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Harrowsmith Radio

41 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 2 years ago -

Listen in to Canadians living sustainably.

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Episodes

Up Schitt's Creek and a Walk in a Historic Garden

June 08, 2022 17:30 - 30 minutes - 27.5 MB

The Rundown In this episode, I chat with Andrew Barnsley, an executive producer of the Canadian comedy Schitt’s Creek. We discuss how and why small-town Canada has found a place in the hearts of audiences around the world. Next up, is a walking tour of the historical kitchen garden of Dundurn Castle in Hamilton, Ontario. We learn about how two acres of produce sustained the family of Sir Allan Napier McNab a Premier of the United Canadas in the mid-1800s. So huge gardens and small towns ...

A Reborn Mill and the Sustainability of Birds

May 14, 2022 10:47 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode, we learn how COVID and a fortuitous canoe trip led to an affordable housing expert and an architect buying and giving fresh purpose to a 135-year-old grist mill in Paisley, Ontario. Next, how cities and citizens can make their communities more friendly for birds, and why that makes sense for urban sustainability. So birds and flours all in one episode. By the way, if you want to read Harrowsmith Magazine instead of listen to it you can subscribe to the prin...

The COVID Departure Lounge

March 11, 2022 19:00 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

In this episode, I chat with world traveller and advocate for tossing your bucket list Heather Greenwood Davis about how to think about and tackle travel now that restrictions are being lifted, and maybe, just maybe we can start returning to the new normal. Next up cookbook author Claire Tansey tells us how to get dinner ready faster than a trip to your favourite frozen food aisle and back. So jet planes, and fast cooking all in this episode. The COVID Departure Lounge In 2011 Heather ...

This Old Smart House and Banana Peel Bread

February 08, 2022 21:11 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode, I chat with pioneering tech consultant, keynote speaker, and proud PEIer, Amber MacArthur, AmberMac to her friends. I talk to her about how she turned a 140-year-old Charlottetown house into an eco-friendly smarthome showcase. A showcase sporting 38 lightbulbs you can talk to. Next up, former food stylist and chef Christine Tizzard explains how to shop, cook and dine with zero-waste. Is there a banana peel bread in your future? So, smart appliances and smart eatin...

Good Burdens and a New Table

January 03, 2022 17:00 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode we learn how some burdens, the ones that bring us together in the physical world, can be good burdens. I chat with author Christina Crook about her new book all about just that. Next up, a beautiful cookbook that centres around the seasons, family and a kitchen table. We coming together, all the time, on this audio outing. The Good Burdens of Christina Crook Christina Crook is an author, workshop leader and speaker. She’s also worried that as a species we fail...

Brittlestar and the DIY Tomboy

December 06, 2021 05:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode, we meet up with Canada’s favourite Internet dad, Stuart Reynolds, or as you might know him, Brittlestar - the comedic nemesis of Covidiots everywhere. Next up, that jovial jill-of-all-trades Karen Bertelsen explains why making, fixing, and cooking stuff yourself is good for the planet. So, funny people with a purpose in this episode. By the way, if you want to read Harrowsmith Magazine instead of listening to it you can subscribe to the print version online a...

An Urban Gardening Doc and the Nutella Waiting Game

November 03, 2021 04:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

In this episode we discover the incredible variety of folks, produce, places, and methods involved in urban gardening in Toronto in a new documentary by Jamie Day Fleck called In My Backyard. Next up, a decades-long waiting game played with hazelnuts, farmers, and science. In My Backyard Jamie Day Fleck is a documentary filmmaker and an avid backyard (and soon front yard garden). Her passion for gardening, a well-timed pregnancy, and her film-making chops lead her to make a fascinating d...

Emm Gryner, the Uncovered Voice and Harrowsmith's Food Editor

October 04, 2021 16:00 - 30 minutes - 27.5 MB

The Rundown In this episode Emm Gryner who rocketed from a chicken farm to singing backup for David Bowie talks about how singers, and the rest of us, can uncover the voices we’ve got inside us. Next up, Ilona Daniel, Harrowsmith’s relatively new food editor explains how Anne of Green Gables and a father named Gilbert changed her life.  Emm Gryner - Uncovering Your Voice Emm Gryner’s new book, The Healing Power of Singing, is, yes, a practical guide to becoming a strong singer and m...

