to have to send Gerry and the boys out to the field to take the straw off. This is not something we want to rush as it is only March and who says we can't still have some cold nights...the plants look good though...always a Farm Girl and proud of it;)

It's That Time Of Year!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 15 Mar 2016 14:27:00 +0000

It's that time of year where we start looking for the people that make our market great. Our new market is in the process of being built, the original plan was to open in May but we've had some delays. We will likely open the new market in June (you can't rush a good thing). Another thing you can't rush is finding the right people to ensure your customers have a great experience every time they visit. How do you do this? You do this by finding people that like other people, people that are approachable, people with a good attitude. If you are lucky enough to find people like this you can teach them anything, they want to learn, they want to do a good job:) I don't think these traits are something you can teach someone, you either have it or you don't. In our business our staff is important because they are the first people our customers interact with when they come to our farm. That can immediately translate into a great or a not so great experience. And we want everyone to have a great one. We want our customers to walk out of our market feeling that they are welcome here (it's all about relationships)and that they got the highest quality produce and goods, outstanding value and exceptional service. Our staff represent us and our business and that's why you can't rush a good thing!

Oh, and in case you are wondering we will open in May in our original market and then transition into our new market in June.

Going to market - St.Thomas Times Journal

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 07 Mar 2016 22:11:00 +0000

Going to market: A family business since 1969, Talbotville Berry Farms is undergoing a growth spurt.

Talbotville Berry Farm growing from the roots up - The Weekly News

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 07 Mar 2016 21:50:00 +0000

Talbotville Berry Farm growing from the roots up: Showing off an antique shovel, complete with shiny silver ribbons, Shirley Simpson’s smile stretched from ear to ear.

Our Ground Breaking Ceremony January 28, 2016

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 07 Mar 2016 21:38:00 +0000

This is the shovel my Dad used.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 22:30:00 +0000

Today was a very important day for us. Today we had our Ground Breaking Ceremony for our new market. Today we were humbled by the show of support from our community partners.

I can hardly believe that it's happening. My Dad built our current market, he laid the cinder blocks one by one, he had a dream. We are keeping his dream (and my Mom's) alive. We are moving forward with the building of our new market, they would be proud.

Instead of using all new shovels for our Ground Breaking Ceremony, I pulled a couple of old ones out of the barn. One of them was my Dad's. He was here with us today, and so was my Mom.

#won'tbelongnow

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 23 Jan 2016 22:31:00 +0000

Last year we made a decision to build a new market. And we've been busy planning ever since. Who knew so much was involved? This is the biggest project we've ever worked on. Lots of paperwork and lots of jumping through hoops. But it has been all worth it!

On January 10th we had a Site Meeting with DHP Contracting and the Engineers. Having Dave Sparenburg of DHP build our new market was a no brainer. A long long time ago Dave used to work here, yep he used to work out in the fields here with me! When you've know someone for a long time, you know how they roll, you know weather or not you would do business with them, you know weather they have have integrity or not.

I was sooooo excited and could hardly wait for this day to come. It meant that all of our planning had paid off, and that yeah, this is really gonna happen! The Engineers were here to figure out exactly where the new market is gonna go and the "elevations".

Welcome 2016!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 02 Jan 2016 23:44:00 +0000

Here we go rolling into another year. I'm just going to #ownit the last post I made was in July... I really do have the best of intentions. My goal is to always post once a week. Annnnd it looks like that didn't happen. Once we start planting, and then start the spring clean in our market to get ready to open for the season my Blog just gets away from me.

2015 was an amazing year for us. Mother Nature cooperated with us and our crops were good. We were also able to bring in some top of the line produce from other local producers.

I hope you like our video, it has our favourite pictures from our 2015 season. We have a lot planned for 2016 and I will fill you in next week!

Dinner At the Farm

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 24 Jul 2015 01:55:00 +0000

The summer has gone by soooooo fast. My intention was to "blog" at least once a week. Well that has not happened. Once we opened up our On Farm Market for the 2015 season I got real busy..And that's a good thing;) The one thing I want to tell you about is our Dinner At The Farm. We are soooo excited about this event! We started to plan this event when the snow was still flying. This event is an opportunity for us to connect with our customers. We wanted an upscale event that would showcase our local food and have it prepared by a local chef. We don't know of anyone else in the area that has put on an event like this. We look forward to seeing familiar faces and meeting some new ones. This night will be an awesome night, it will exceed your expectations.

Good Sunday Morning Everyone!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 26 Apr 2015 15:21:00 +0000

We've been busy! And that's because things have started to warm up around here - weeeellllllll except for a couple days last week. The temperature dropped below 0 - Celsius that is, and we had to get the frost cover on our Day Neutral Strawberries.

Our Day Neutral Strawberries - The variety is Albion

Our Albion's are grown on black plastic.

The plastic keeps the weeds out, moisture in and soil warm.

It's April and yeah, they are starting to blossom!

Since the berries have started to blossom and the temp was dropping - we had to put a frost cover on to save the blossoms.

You can see the frost cover on part of the field.

When I look at this I see the beauty of Mother Nature.

Let's hope this Frost Cover does it's job;)

25 Muscle Building Foods

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 04 Apr 2015 17:00:00 +0000

I think that we all want better health. We want to feel good, have more energy and live longer. I think we all know what to do, it's just that we don't always do it. Myself included - especially during the winter when the farm is shut down. I spend a lot of time doing book work, developing marketing plans, planning what to grow and what field to grow it in. Developing new recipes for the upcoming season and then of course comes the sampling....

