Food Garden Life Show: Helping You Harvest More from Your Edible Garden, Vegetable Garden, and Edible Landscaping

Toronto Microfarm, Compost Tea, Honey, and Bees

Apr 7, 2022 · 1 hr · Season 5 · Episode 14 · 57.8 MB
0:00-1:00:10

Streams straight from the publisher. podnod never proxies or re-hosts episode audio.

The revised fig book is now on Kickstarter
The special hardcover edition of Grow Figs Where You Think You Can’t and registration for the October 15 and 22 Fig Camp are available now. A lower-priced softcover will follow this fall.
See the book and Fig Camp options.
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Crooked Farmz

In the first part of the show, we chat with Sean Smith from Crooked Farmz in Toronto. 


Smith talks about his journey into growing food, learning about soil and composting, and the beginnings of his Toronto microfarm.


Compost Tea by Subscription

He calls himself the “brewer” at the farm. The brew? It’s compost tea.

Along with selling at farmers markets, Smith has taken another route to selling the compost tea: by subscription. 


Home Composting Tips

Some of Smith’s top composting tips:

  • Understand what “brown” and “green” ingredients are, and have some of each
  • Make sure there is enough air
  • Make sure there is enough water


Honey Bees and Native Bees

In the second half of the show, we chat with Missouri beekeeping expert, author, and TEDx speaker Charlotte Wiggins.


Wiggins talks about attracting native bees to gardens, gardening for both native and honey bees, and shares tips and ideas for people thinking about getting into beekeeping.


Tips for People Interested in Keeping Bees

  • Learn beekeeping lingo
  • Join a beekeeping club, make beekeeping friends
  • Take a class about beekeeping
  • Volunteer with local beekeepers
  • Don’t rush getting your own hives, get the hang of things first 


Looking for more beekeeping guidance? Wiggins’ latest book is the award-winning A Beekeeper’s Diary: Self-Guide to Keeping Bees.