The Rock 'n' Roll Chef and the Smartphone of Welding

September 06, 2021 04:30 - 30 minutes - 27.5 MB

The Rundown In this episode a visit with that self-proclaimed culinary charlatan, Bob Blumer, whose new book teaches us all how to make bombs, flavour bombs that is. Speaking of making, our go-to DIY guy Steve Maxell is back, this time to explain why MIG welding is the glue gun of the future. So, bombs and welds all in this episode. Bob Blumer and Flavourbombs Bob Blumer didn’t start out life as a chef. He went to Western for business, sold heavy metal t-shirts at concerts, managed ...

The Weather Wizard and the Jungle Farm Queen

August 09, 2021 04:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode, we spend a little time under a virtual umbrella with Harrowsmith’s go-to weatherman, Mark Sirois. Mark’s been doing long-range forecasting for the Harrowsmith Almanac and extreme weather prediction for Southern Quebec for years. Now a modern home weather station has empowered him to think big and broad. Next up Alberta farmer Leona Staples on how entrepreneurship and innovation have kept her farm alive and adapting for generations.  Mark Sirois and Predicti...

Cattle Tales and Memories of Hay

July 05, 2021 04:30 - 30 minutes - 28.4 MB

The Rundown In this episode we go deep into Canada’s beef industry with a young woman who grew up on an Ontario beef farm,  consults to the government about Canadian agriculture, is a politician herself, and can covert vegans to meat-eating on social media. Next up, an elegiac and informative meditation on that most prosaic of feeds, hay. Both interviews are food, for thought. Amanda Brodhagen and Cattle Tales  Amanda Brodhagen has been around beef since birth. She grew up on a cattl...

First We Eat, From Nose to Tail

June 07, 2021 04:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode we meet the woman behind a remarkable Canadian documentary, “First We Eat”. Suzanne Crocker takes us behind the scenes of a film she made about the transformative year when she inspired her family to eat totally local for twelve months. In Dawson City, hard by the Artic Circle, through the winter.  Next up, Ontario farmer Ken Dam talks about going whole hog, eating pork from nose to tail as a way of honouring the animal. So, eating honourably and locally all i...

The Longevity of Earth Day and Farming Mars

May 10, 2021 04:30 - 29 minutes - 27.4 MB

The Rundown In this episode a visit with an environmental non-profit that has weathered political, social, and ecological storms and shifts. Earth Day has been around since the Guess Who’s American Woman topped the Billboard charts and the hole in the ozone layer wasn’t even on our radar screen. In the distant 70s. Earth Day Canada was born in the 90s and has been growing and adapting ever since. I chat with the organization’s director about its legacy and longevity. Next up, I talk to our...

Grow Hope, Save the Pollinators

April 10, 2021 04:30 - 29 minutes - 26.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode we go all-in on planting, planting gardens that are gyms, therapy, and workplaces that don't take a lot of work. And planting that attracts pollinators, our little at-risk insect pals that do all the heavy lifting when plants want to have sex, with a middle man.  Elizabeth Peirce and Grow Hope Elizabeth Peirce is an award-winning author, a mom, and an avid and frugal gardener in Halifax, Nova Scotia. In her new book, Grow Hope, she brings a fresh take on sta...

Lest We Forget the Farmerettes and Early Planting

March 10, 2021 05:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown In this episode, you’ll hear the remarkable story of the Farmerettes, a brigade of young Ontario women who saved the crops of Southern Ontario during World War II. You may not have heard of the Farmerettes, I know I hadn’t until prepared for this interview, but it’s a story you won’t forget.  Next up our intergenerational gardening gurus Mark and Ben Cullen give us some tips on why waiting for May 24 to plant is a mug’s game. So two stories about getting back into the good ea...

Healthing and 4H

January 11, 2021 05:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown  This episode is about the 5 Hs. First, there’s the H in healthing.ca, a website that amplifies the voices of those living with diseases and disorders and who are looking for options for healthy lifestyles. The next of the five are four H’s are in the 4-H club of Canada …. So, five Hs, six, if you count Harrowsmith, which we do. Lisa Machado and healthing.com Lisa Machado is the executive producer of healthing.ca. And that relatively new website is partnering with Harrowsmi...

Northern Tales, Farmers and Food Banks

December 11, 2020 05:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown This episode takes us on an arctic journey where we explore the life and words of a remarkable Canadian, children’s author and storyteller  Michael Kusugak. Next, the story of how thousands of farmers across the country have assisted the Canada Food Bank to ensure food security for all Canadians and help defeat hunger even in the darkest times.  Michael Kusugak and the Power of Stories Michael Kusugak grew up in Repulse Bay, almost a stone’s throw from the Arctic Circle. As...

