Tabla de contenidos para Summer 2019 en Harrowsmith

It’s a water world across Canada in the springtime, and everyone is talking about it. The snow is melting and the maple sap is running in late March; then April showers bring May flowers; and by early June in the Rocky Mountains, ice packs have released trickles that become rivulets that gain momentum over cascading waterfalls that reach the river valley as muddy torrents. Seasonal flood waters spread for kilometres across the Prairies, and basement sump pumps hum day and night. By mid-August, water (the lack of it) is all the talk again, when corn crops droop and grassy lawns go yellow due to weeks without rainfall. Where I live, in Prince Edward County, Ontario, the soil is a very thin layer atop limestone bedrock. Groundwater is essentially just surface…

Ah, at last! The smell, the sound, the feeling of spring, the pending summer and the glorious summer night sky. I don’t know about you, but it’s great to shed my parka. Trying to look high into the sky during winter—with a thick coat, scarf and hat—is not very pleasant. All that clothing bothers the neck and cramps my style. But once it begins to warm up, we can shed these encumbrances so we can take in the true expanse of the celestial sphere in relative comfort. May is a great time to start. Night falls later than in winter but earlier than in summer. The evenings are relatively warm and there are few mosquitoes. Where to start? The bright luminaries of winter are settling below the western horizon. Soon,…

At first glance it would seem that I built this raft for my kids, but that’s not entirely true. We live within walking distance of the small lake where the raft is anchored, and when it’s hot enough to make the cicadas sing, plunging off the side brings back childhood memories and cool refreshment all at the same time. I’ve jumped from a handful of traditional swimming rafts over the years, and all have had the same problem: slippery, sliver-prone wooden deck surfaces. That’s why I built this raft using composite deck material for the top. Besides being maintenance-free, it offers an excellent grip, even under wet, bare feet. In fact, this stuff feels terrific underfoot. I chose Trex for this project because it’s one of the few composites that’s…

Black polyethylene water pipe is the mainstay of intake lines and water distribution systems in most rural regions, and screw clamps tightened onto barbed metal connection fittings are the way joints are made leak-proof. Trouble is, screw clamps alone won’t make reliable connections on black poly pipe. You also need to heat and soften the pipe with a propane torch or heat gun before tightening the screw clamps down. If you don’t heat, you probably won’t get a tight seal. You know you’ve heated the pipe enough when it becomes noticeably softer and more pliable. A sufficiently heated pipe also takes on something of a shiny sheen when it’s hot enough. Have the loose screw clamps sitting on the pipe and ready to go before you heat, then bring the…

With a creamy, gooey yolk—the texture of molasses—and a delicately set white, a six-minute egg is sheer perfection. Time it just right, and you’ll have something wonderful to add to salads, noodle bowls, pastas, soups and stews, for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Try them peeled and enveloped in a rich tomato or curry sauce, or make them the centre of the finest Scotch eggs you’ll ever sink your teeth into. Add room-temperature eggs to boiling water and start the timer—six minutes and not a second more!—then immediately cool under cold running water.…

Food, water, shelter—as far as we’ve come as the human race, it seems the very basics of day-to-day living are still on shaky ground, perhaps even more now than ever. Climate swings are leaving some homes in ashes, others drowned out. Water is quickly becoming recognized as not necessarily an infinite resource. And food is itself now loaded with questions: Where does it come from? How was it made or grown? How safe is it? One of the biggest concerns is source: According to the David Suzuki Foundation, the average meal travels 1,200 km (750 miles) from farm to plate, emitting massive amounts of greenhouse gases along the way, not to mention losing precious nutrients in its journey to your home. Most people will agree that locally sourced food is…

June 8, 2019 YGK Craft BeerFest forthenry.com Sip on local craft beer and sample grilled goodness while chilling on the hill at Fort Henry, listening to live music till the sun goes down. June 19 to 23, 2019 Skeleton Park Arts Festival skeletonparkartsfest.ca The free, grassroots, multidisciplinary art experience takes place in Kingston on the summer solstice weekend and at pop-up events around town all year round. June 29 to July 1, 2019 Artfest artfestontario.com/kingston Enjoy pottery, glass, wood, jewelry, gourmet food, live music, live outdoor theatre, poetry and more in Kingston’s City Park. July 4 to 7, 2019 Kingston Buskers Rendezvous downtownkingston.ca Join in the fun as buskers from around the world take over the streets of Kingston. August 10 & 11, 2019 Wolfe Island Music Festival wolfeislandmusicfestival.com The…

