The Acadia Community Farm

20 + years ago Olive had planted Rhubarb which she grew to make pies, jams and various deserts. Over the years the plants grew very large and Olive has graciously donated some of her rhubarb plants to the Acadia Community Farm in hopes of spreading her love of gardening.

Olive spent her younger years in Avondale on a homestead and then later moved into Windsor. As long as Olive can remember her family always kept a kitchen garden. Everyone had kitchen gardens back then and they grew their own vegetables to ensure they had food to eat.

As a young adult Olive also had a huge kitchen, where she grew lots of vegetables including potatoes, carrots, and her favourite beets! Currently 94 years old Olive still has a love for gardening and fresh produce. Living on the St.Croix river Olive keeps a small garden outside her front door with the help of her great granddaughter.

Spring is finally here! The Acadia Community Farm is excited to extend a warm welcome to another season of growing organic produce and hosting over 40 community gardeners.

It is not too late to sign-up to for a garden plot of your own, or be a volunteer for us! No prior experience is necessary, just a positive attitude and an eagerness to learn.

Contact Sarah at Sarah@acadiafarm.org to sign-up or find out more information.

We are very fortunate to have the Nutrition Education and Sustainable Food Systems classes integrated into what we do at the farm. Over the months of September and October the students volunteer their time as part of a service learning project. They come to us with a wealth of knowledge and great attitudes; eager to work and learn about how the Acadia Farm operates.

With their help over the past month we have been able to harvest over 150 pounds of food! We can’t wait to see what we can accomplish in October!

Welcome back new and returning Acadia Students! We are excited to have you back on campus and hope you come down to visit us at the Acadia Community Farm. Look for us at Club Extravaganza night from 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm this Tuesday, September 11th in the Acadia Students’ Union Building. Here we will be able to talk with you about the farm and how you can sign-up to get involved.

Due to current and forecasted thunder showers the volunteer shift scheduled for today July 26th has been cancelled.

With temperatures in the 30’s it is important that you work smart in the heat. If you need to do work outside we suggest early morning or late evening. Make sure to wear a hat, sun screen, drink plenty of water and take frequent breaks in the shade.

Know the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke.

(The graphic was originally distributed by the Sacramento County Office of Emergency Services (OES).)

Due to current and forecasted weather for today, the volunteer shift scheduled from 12pm- 3pm is canceled.

Learn the basics of vegetable gardening at the Acadia Community Farm with Sarah Pittoello.

This past fall the Acadia Farm was graciously donated many bulbs of garlic from David Kristie, the Director of Research in the KC Irving Environmental Science Center.

The story behind the Gido’s garlic starts in the 1960’s when David Kristie’s Grandfather traveled to Ukraine. There he collected some of his family’s garlic with plans for it to return to Canada with him. It would not be easy to transport as he was under watchful eye during the Cold War, technically not allowed to transport goods such as garlic across borders.

He was clever, and individual cloves were stitched into the cuffs of his pants. They were carried across land and ocean into Hamilton, Canada where they were first planted into Canadian soil. The garlic was passed down through the generations in the Kristie family and can now be found growing across the country in British Columbia, Ontario, and Nova Scotia.

It is not known exactly what village David Kristie’s Grandfather traveled to in the 1960’s, or what the original name of the garlic was. For this reason, and the amazing endeavour undertaken by David’s Grandfather, the garlic has been named Gido’s Garlic. “Gido” which translates into Grandfather.

The Acadia Community Farm currently has approximately 150 bulbs growing that were planted this past fall.  After they are harvested and cured they will be making their way to Wheelock Dining Hall for Acadia Students to enjoy as well as to the Wolfville Food Bank!