Native Plants and Connecting Canoes to Communities

November 09, 2020 05:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown This episode is about native plants and a mode of transportation that couldn’t be more homegrown in this country if it tried - the canoe. First up, Mark Cullen, our perennial, and annuals, gardening experts fills us in on how native plants benefit gardens, birds, bees and well, the environment in general. Next up James Raffan of the Canadian Canoe Museum explains the lowly watercraft speaks to us as old and new Canadians alike. From coneflowers to canoes, all in one episode. ...

Of Hens and Hops

October 12, 2020 04:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

This episode is about hens and hops. First up, we head out to Port Hope and learn raising urban chickens, not just for the eggs, but for the companionship.  Next, Ben Cullen, the youngest generation of the Cullen garden dynasty, tells us about hops as an ornamental. They’re not just for IPAs any more. Signe Langford on Raising Chickens Signe Langford is a cook, a book author, a gardener and a lover of all things chicken. She grew up with hens and then, years later, rediscovered their w...

A Japanese Garden, Pyramid Wine and the Tenacity of Plants

September 10, 2020 16:00 - 30 minutes - 27.5 MB

The Rundown This episode is about what plants, especially native plants, can teach us about thriving in adversity. We also discover an unlikely Japanese garden in Lethbridge and a B.C. winery where sacred geometry, a pyramid and a reverence for the earth has nurtured award winning vintages. By the way, if you want to read Harrowsmith Magazine instead of listen to it you can subscribe to the print version online at harrowsmithmag.com and you can find Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newss...

A Fish Tale and Buffalo Cheese

August 10, 2020 16:00 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

This episode  is about how a Moroccan stamp entrepreneur became a fish magnate whose offspring are shipping fresh tuna right to your door. And, we learn about why buffalo milk makes 3 per cent from cows look like skim.  Seafood Crate When Phil Behaim’s father, Marc first came to Canada from Morocco, he sold collectable stamps, stamp tweezers and anything else an avid philatelist could want. Then he got the idea of importing octopus and other sorts of seafood and grew his company into   I...

The Duck Handshake and a PEC Tour

July 13, 2020 05:00 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

This episode is a third generation duck farm and a remarkable multicultural handshake that rocketed the unusual poultry farm to success. Next up, an intimate tour of Price Edward Country, bottomless lake and all. King Cole Ducks Patti Thompson is one of four sisters who run King Cole Ducks near Stouffville, Ontario. That farm has been running for almost 70 years. It was a bit of an oddball at first, ducks just weren’t as popular as beef and chicken in the fifties,  but a few decades late...

Mushrooms From the Edge, Beer in the Heart

June 14, 2020 16:00 - 30 minutes - 27.5 MB

This episode is about mushrooms from the edge of Canada and beer from the heart of the nation. First up, Stephanie Lipp co-founder of Gillis Naturals tells us about how she and her partner Leo have launched a mushroom farm in Bonavista Newfoundland. Yes, devoted listeners,  that’s the same place the Newfoundland Salt Company calls home. Next, we learn about how Harrowsmith inspired craft brewing and the dozens of reasons Ottawa is the beer capital of Canada. Stephanie Lipp was an Ontario g...

The Rhythms of Nature and the Buzz of Bees

May 14, 2020 19:53 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

This episode takes us down on the farms - first to a sheep farm near Perth where we learn about the capricious rhythms of Mother Nature from a farmer and cello instructor. Next, to Dr. Dolittle of a farm – Caberneigh Farms – jubilant with animals and abuzz with newly hived bees lost in their own dances and rhythms. All in all, a timely podcast that gets us back to our roots. By the way, if you want to read Harrowsmith Magazine instead of listen to it you can subscribe to the print version ...

Remembering Wingfield Farm and Trees for Heroes

April 08, 2020 20:40 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

The Rundown This episode is about plays, a fictional farm, heroes and highways. I start off by chatting with Dan Needles, a mainstay for Harrowsmith readers and the author of the WIngfield Farm mediaverse. We touch on turnip-mashing drudges, the parallels between Walt and Dan and how Needles is taking to the boards himself these days. Next up, Mike Hurley tells us about the ambitious charity, the Highway of Heroes Tree Campaign, that aims to plant a tree for every man and woman who’s serve...

