Seager Wheeler Farm
Box 476 S0K 3R0 Rosthern, SK, Canada

Threshing is moving quickly! Two hay racks have already been threshed, and the next two are about to begin. The field will likely be finished by noon, so if you’re planning to come, now’s the time!

It’s a great day for harvest! Threshing gets underway at 10:30 this morning, and will last a few hours. Bring your coffee and your lawn chair and come out to see how the harvest happened a century ago.

The season has definitely switched from Summer to Fall, and the harvest is happening all around us. On Saturday, Sept. 12, beginning at 10:30 am, the harvest will get underway at Seager Wheeler Farm. You’re invited to come and watch a Threshing Demonstration and see how the harvest happened a century ago. The demonstration will take place by the wheat field, so entry will be through the first gate. Bring your coffee and lawn chairs for this free event. There will be no food service provided.

A healthy rain yesterday means that Threshing Day will be happening on Saturday, Sept. 12, beginning at 10:00 am.

As the harvest begins, the grain is cut into sheaves and then machine-tied into bundles. The bundles are leaned up against each other to help them dry, and this is known as a stook of sheaves. Today is a beautiful day for harvesting, and the crew will be at it for a few more hours. Come by if you can!

Harvest is up and running at the Farm for the next two hours or so. Come on out and see how it’s done! If you can’t join us today, you’re welcome to come and watch threshing on Saturday beginning at 10:00 (weather permitting),

After all the hot, dry weather we’ve had recently, it’s too wet to binder today. Stay tuned for an announcement about when it will happen.

Harvest continues at the Farm, beginning at 11:00 am tomorrow morning. It should take a few hours to finish cutting and bindering. Bring your lawn chair, coffee and lunch to watch the way harvest happened in Seager Wheeler’s day. Threshing will begin at 10:00 on Saturday, August 29. Enter the Farm through the first gate and the field being harvested is immediately to your right.

Come and join us to watch the first step of the harvest - bindering, beginning at 10:00 am this morning. It’s a bit foggy outside, but we expect it to burn off for a good morning of harvesting. Bring your lawn chair, your coffee and your lunch. No food services available.

It’s Harvest Time! Last summer we were able to track down a small amount of Marquis 10-B, the wheat Seager Wheeler developed. We planted a small plot, the wheat has flourished, and we’re excited to harvest it so that more can be grown next summer, along with the other wheat we’ve grown. On Saturday, August 22, beginning at 10:00 am, please join us at the Farm for an old time bindering demonstration. This demonstration takes place on the field, and there will be signs to guide... you. On August 29, beginning at 10:00, weather permitting, threshing will take place. Please bring your lawn chair, coffee, and even your lunch if you’d like! As per Public Health guidelines, we’ll stay physically distant, and no food services will be provided.

Are you looking for a unique wedding venue? Check out Seager Wheeler Farm, a national historical farm, located 7 kms from Rosthern. We’ve hosted many outdoor weddings on the lawn, in front of a 1925 house. Colourful flower beds surround the lawn, with an electrified gazebo at one end. Chairs can be set up for your guests as needed. We have a large multi-purpose building that can be set up for your reception with round or rectangular tables to seat up... to 170 people. The building has a small kitchen, staging area for your caterer, and bathrooms. The Farm is not a licensed facility, but you are welcome to serve alcohol, provided you’ve purchased a special event license. A large sliding door can be opened, and strings of light add to the ambiance. The farm yard is large, with many picturesque spots for wedding photos, including historical buildings, machinery, and natural areas. There is ample parking, and room for camping so you and your guests can celebrate your wedding comfortably. If you need more space, we can help you rent a tent that can be set up to connect with the sliding door of the multi-purpose building. For an extra fee we can also connect you with a horse-drawn carriage, which could be used for the wedding party or for rides for your guests. Seager Wheeler Farm is available for your ceremony only, or for a one day or three day weekend rental. When you book the Farm, we are closed to the public. For more information, including prices, non-refundable deposit, and available dates for 2020 or 2021, please e-mail [email protected].

Each year we look forward to fruit season, when we begin to pick and process Saskatoon berries, raspberries, apples, and sour cherries. This year, as we all know, is an unusual year, and the same is true with our fruit. We had a late spring, and then cool temperatures and lots of wind in April, when the blossoms were setting. There are very few sour cherries and apples, and what looked like a promising Saskatoon berry crop, hasn’t materialized.... As a result, our fruit crops WILL NOT be available for public picking this year, with the possible exception of raspberries. Please check back on this page - we will post when the raspberries are ripe.

