InFocus Magazine

Both Cabrera and Vrain are concerned about people’s separation from nature.  “For us there are a number of reasons why we’re doing all this,” says Cabrera.  “Part of it is the writing on the wall about peak oil, and the way agriculture can’t sustain itself, and the wish to be somewhat self-reliant in that regard.  But more than that, one of the things we’ve been working toward is the horticulture therapy component, because whether it’s growing food, growing flowers, or just sitting on a bench enjoying the garden, the activity of gardening is also therapeutic.  It’s like occupational therapy, but it’s done through the medium of the garden.”

She sees the plans for the farm as multi-layered.  “We want to grow food; we want to grow medicine…”

Vrain jumps in to point out one more project in the works—an apothecary garden, a selection of medicinal plants for teaching purposes.  “We have prepared the land,”

Cabrera says.  “In March I’m starting a nine-month apprenticeship program called The Herbal Year: March through November.   People want to learn this; they want to learn about food and medicine, and how to do it themselves.”

Adds Vrain:  “We want to bring people back to this idea of growing your food, of being with the plants, and the healing power of plants.  I have a reasonably dark outlook of what’s coming, in terms of food security, in terms of the economic and even the political situation.  It really drives me to do the garden business and the Seed Savers.”

With respect to the garden, however, there is only optimism.  “In the garden right now there’s a lot going on,” Vrain says.  “In December there were many times that everything on the dinner plate was from the garden.”

“The last day of November we had a dinner party with six couples, and we had a three course meal and everything came from the garden,” Cabrera adds.  “Last night we had our squash, steamed greens and a salad that had three different greens in it”

“We still have carrots, potatoes,” Vrain says. “We have all kinds of collard and kale, all kinds of greens, leeks, we still have lettuce under cold frames—it’s quite productive.”

Both agree that even a smaller area than the seven acres of Innisfree Farm would be sufficient.  “If you wanted to garden intensively, half an acre, for two people, you could do it,” Vrain says.

“You could grow a lot of food, and you’d work!” says Cabrera. “With two people who wanted to garden several hours a week, half an acre would be a lot to take care of.”

Both see a growing hunger for knowledge about gardening, farming and food security.  “I was very surprised at what happened at the last Seed Savers presentation,” Vrain recalls.  “Usually when a speaker is done at an event, people leave, but here everybody stayed, and talked and mingled in groups of three or four—talked to the speaker and talked to me—it went on for half an hour!  There were a lot of new faces to the Seed Savers.”

Another example they cite is the fact that they had 88 people show up to a recent workshop.

“I put an article in the newspaper—we had decided on a date, it must have been mid–August, which was the right time for people to plant for the winter.  We had a very successful workshop here on winter gardening, on what to plant and how to do the hoop houses, and put the plastic on top.  We had a very attentive audience and a lot of new faces.

“We talk often about how grateful we are to be here on a piece of land where we can grow our own food and our own medicine and not be stuck in downtown Vancouver, wondering where our food or our water will come from,” says Vrain.

Cabrera agrees.  “I am so glad that we’ve made this choice.”

For more information visit:

www.innisfreefarm.ca

www.gardenswithoutborders.org

For more about the Comox Valley Growers and Seed Savers Society and this year’s Seedy Saturday event on March 7 visit:

www.cvseeds.bc.ca