Summer conjures up visions of sparkling lakes and refreshing dips in the pool. Here in Canada, with our abundant freshwater lakes and rivers, water doesn’t seem a top concern. And yet it is under threat. As Phil Norton explores in this issue (page 27), land development and industry are threatening water quality and quantity. There is good news on the horizon, however, with entrepreneurs like chef Jay Barnard and companies like Aqua Greens and Back40growers finding innovative ways to optimize our resources and reduce waste and water consumption. Barnard, of Freshwater Cuisine in Kenora, Ontario, is helping Canadians get wise to the delicious species our lakes have to offer and is also exploring new ways to reduce waste by finding uses for what would otherwise become discarded fish remains. Turn…

Award-winning Nova Scotia producer and artist Erin Costelo launched her new album, Sweet Marie (Venue Records/Pheromone), last fall. Recorded in 10 days in a timber-frame home on the ocean in Little Harbour, Nova Scotia, the album features some of the best musicians in the country, including Glenn Milchem of Blue Rodeo on drums, Anna Ruddick on bass (Randy Bachman, Ben Caplan) and Leith Fleming-Smith on organ (Matt Mays, Hawksley Workman), as well as Erin’s longtime guitarist and partner, Clive MacNutt. Harrowsmith had the chance to catch up with Costelo, who has been compared to Carole King and Nina Simone. Here, she shares her favourite Nova Scotia haunts. Harrowsmith: You were born in Nova Scotia and then left and returned—what drew you back? Erin Costelo: That is a funny story. Let…

When we think about species migrating, our minds conjure up images of birds flying south or herds of elk moving from their winter ranges to the landscapes that will support them throughout the summer months. Rarely, however, do we think of trees relocating from regions where they have lived for hundreds or thousands of years to ones where they have never before been seen. And yet trees do migrate. Not as individuals—those are well and truly rooted to the ground—but as communities that respond to inhospitable changes in their environment by migrating to areas more to their liking. “What’s causing trees to move are natural processes,” says Dan McKenney, head of landscape analysis and applications at the Great Lakes Forestry Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. “I don’t know that…

We’ve lost count of the number of times that we’ve stood silently, morbidly, looking down upon some unfinished farm task, dirty and sweaty, perhaps even a little bloodied, and certainly tired. Always tired. And as we turned our backs on this thing that’s beaten us, one of us would mutter, “Well, live and learn, I guess.” Learning by doing, and by failing, is how we get things done on our homestead in Lynden, Ontario. That seems to be the inevitable rule for all homesteaders. But how we let those mistakes affect us has drastically changed since we started this adventure in April 2013. It was probably 18 months after running full steam into our first little farm that we crashed, and our burnout was so intense that it lasted another…

A longtime fan and regular visitor to the Gates of the Arctic National Park, Joe Wilkins became a U.S. National Park Service volunteer after he retired from teaching mathematics at the University of Illinois Springfield. In his recent book, Gates of the Arctic National Park: Twelve Years of Wilderness Exploration (Brown Books Publishing, 2018), he shares his unique insight into the park as a volunteer. We spoke with Wilkins, who talked about his love of the Arctic wilderness, as well as the dangers and challenges to visitors, wildlife and the park at large. Harrowsmith: When did you first visit the park? Joe Wilkins: I first fell in love with Alaska and the Arctic environment when my mother gave me a book, The Real Book About Alaska, when I was about…

Trout School: Lessons from a Fly-Fishing Master by Mark Hume, with Mo Bradley (Greystone Books, 2019) Among fly-fishers, the Kamloops region in British Columbia’s Thompson-Okanagan is known as one of the best places in the world for catching trout. It owes its reputation in part to Mo Bradley, a master angler known as a pioneer of fly-fishing culture. In Trout School, award-winning author and environmental journalist Mark Hume passes on what he’s learned from his countless hours on—and off—the lake with Bradley. Drawing from more than 20 years of fishing and friendship, Hume shares Bradley’s essential knowledge, including tips and tricks for catching Kamloops trout year-round, detailed instructions for tying 13 signature flies, and advice for a more respectful and ecologically conscious approach to fishing. More than just a guidebook,…