The peonies are beautiful! We’ll be open again on Monday from 9:00-4:00 if you’d like to come see them yourself. You’re welcome to tour our other flower beds, orchard and gardens, and visit the mini horses, donkey and goats as well! Admission is by donation - cash only. All of our peonies are identified, and can be purchased to be picked up when they can be split in the Fall. ... We are always looking to add to our collection, so if you are willing to split one of your peonies and donate it to the Farm in the Fall, we’d love that! Please send us an e-mail about purchase or donation: [email protected]

The peonies are about to pop and they will be stunnng! Some of the early blooms have already opened, and the rest will follow soon. Beginning on Monday, July 6, you are welcome to come for a walk or drive though the Farm from 9:00 - 4:00. Admission will be by donation (cash only), and there will be a box on the porch of the Visitors’ Centre. Just a reminder that we are following public health guidelines and would ask our visitors to do the same.

The Farm is a peaceful and beautiful place, a combination of natural and domesticated growth. Each year we visit Marvin’s Gardens Greenhouse in Waldheim and pick up the bedding plants that add colour around the Visitors’ Centre. We’ve also added annuals and perennials from Mistik Acres, a flower farm near Alvena. We’re proud of our peony collection, and expect them to fully bloom in the next week. The Farm yard also boasts many types of wildflowers, some that you see picture...d below. Due to COVID-19, the Farm will be open in a different way this summer. As of July 6, you are welcome to visit the Farm from Monday to Friday, 9:00 - 4:00. You can check out the peonies and tour the yard, animals, machinery, gardens and orchard, but our buildings will be closed. There is a public bathroom available. Admission will be by donation. Please continue to check our Facebook page as we post updates about fruit picking and openings. See more

With the uncertainty of COVID-19, we decided to use this spring and summer to undertake a few larger projects. Last Fall we upgraded our water system, and were left with a pile of sand and a beautiful tank cap in the lawn behind the Tea Room. The sand was removed, top soil was brought in, and is now settling. Next spring grass will be seeded, and an expanded flower bed planted. The water feature is on the list of summer projects to be tackled. The washroom in the Visitors...’s Centre was in need of some sprucing up. The wallpaper has been removed, and a fresh coat of paint will go on this week. Other jobs - re-doing a small section of the floor, removing the overgrown roses from the bed beside the Visitors’ Centre, moving the display area to the main floor so it’s accessible, and fixing the windmill, are in progress, and will be completed this summer or early next spring. See more

It’s been a while since we’ve posted about what’s been going on at the Farm. It’s been an unusual spring - windy, and cool. Although things are growing well now, the winter was hard on our apple trees and spring cherry bushes. We lost quite a few trees - more than we expected. Coupled with the uncertain weather of the spring, it means that we won’t have nearly the usual August harvest of either sour cherries or apples. We’ve replaced most of the trees, but it takes several ye...ars before they produce fruit. We will have Saskatoon Berries to pick, beginning sometime in mid-July. Please check back for more info in the next few weeks. In other news, we were thrilled to observe the growth and development of two great horned owlets. They’re gone now, but before they could fly, no visit to the Farm was complete without two visits to the nest - arriving and leaving. We’re already looking forward to next spring’s babies! See more

Well, this is not the spring we expected in 2020. We had many plans - new recipes to try for Sunday Brunch and Dessert Night, an amazing painting class, a great line up of local musicians for Big Day at the Farm, new activities for school and group tours, and many other ideas percolating. Instead, we’ve been put on pause - at least as far as being open to the public is concerned, as has most of the rest of our lives.... We’ve decided to view COVID-19 and this pause as an opportunity. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be filling you in on our plans - please keep checking in. First, the water in our orchard gardens is receding, fruit trees have been pruned, some new seedlings planted, and we will be planting a large Good Neighbours’ Food Centre garden. Are you itching to get your hands into the dirt? If you’d like to volunteer to help in the orchard or gardens, please DM us, and we’ll organize a time for you to come and dig or plant or weed, likely beginning after the long weekend. We’d love to have you join us - at a safe distance, of course!

Wishing all of you a wonderful Christmas. May you experience the peace and joy of the season.

The snow is falling today, so we can’t put it off any longer - the 2019 season at the Farm has officially ended. It’s been a successful year of school tours, Dessert Nights, Sunday Brunches, weddings, family reunions, staff parties, Big Day at the Farm, Threshing Day, Harvest Supper, and of course, visitors from near and far who came to tour the Farm. We are grateful for the support of many individuals and businesses, who volunteer their time and resources, many over the course of many years. Thank you! Even though the Farm is closed for the winter, planning for next summer is already underway. Stay tuned!