October is here and harvest is underway for soybeans with corn harvest on the horizon and wheat seed being planted.  Vegetable gardens have born their successful crops, larders and freezers bursting with their bounty.  Hay and grains are tucked away in barns, bins and their white-wrapped homes for the winter.   Finches have lost their summer colour, hummingbirds have left for warmer climes and the remaining birds (and squirrels) are storing anything they can for the imminent winter.  Yards and gardens are being cleaned up and bedded down for the winter ahead.  Days are cooler, nights are near frosty and the air is cool and crisp. 

Let’s all take a moment to appreciate the hard work of our farmers and thank Ontario’s agri-food sector for the incredible bounty of fresh, safe & nutritious food we get to enjoy everyday 🙂

FALL INVENTORY REDUCTION SALE:

• 35% off  ‘Tough Duck’ Outerwear

• 20% off Everything Inside the Store

• 15% off Gates & Feeders

    

DAY-OLD MEAT & LAYER CHICKS & TURKEYS POULTS:

Our 2018 Chick Days are complete — Please check back February 2019 for next year’s chick dates and pricing.  

DUCKLINGS, GOSLINGS, GUINEA HEN KEETS & PHEASANTS:

Our 2018 Ducks, Goslings & Game Bird Days are complete — Please check back February 2019 for next year’s chick dates and pricing. 

READY-TO-LAY CHICKENS:

2018 Order Form & Price List — Ready-to-Lay Pullets

LAST RTL order is in the works —  If you would like laying hens for fall 2018, contact us now.

We can’t set an pre-determined date as it’s not an exact science for when our order will arrive.  Simply place your order with us and we will contact you when we know when delivery date to our store will be — You can decide then if this date works for you.  Unfortunately, we don’t carry birds over to after delivery date — Hens must be picked up delivery day.  ***Please note:  Our policy for any orders of six birds or less must be paid when ordering.

 FOLLOW US on FACEBOOK and ‘LIKE’ our page for updates and promotions.

 

 

BACKYARD BIRDS:

For feeding your feathered friends, we have all the bird feeders, feed, peanuts, suet and other backyard wildlife supplies to keep them visiting your back yard.  

Follow this link: ‘YOUR BIRDS & WILDLIFE’ to visit our page where you’ll find valuable information on both hosting and deterring backyard wildlife.

BACKYARD WILDLIFE:

For those who enjoy seeing deer graze on their property, Wright’s Feeds ‘N Needs manufactures their own custom Deer Mix that will attract deer to visit plus we stock whole corn, grains, deer & salt blocks.  **Watch for our custom deer mix to come back in stock in mid-late August — It’s only available during fall & winter seasons when there is less access to food for deer in the wild.

LAWN & GARDEN:

THINGS TO DO THIS MONTH  — with excerpts from gardening gurus Mark & Ben Cullen’s Newsletter

As the annual flowers fade, plant spring flowering Holland bulbs. Tulips, daffodils and the like.

 

 

While you are out there ‘filling in holes’ where your tired petunias once stood plant some fall, frost hardy colour with asters, mums, rudbeckia, butterfly bush. Check out the selection at your local garden retailer.

 

Thicken your lawn.   Where thin spots exist, spread Lawn Dresser Mix lawn soil 4 cm thick and rake smooth.  Broadcast quality grass seed at the rate of 1 lb. to 400 sq. ft.  Rake this smooth, step on it with a flat-soled shoes and water until  established.  Grass is a ‘cool season’ crop and loves our lower evening temperatures, shorter days and heavy morning dew. Do this ASAP to give the grass seed enough time to germinate before November.

Apply 21-6-12 fertilizer or an Iron-Added fertilizer blend to your established lawn now for good fall root development to withstand our harsh Canadian winters.

 

 

Compost. Dig out the finished compost that is in your bin or pile and put it on the surface of your garden where the earth worms will pull it down. Fill your bin with fallen leaves mixed with spent annual plants and tomato plants.