Some months ago, I had the pleasure of speaking with two fascinating people who brought me to tears with their inspiring stories. Joe Wilkins is a former mathematics professor who volunteers with the U.S. National Park Service, an experience he chronicles in his new book, Gates of the Arctic National Park: Twelve Years of Wilderness Exploration. Wilkins spoke with me about his love of the park, which protects portions of the Brooks Range in northern Alaska and is situated entirely north of the Arctic Circle. But it was his passion for nature and the wild that truly captured my heart, and that I’m certain will light up yours as well. (Turn to page 87 for his story.) Laura Zerra is another “wild child,” who is so enamoured with nature that…

If one of your goals in designing your garden is to attract desirable wildlife that is environmentally beneficial to your yard and neighbourhood, this should interest you: a water feature is the most beneficial addition to your yard and garden that you can possibly make. A full-blown pond or a half-barrel-size container full of water and plants will do more to create biodiversity than a swath of petunias or a row of gorgeous cedars, neatly trimmed and manicured. Think of it this way: How long can you survive without water? Ditto the wildlife that would love to live at your place. Sure, the songbirds love your bird feeder and may occasionally splash in your bird bath, but there is more to attracting good things to your garden. Many species make…

Since its birth, Harrowsmith has told entertaining, empowering and informative stories of Canadians walking gently on the earth. Now with our new podcast, Harrowsmith Radio, we put those great stories right between your ears. In each episode, host Wayne MacPhail interviews some of the most interesting innovators, trailblazers and inspirational characters this country can offer. The podcast is a cozy, half-hour soak in a warm audio bath you can slip into any time, anywhere. Like the sound of it? We hope so! Listening is free and easy. Just subscribe on Apple iTunes or wherever you get your fine podcasts.…

We humans are on the horns of a dilemma—we have to eat, but what can we eat that doesn’t damage ourselves or the environment? We’re bombarded daily with conflicting messages about what to eat and what not to eat. Yesterday, butter was a killer; today, it’s keeping us young and our skin dewy. The latest study tells us how good fish is for us, then a headline screams we’re emptying the oceans. Grocery stores have become minefields—palm oil, GMOs, high-fructose corn syrup, inhumane meat and fish. Fish is one of the most daunting food items to buy right, right now. Information is always changing: Farmed or wild caught? This tuna, but not that tuna. Shrimp from here, but not from there. It’s getting so we need a degree in marine…

It’s hard to believe that Canada is one of the worst food wasters in the world. And yet, a 2017 report released by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation found that, when including all stages of the food supply chain—from the farm all the way through processing and distribution to food service and retail—396 kg (873 pounds) of food per capita is wasted in Canada every year. Nose to tail—in which every part of an animal is used—could be seen as the restaurant industry’s answer to making a dent in that shocking statistic. It’s a culinary trend that has grown in recent years, expanding in popularity alongside locally sourced ingredients and farm-to-table menus. Ontario chef Jay Barnard has his own nose-to-tail philosophy, this time involving freshwater fish. “The cool thing about…

Once the capital of Canada, Kingston, Ontario, has a rich history, including as an important military installation. Nicknamed Limestone City for its many heritage buildings constructed using local limestone, the city sits midway between Toronto and Montreal, on the eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River. Today the city celebrates thriving food, arts and music scenes, but be sure to step off-land to explore the nearby Thousand Islands. With all there is to see and do, Kingston is one place to keep coming back to. Here’s what to do around town. Thousand Islands and Boldt Castle Boat Tour If there’s only one thing you do in Kingston this summer, make it a boat cruise exploring the Thousand Islands and Boldt Castle. George C. Boldt…

Kate Golding Wallcoverings Born and raised in the U.K. and now living in Prince Edward County, Ontario, artist Kate Golding sees beauty where others may not. Capturing iconic Canadian moments and vistas in ink with brush and pen—turkey vultures riding an updraft, icebergs sliding past a Newfoundland coastline, garter snakes slithering through tufts of grass—Golding creates daring patterns that lend themselves surprisingly well to wallpaper. But this isn’t the sort of wallcovering for the faint of heart: a certain amount of boldness is required to appreciate and live with this particular brand of beauty. Her three collections—The Great Lakes, Newfoundland and Prince Edward County—are all printed to order in Montreal, and at $145 for each nine- by 26-foot strip, they might not be in the budget for many of us.…