Of Blooms and Bees

February 11, 2020 12:17 - 27 minutes - 25.7 MB

The Rundown In this episode we combine two natural, literally natural partners, blooms and bees. First up I chat with Terry Caddo, the executive director of Canada Blooms, a venerable gardening show that will soon be celebrating 25 years of gardening glory. Next up, we decode honey jar labels. For almost a quarter century the Canada Blooms show in Toronto has brought gardens, gardening wisdom and gardening supplies and suppliers under one roof for a giant garden celebration. The next one...

Dr. David Suzuki and the Christmas Walking of the Goats

December 16, 2019 05:30 - 31 minutes - 29.3 MB

The Rundown A while back I got to meet one of my heroes, Dr. David Suzuki. He had just published Letters to my Grandchildren, a heartfelt retrospective of his life, learnings and legacy. I got to sit down with him in the David Suzuki Foundation offices to chat about that life. Next, a visit with a different family and a very different life. I chat with Danielle French, the owner of South Pond Farms in the Kawarthas. We talk family, food and the walking of the goats. End Notes Want more H...

Winterizing and Big Bags of Bird Seed

December 09, 2019 15:57 - 28 minutes - 26.3 MB

The Rundown This episode features a return visit from Harrowsmith’s resident handyman from Manitoulin Island, Steve Maxwell. This time out Steve offers some good, and timely advice about how to keep your house warm in the winter. You can learn more about Steve and his tips at https://baileylineroad.com Next up, another timely topic, bird seed. I visit with Barry Bogel, who runs a bulk seed business on equipment his grandfather would recognize. Ten pounds bags of seeds? That’s for punte...

City Gardens and Christmas Leftovers

December 05, 2019 17:11 - 22 minutes - 20.5 MB

  This episode begins with a chat with guerrilla gardener, gardening planner and writer Lorraine Johnson about the bounty that can be had from gardens in every nook, cranny and backyard in our cities. Next up, a seasonal exercise in making good use of holiday leftovers. Harrowsmith food writer Signe Langford, you might remember her from the exploding chestnuts, salvages carcasses, toasts stuffing and murders for a curry. You can learn more about Lorraine's writings at http://www.douglas-...

Hempbassadors and Christmas Chestnuts

November 29, 2019 12:27 - 30 minutes - 27.7 MB

The Rundown In this episode I get the lowdown on one of the most misunderstood and maligned crops in North America, hemp. It’s a delicious breakfast topping, it’s a construction material, it’s great for clothing and plastics! Stop, you’re all right. I speak with hempbassador Marie Eisenmann about the fibre of the future. Next up, food writer and chef Signe Langford tells us all about delicious and dangerous chestnuts and how to weaponize them. Marie Eisenmann is a hempbassador. She and h...

Living Off the Grid and Coffee Alternatives

November 27, 2019 13:18 - 29 minutes - 27.4 MB

The Rundown We start this episode talking about living off the grid using solar, wind, batteries and a generator with Canada’s handyman and Harrowsmith contributor, Steve Maxwell. Then, on a lighter note, but with no less energy, I speak with Signe Langford, Harrowsmith’s food editor about alternatives to hot chocolate on cold winter evenings, on the grid, or off.  You can learn more about Steve Maxwell at https://baileylineroad.com/ Signe Langford's writings can be found at https://ww...

From the Wildfire Into the Soup Pot

November 25, 2019 05:30 - 27 minutes - 25.1 MB

The Rundown This episode starts with a sobering conversation with science writer Vanessa Farnsworth about the wildfires that have ravaged the West, including, most recently, California - and in 2017, B.C.. We talk about how human-induced climate change has a lot to answer for and what we can all do to fight the fires, or their consequences, anyway. Next, into to soup, soup bred of compost and stone. Western Wildfires and Human-induced Climate Change A study published in Earth’s Future ...

Women in Agriculture and a Royal Winter Fair

November 21, 2019 05:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MB

The Rundown In this episode we talk about the changing role of women in agriculture and the future of the largest agricultural fair in the world. I speak with Iris Meck, the force behind the Advancing Women in Agriculture conference.  And I chat with the CEO of the Royal Agriculture Winter Fair about  produce, horses and, yes, royals. Women and Agriculture Conference Since 2014 The Advancing Women in Agriculture has brought together women from across Canada to share, learn and grow and...