I've heard that strong bodies are built 80% in the kitchen and 20% in the gym. If that is true then I'm glad that I found the 25 of the best muscle building foods today. I'm also happy that I can find a few of them right out in our own fields;)

What muscle building food do you like to eat?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 03 Apr 2015 15:38:00 +0000

So hard to believe that it's already Easter weekend! I just finished baking all the pies, cookies and tarts for orders being picked up today;) Can't wait to see our customers at pick up time. (Can't wait to be in our Market and see everyone again)

Lots has been going on around the farm. Gerry is putting the frost cover on our ever bearing strawberries today. The berries are already on plastic which helps to keep the moisture in, weeds out and temperature warm - kinda like a greenhouse. This is what our field looks like right now.

I will post a picture in a couple days to show you what the field looks like after the frost cover is on. The frost cover is being put on so when our strawberries start to blossom and we have a chance of frost at night - this will save the early blossoms (fingers crossed). We are growing ever bearing strawberries so you can enjoy them from May/June right straight through until September. You love to eat them and we love to grow them! We still have our traditional June bearing Strawberries. If they are in bloom and there is a chance of frost then we irrigate them to save all the early blossoms. I will give you a lesson on how that works another day...

I hope that your long Easter weekend is filled with family, friends, and lots of good food and memories;)

It's Finally Here!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 21 Mar 2015 00:28:00 +0000

We've been waiting for Spring just like you have. All of our Non GMO seeds have been ordered and have arrived! Sooooo exciting! We've planted a bunch of Tomato, Pepper and Kale plants already and Cauliflower and Broccoli are next. We like to get the seeds started in seed trays in the greenhouse now so they will be ready to transplant out in our field in May. It all depends on Mother Nature of course. If it's warm we can transplant as early as May 5th. But if it's too cold and there is still a threat of frost we will have to wait. We can't risk transplanting and then loose them all in a frost. As Farmers we are risk takers. This would be our first planting and expect to harvest in August. We cannot control the weather and we are dependent on it to produce our crops. I will let you in on a little secret... we have planted some Heirloom Tomatoes. Two varieties: Black Velvet and Brandy Wine. I can't wait until they are ready, they are going to taste sooooo good - awesome in a salad or grilled on the BBQ. Well, I don't want to get ahead of myself, there is still snow outside...

More details to follow about what we're planting soon!

Pink Pumpkin Patch!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 10 Mar 2015 13:39:00 +0000

Sorry for the delay - I know I promised you a surprise a couple days ago...

Look for a Porcelain Doll in our Pumpkin Patch this year!

We will be signing this Contract and mailing it in! We've been busy planning for our upcoming season. That means we look at what was popular, what was a good seller, and what our customers want. We grow a wide variety of Pumpkins , I love Fall. Last year we introduced a Blue Pumpkin!

It was a huge hit with everyone - especially those who love to decorate for Fall.

Love Fall

Love Pumpkins

Love Pink

Gonna Love Making A Difference With The

Pink Pumpkin Patch Foundation

(Can't wait to get growing...)

Don't Forget!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 21:26:00 +0000

I'm soooooo happy that the days are getting longer, it's a sure sign that Spring is on it's way;) I'm going to let Y'all in on a little secret tomorrow. Okay, it's something pink but that's the only clue I'm gonna give you...

How To Buy A Week's Worth Of Groceries For $40 At The Farmer's Market

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 05 Mar 2015 17:19:00 +0000

I just read an awesome article!

Want more information on how to do it? Check out the full article at MindBodyGreen

#nutritionmonth

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 04 Mar 2015 23:14:00 +0000

It's Nutrition Month! Did you know that getting enough to drink is part of healthy living? Check out EatRight Ontario for valuable Tips and Facts on Hydration. Follow EatRightOntario on Twitter

for free nutritional advice from Registered Dietitians.

Are You Getting Enough?

Life stage	Aim for (cups)*
Infants
0-6 months	3 (from breastmilk or formula)
7-12 months	2.5 (from breastmilk, formula, water or fluid milk)
Young Children
1-3 years old	3.5
4-8 years old	5
Older children
9-13 year old girls	6.5
9-13 year old boys	7
Women
14-18 year old	7
19 years and older	9
Pregnant	9
Breastfeeding	12.5
Men
14-18 years old	10.5
19 years and older	12

*1 cup = 250 mL

Do you know what a portion size is?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 04 Mar 2015 22:22:00 +0000

We are all trying to eat local and healthy.

We want to feel better, look better and live longer.

Knowing what a potion size really is may help;)

Check out the Good Things Grow In Ontario - Nutrition Guide from the Foodland Ontario website.

Ladies Day Out!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 26 Feb 2015 02:09:00 +0000

Today I had the privilege of meeting an awesome group of ladies. They are so cool they even have a name for their group Ladies Day Out. They affectionately refer to themselves as the LDO! I got the invite last week - Debbie wanted to know if I would be interested to come over and talk to them about our Market - Style CSA Program . I didn't even have to think about it - YES! I was invited to their Wednesday morning coffee....I told Debbie I would bring treats. I don't like to go anywhere without bring something and, yes, it was another reason to bake Shortbreads! It doesn't have to be Christmas to make Shortbreads or eat them. I had also decided that I would be taking some of our Talbotville Berry Farm Jams and Jellies for a special little surprise for the Ladies. While I waited for them to cool I thought I would multitask, and put the preserves in a bag - so they would be ready to go and I wouldn't forget them. The next thing I knew I opened up the Strawberry Jam and started adding little dollops of sweet goodness to the cookies...

I didn't know how long I was going to be when I left this morning, but when I asked Debbie what time it was and she said 2:53pm I couldn't believe it! The time had flown by with a group of ladies that were funny, honest, crafty, and treated each other like sisters (in a good way). I walked out of the house - after sharing in a group hug - feeling good, feeling like I had met some new friends, and feeling like I couldn't wait to see them again.