Growing Green Together

The Ignatius Jesuit Centre of Guelph uses a CSA model to connect communities, food, and the environment

By Ashley Rayner

Going 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.

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.

A CSA Share

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-mile diets and slow food have soared, so too has people’s demand for convenience. Most people still find it easier to stop at the supermarket, even if they know it’s not the greenest or most nutritious option.

Nutrition is another concern for the farm staff. Lekx describes how many of the organic farming methods used can improve the nutritive value of their produce. Take, for example, soil management. Lekx says the farm tests soil rigorously and employs methods like crop rotation, cover crop planting, and more to draw up nutrients from deep in the soil.

These methods are a blend of tradition and modern scientific knowledge. Many farmers today acknowledge the processes are also “greener”; using cover crops, for example, creates carbon sinks that can offset the emissions of other farming activities. Lekx indicates that, even with a focus on connecting the community, preserving the lands is also central to the farm’s mission. The staff ’s hard work to take care of the land helps ensure the produce retains great taste and high nutritive value.

The expertise of the farming staff is also extending beyond the farm itself. To date, about 100 people have graduated from the farm’s internship program. This transformative experience is passing on the skills and knowledge the farmers of the 21st century will need to ensure the food chain is sustainable.

Farmers are often the first to comment on how patterns of weather or animal populations have changed, so it makes sense they’re also some of the loudest voices in advocating for green practices. Of course, they can’t do it alone; they need the support of entire communities, like the one that surrounds the Ignatius Farm.

With new studies about how important it is for people to spend time in nature, community garden models make even more sense. Lekx recommends heading to a local farmers’ market and talking to farmers. She says people often discover the Ignatius Farm through these avenues, or by visiting on field days in August or the local food festival the centre hosts annually. “When they find us,” she says, “they feel relieved.”

Of course, not everyone has a resource like the Ignatius Farm in their backyard. Lekx encourages people who want to green their eating practices to reconnect with agriculture: “Grow something!” she says emphatically. “Even a little pot of oregano on your balcony. Start small, learn to nurture it.” She also suggests sharing cooking responsibilities among friends, neighbours, and relatives.

The Ignatius Farm’s initiatives show us that in the dense web of connections between people, food, and environment, what’s good for the planet is ultimately good for people too. ~