Fostering new farmers on an old Newfoundland farm
/by Matthew Carlson
A new incubator farm pilot program will soon launch at the O’Brien Farm in St. John’s, N.L. This initiative seeks to match new farmers with the resources they need to gain the skills for success in starting their own farms. It will provide access to resources such as equipment, land, and mentoring.
This program is being undertaken by the O’Brien Farm Foundation. The foundation is a non-profit organization responsible for the preservation and growth of the historic O’Brien Farm, which is an active, working farm where people learn about and practise sustainable food production. The foundation also tells the story of Irish settlement in St. John’s through the story of the O’Brien family. When the last member of the O’Brien family, Aly O’Brien, died in 2008, he left the farm in his will to be preserved for the public good.
The incubator program is a great example of how the wishes of the O’Brien family are being carried out. It joins other existing initiatives on the site, including the restoration of Thimble Cottage, trail development, and a community garden.
Work to prepare the site for incubator plots is now underway. The first part of the work involves building the vegetable plots by removing invasive Couch grass. It will be composted and put back on the fields for next season. An excavator has been carrying out that work.
Further efforts will include drilling for a well, work on an earth-sheltered greenhouse, and construction of a storage barn. It’s hoped that enough work will be carried out in time to begin plots this season. The site will feature three to five incubator plots when completed.
Brian Kowalski of Murray Meadows Farm in Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s has been hired to lead the incubator site’s development, find interested participants, and begin the pilot program.
The Newfoundland and Labrador Young Farmers Forum (NLYFF) has been partnering on the incubator farm initiative. This project is a tremendous complement to the work the NLYFF is already doing to assist new farmers through resources such as the New Farmer Guide, our online land-matching map, and our mentorship pilot program. The NLYFF has been providing advice on the project through two board and committee representatives volunteering their time.
After the launch of the incubator farm, the next step for the foundation is the O’Brien Farm Learning Centre, which will be a community hub for experiential learning about farming, food sustainability, and Irish Newfoundland heritage. Construction on that project is expected to begin later this year.
Visit www.obrienfarm.ca to learn more about the O’Brien Farm Foundation and its initiatives.
(Matthew Carlson is the Newfoundland and Labrador Federation of Agriculture’s young farmers coordinator. He has been with the federation since 2007 and moved into his current position in 2015.)
