Growing Green
together
By Ashley Rayner
The Ignatius Jesuit Centre of Guelph uses a CSA model to connect communities, food, and the environment
G
oing green wasn’t the goal when the Ignatius Jesuit Centre in Guelph, Ontario, adopted Community Shared Agriculture (CSA) in 2001. Rather, the centre was looking for a way to reconnect with their community while preserving the farming traditions they’d used in cultivating a portion of their 600-acre plot since 1913. The Community Gardens came first. The Ignatius Farm offered small plots to gardeners in the community. Some of those early advocates are still tilling the soil and planting on their plot. Currently, the farm accepts up to 200 registrants each growing season. New gardeners start with 100 square feet, while more seasoned hands will work plots up to three acres in size. Today, the farm cultivates around 250 acres just north of the city. 130 I outdoorlifestylemagazine.com │IMPROVE
Heather Lekx, Farm Manager, calls the community garden initiative a “great gem” that allows people to really reconnect with the land itself; gardeners often refer to their plots as “farms” or “homesteads.” She describes it as a bridge between urban life and rural rhythms, but she’s quick to add it isn’t the right fit for everyone. That’s one of the reasons the Ignatius Farm has grown to support several other Community Shared Agriculture initiatives. CSA shares allow community members to receive farm-fresh produce for as long as they want, from a few weeks in the spring and summer to year-round delivery. The CSA shares can be picked up at the farm or in-town. Lekx describes the expansion of the CSA program as a way to satisfy the need for convenience. Even as environmental awareness and the popularity of movements like zero-