 

Leaves. When they start to fall, rake them off your lawn, run them over with your lawn mower and rake them on to your garden. See the worm comment above. You will be amazed at how the worms consume leaves in tremendous quantities next spring.

 

Harvest everything that is ready and go to local farmers markets for fresh food and a Halloween pumpkin.

Wait until late October or early November (depending on where you live in this vast country) for the ‘winterizing’ jobs. We will cover this in the November newsletter.

Feed the birds & keep feeders clean.  Birds wintering in the south will be on their way back over the next month or so —  Clean your feeders again  and fill with Wright’s Premium Wild Bird Seed — Birds love it and it is great value!  Also available are sunflower seed, safflower seed, peanuts (both in and out of the shell), nyjer seed, suet, corn cobs and lots of feeders for all types of backyard birds.

GARDEN HOW-TO VIDEOS:

Canada’s gardening gurus, Mark Cullen & son, Ben, had a great time shooting new videos in the garden.  Here are a few  gardening videos that will inform and entertain you — Check them out:

How-To Deadhead Annuals and Perennials

The Benefits of Mulch

Plant Selection for the East Side of Your Home

News and Events:

Are you looking to buy more Canadian Products?:

Uxbridge resident, Tyler Campbell recently created an online resource for those looking to buy more Canadian products. The “Made In Canada” website provides information about goods that are made by Canadian companies and/or manufactured within Canada. The site currently has about 234 listings spread across 16 categories–from grocery store items to furniture to car products. Visit madeinca.ca to find out if you’re buying Canadian.

Congratulations to Jordan and Alex McKay of Willowtree Farm for being named Ontario’s Outstanding Young Farmers!

Brothers Jordan and Alex McKay were recently selected as Ontario’s Outstanding Young Farmers for 2018 for their work at Willowtree Farm in Port Perry. Jordan and Alex developed unique ways to sell and use their produce in their year-round market and have designed the market to tell a story about buying local food. They will compete at the national competition in Winnipeg from November 29 to December 2.   Canada’s Outstanding Young Farmers’ program is an annual competition to recognize farmers that excel in their profession and promote agriculture.  For more information, visit oyfcanada.com.

Local Food Business Retention and Expansion (BR+E) project update

In January 2018, the Region of Durham’s Economic Development and Tourism Division launched a Local Food Business Retention and Expansion (BR + E) project aimed at supporting local business development and job creation in the agri-food food sector. Confidential interviews were conducted by trained volunteers with over 60 local food related businesses across Durham Region. The next phase of the Local Food BR+E project involves analyzing the survey data to develop goals, action plans and prepare a final report.  To learn more, email agriculture@durham.ca.

Video: The real dirt on farming in Clarington

The Clarington Board of Trade produced a a home-grown, engaging video to highlight agriculture in Clarington. Told by members of the Clarington agriculture community, the video describes the realities and rewards of farming as a business and as a passion. The video aims to inspire and encourage viewers to learn more about the importance of farming.  To view the video, visit youtube.com.

The Durham Region 5 Million Trees Program is part of the Durham Community Climate Change Local Action Plan, with the goal of increasing forest cover in the region by approximately 2,800 hectares.  To be eligible, landowners must have 2.5 acres of non-agricultural land to plant.  Forests Ontario plants the trees at a highly subsidized rate and checks their survival at various intervals in the following few years.  Learn more about Durham Region’s 5 Million Trees Program.

 

The On-Farm Childcare Program, offered by Durham Farm and Rural Family Resources (DFRFR), is designed to provide quality child care for farm families who reside in Durham where at least one of the parents’ primary source of income is through a farm operation.  The program operates from May to September and allows parents to concentrate on farm work during peak times, without having their children in the workplace.  Learn  more about the On Farm Childcare Program.

 

BUSINESS EVENTS October 16: Digital Presence Workshop October 29: Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) Workshop: First Day November 7: Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) Workshop: Second Day November 23: Growing Your Farm Profits (GYFP) Workshop: First Day November 30: Growing Your Farm Profits (GYFP) Workshop: Second Day December 1: Ignite – FCC Young Farmer Summit – Port Perry