It’s time to get the plants in the ground. Chris Krucker of ManoRun Organic Farm is already starting seedlings in preparation for an early spring planting.

“The cold winter and relatively short growing season in Ontario means that some seeds need to get started now,” said Mr. Krucker.

Vegetables such as onions, leeks and some herbs need to be started in February. In coming months, cabbage, kohlrabi, pepper, tomato and, finally, melons are started in planting flats and then transplanted into the fields in the spring.

It may not seem like planting weather but with a furnace and grow lights, young plants will thrive until it’s warm enough to get them outside. ManoRun Farms’ greenhouse is 100 feet long, which is plenty of room to start seedlings for the coming growing season, said Mr. Krucker.

He Krucker and Denise Trigatti started ManoRun Farm 10 years ago. The farm is located on Highway 52 in Copetown. They are part of a resurgence of new farmers who are looking for creative ways to produce and sell farm products locally. The marketing model for the farm is Community Supported Agriculture or CSA. People become members of the farm when they buy a season worth of vegetables.

A season is 20 weeks of vegetables, herbs and some fruits delivered to homes or picked up at the farm. Mr. Krucker and Ms. Trigatti only sell what they grow and that means over 30 varieties of vegetables.

“Even though the growing season is shorter than warmer climates we can grow just about everything that we need for a healthy diet.”

Municipalities across Canada are beginning to rethink local agriculture. Cities are faced with the challenge of ensuring that there is enough farm land and farmers to grow the food that they need.

For more information on local food and buying vegetables from the farm, contact 905-304-8048 or e-mail: manorun@hwcn.org.

source : www.dundasstarnews.com