Veg in Yeg

Nicole will be speaking about food justice, community composting and reducing food waste at this online event in September. Leftovers Foundation will also be there. Sign up to reserve your spot! Hope to see you there.

Field Tomatoes in Edmonton: a short story This is my third season growing them here and I have finally learnt from the last two: don't wait until the first frost to harvest them - they will never ripen anyway! First year I pulled all the tricks: pruned thoroughly, severed the roots in a square around the base, stopped watering. Still ended up with green tomatoes. Last year I had hope because they were better maintained in general, but still no luck. So, this... year i'm doing it one-two weeks earlier and ripening them in boxes so that for the whole of September we have a steady supply of fresh tomatoes. Ripening them indoors doesn't change the incredible flavour - but cold nights do! Same reason you shouldn't keep tomatoes in the fridge as their chemistry changes and flavour decreases. Tonight it is going to be 4 degrees C, so I was motivated to get them into the warmth again (Don't worry about your own tomatoes if they are out there, they will still be fine - but bring them in soon). I'm so impressed by the San Marzano. Amazing yield. Can't wait for you to try them! Five lucky customers already enjoyed some very ripe cherry tomatoes last Friday, and will know that these seeds represent some Yeg urban farming history. Ryan Mason saved his heirloom seeds from @reclaimfarm when they were still an urban farm here, around Whyte. I took over his plot when he moved, bought a selection of his saved heirloom seeds at @edmonton_seedy_sunday, grew them myself around Whyte and saved them too. An urban-farmed special! This year we also companion planted them with two types of parsley and calendula . The parsley had the time of its life and did a great job of covering the gaps to conserve moisture in the bed. Thanks to Felicity who grew the tomatoes last year to produce some great seeds, and with Kay helped create the beds, tuck the babies in, keep them pruned and set up the trellis. Thanks to Titash, who helped me give them some very attentive emergency love mid-season when they seemed to be struggling. These are a team effort and i'm super proud of us! So.many.tomatoes. @ McKernan See more

This week Samadhi and Titash helped us harvest 18 kg of potatoes! Thank you Best quote on seeing the first potato come out of the ground: "that's a rock?". Ha. They were so perfect and rounded. Volunteers also helped with clearing beds for sowing some fall crops of spinach, arugula, turnips, beets, broccoli and gai lan. Using row cover tunnels to help with pests and germination. Beets were a hit last week too. Tomatoes are beginning to ripen and they are the sweetest...! Carrots are finally ready for this coming Friday's harvest! Note: Harvest days have been changed from Thurs to Fri from now on. Hope to see you then! @ McKernan See more

Farm fundraiser:Houseplant sale! This Sunday, Noon - 3 pm, 11015 University Ave (3 blocks south of Whyte). It'll be yard sale-style, with the plants on a table at the garden, under the green gazebo. First come first served. We spent the winter and spring taking cuttings from our own babies and nursing them into their grown up pots. We have ivy, lipstick plants, pothos, coleus, and others. Some pretty ceramic pots too! Proceeds go towards helping out the farm and farmer...s. We also just love plants and think you might enjoy some greenery inside all year long. Easy access from Whyte and 109 St by bike or walking. Free street parking on Uni Ave or 110/111 St. Please wear a mask and respect distancing when under the gazebo. Cash, card and e-transfer welcome. Hope to see you there! Thanks for your support lovely folks @ McKernan, Edmonton See more

Hi Friends! It's been a while. We've been so busy tending to plants and to ourselves that social media has been put on the back burner lately. Mental health comes first. Getting the feel for this new site has been challenging - the growth rate and prevalence of the weeds (quackgrass) was difficult to keep up with and we're always worrying about the clay soil, excessve rain and pests However, we've had a lot of moral support from our new neighbours, and yesterday things c...hanged. I unexpectedly got on top of the garden tasks in preparation for the first outdoor harvest of the season on Thurs! This has given me an enormous energy boost. This was only possible because 10 super people showed up over the last week to begin volunteering on an ongoing basis, together they have already: Cleared several beds of weeds (allowing me to sow new seed) Pruned the tomatoes Tidied the garden of various rubble and garbage Turned some rubble into beautifying the landscape Donated tools Donated flowers Helped put up a gazebo and build a storage box Provided me with much needed socialization and kind words Humans are really lovely. Thank you so much Looking forward to getting to know everyone better over the season. Here are some before and after pics of what you helped us create since we temporarily adopted this vacant lot in May. Cheers to everyone who came out to convert it at the beginning too! Look what you did!! Lots of delicious greens and herbs are available right now to order online, link in bio. Pick up at the garden or delivery on Thurs. Pay what makes sense for your budget. Hyper-local garden goodness, very much grown with love, strength and community behind it @ McKernan, Edmonton See more

We have added a permanent feature on our instagram page: instagram.com/veg.in.yeg/ for advocacy. We hope that you will look to the organizations, ideas, and people there for important insight and a place to support your communities. We were spurred to provide a space within our platforms for other voices like those in the current Black Lives Matter movement - we can't just make one post and then forget about it, and want to do better over the long term for our community.... Please also see: linktr.ee/veginyeg where we have links to The Edmonton Anti-Black Racism Toolkit & Black Lives Matter Canadian and American Resources