Feeding Winter Birds and Crafting Homemade Cider

November 08, 2019 17:37 - 28 minutes - 26.2 MB

Mark and Ben Cullen, a father and son dynamic duo of gardening expertise, have been guiding home-based horticulture fans for years, decades and now, generations. This time out they team up to guide you to getting the best birds in your backyard this winter. Along the way, they shatter a couple of myths, crack jokes and diss cracked corn.  Craig Daniels works at Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto as a a project manager and scientific writer and editor. So, it’s not surprising that he and...

Growing Up, and Growing Strong

July 01, 2019 04:30 - 29 minutes - 23.8 MB

The Rundown When Ken Dam was diagnosed with a malignant melanoma he started getting really serious about the food he was putting in his body. Ken’s fine now, but his quest to eat healthy propelled he and his wife Clare into an adventure of homesteading near Copetown, Ontario. It didn’t go as planned. But, the Dams are still at it, eight years later. They’ve learned a lot, learned what they don’t like and discovered what they’ve come to love. I spoke with Clare about their journey. Aquapo...

A Garden of Varieties and the Water of Our Discontent

June 01, 2019 04:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

This episode of Harrowsmith Radio is about extraordinary vegetables, wild weather and the water it brings with it. First up, we head to the east coast, the outskirts of Halifax, Nova Scotia, to be exact. There we meet Niki Jabbour. Niki’s a bestselling gardening writer and author of Veggie Garden Remix. She's discovered hundreds of vegetables beyond the rank and file tomatoes, lettuces and squash and other produce you might have already tucked into the soil of your garden. Ground cherries ...

Truffle Farming in Ontario and a Tick Invasion

May 01, 2019 04:30 - 34 minutes - 27.6 MB

Adam Koziol - Earthgen International Adam Koziol used to be an ad man in Toronto. Then he and a friend got a crazy idea of growing mahogany trees with superpowers roots in the Caribbean. Over the years that idea morphed into something even more fantastic, growing truffles from the roots of hazelnut and oak trees in Ontario. Working with Spanish scientists Adam has inoculated young trees with the stuff that truffles are made from. He’s sold those trees to over thirty growers in Ontario who n...

Gardens That Heal

April 01, 2019 04:30 - 31 minutes - 25 MB

This episode of Harrowsmith Radio is all about gardens and their value to our minds, bodies, spirits and communities. First up, I speak with Mitchell Hewson, a veteran horticultural therapist who use the growth, resilience and hope of renewal that gardens offer as a balm on the troubled minds and bodies of those in need of rebirth. Next, I catch up with Heather Phaneuf, who fills us in on how to start a community garden in a lot near you.  Mitchell Hewson Horitcultural Therapy is used ...

Gardens That Heal

April 01, 2019 04:30 - 31 minutes - 25 MB

This episode of Harrowsmith Radio is all about the gardens and their value to our minds, bodies, spirits and communities. First up, I speak with Mitchell Hewson, a veteran horticultural therapist who use the growth, resilience and hope of renewal gardens offer as a balm on the troubled minds and bodies of those in need of rebirth. Next, I catch up with Heather Phaneuf, who fills us in on how to start a community garden in a lot near you.  Mitchell Hewson Horitcultural Therapy is used a...

The Lemons Below, the Stars Above

March 01, 2019 05:30 - 33 minutes - 26.8 MB

The Rundown This episode of Harrowsmith Radio is about hydroponics, subtropical fruit in Canada and the stars in the winter sky. We begin on the opposite coast from last episode. Last time we visited a salt maker in Bonavista, Newfoundland. This time we travel to Salt Spring Island off the coast of British Columbia. There we find Jane Squier, who’s nurturing a citrus grove under glass (well, poly, really). Next we look up, way up, and ask Harrowsmith’s resident astronomer, Rob Dick why it is...

Salt from the Rock and Ice for the Rink

January 22, 2019 19:55 - 33 minutes - 30.7 MB

Some of you listening may not be that familiar with Harrowsmith. While this is a podcast, Harrowsmith began as a groundbreaking Canadian magazine. It came to life on the kitchen table of James Lawrence in Camden East, Ontario in 1976. Back then it didn’t seem likely that his vision of a national magazine on the virtues of getting back to the land would last.  But before long Harrowsmith took off, quickly attracting legions of fans. Tapping into an urban desire to move to the country, the m...

Guests

David Suzuki
1 Episode