The Farm
Summer Roads is located in the "Land Between" in Nogojiwanong/Peterborough County, Ontario. We are nestled in a landscape of lakes, rivers, wetlands, forests, and farms, that is the traditional territory of the Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg. This location defines the climate, weather, watershed, and soil types for our farm.
Our Relationship with the Land
Restoring relationship with the Earth is the guiding principle of our farm. We depend on active biodiverse communities of soil microbes to make our soils healthy and resilient. With healthy resilient soils, plants and animals thrive and grow, water is cleaned, stored and cycled, carbon is sequestered, and nutrient cycling returns to our farm. Every year we learn new things and try to incorporate them into our practices. On the farm, we are going forward in a good way from where we began by integrating keyline design, permaculture principles, food forests, silvopasture, and thermophylic composting into our relationship with this beautiful land that nourishes us.
Integration of Animals
On our farm, animals are in integral part of the cycle of growing. Our sheep (Lucy, Maude, Dottie, Marilla and Fern), and flock of free-range laying hens, Eliza, our goose, and meat chickens rotationally graze through the pastures keeping them healthy. They also provide manure for our composting systems as well as feeding us and our community. On the farm everyday starts and ends with caring for these animals. This is not a chore but a pleasure.
Protection of uncultivated areas
We intentionally maintain the majority of our 10-acre farm as uncultivated space for the non-domesticated animals (insects, birds, amphibians, reptiles, mammals) and plants that also live here with us. Their health is integral to the health of the land and our health. Their presents fills us with joy and curiosity
Silvopasture + Food Forest Project
We are in the process of converting a 2-acre degraded horse pasture into a silvopasture food forest. The system will have many small pastures designed using keyline techniques with food forest and flowering strips between them. We are just beginning this adventure. We hope you can watch it unfold with us over the next few years.
