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Pitchfork Gardens and Patrons Share Harvest Bounty
Pitchfork Gardens and Patrons Share Harvest Bounty with Lamont County Food Bank
Michelle Pinon - News Advertiser
Pitchfork Gardens, a Lamont area U-Pick, held its 4th annual ‘Beat the Frost Sale’ on Sept. 16 and 17.
With $15 donation to the County of Lamont Food Bank patrons could fill one onion bag for only 50 cents per pound. Over 1,000 pounds of vegetables and $665.60 was raised during the two day event. It was a great way to the end the growing season for owners Aaron and Dawn Geiger who are going to be topping up donations to $1,000.
Aaron says last year’s event garnered 1,400 pounds of vegetables. They donated a total of $1,000 to the food bank at that time. During the 2022 season alone they raised over $900 and 600 pounds of fresh veggies for the food bank. The couple also pick up bread from Cobs in Fort Saskatchewan once a week and deliver it to the food bank to add to the hampers.
Their vision for the business has always included donating to the local food bank. They started their garden in the spring of 2020. They also built raised beds and began construction of a hoop house. That fall they planted over 20 trees which included apple trees, plumb trees, apricot trees and cherry trees.
Since that time they’ve added another large garden and hoop house. They offer 28 varieties of tomatoes alone! “We grow a lot of varieties that you just don’t get anywhere else,” says Aaron. Some of the other offerings include a variety of peppers, parsnips, carrots, potatoes, beets, carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, turnips, garlic, pumpkins, melons, raspberries, strawberries and so much more.
Back in 2019, Aaron and Dawn decided to leave the city lights behind and bought a small rural property near the Town of Lamont. They admit to falling in love with the quiet peacefulness that farm life offers.
Originally, Aaron says they were going to operate a market garden and go to Farmer’s Markets, but decided to pivot because of the pandemic. “With Covid, we saw two things happen; food availability and people not wanting to be in stores, and so we decided to be a U-Pick.”
They’ve accomplished a great deal since opening and their plans continue to evolve. “People love coming out and like to know where their food is coming from,” adds Aaron. Picking fresh vegetables from the garden is what it’s all about, and they are more than happy to contribute to overall healthy living and helping to support the local food economy. The farm is located on just over 44 acres and they are hoping to add a few cattle and smaller livestock in the future.
