Market gardening is more than just a business for our family.  We believe that one of the best ways our family can make a meaningful contribution to our community, strengthen the local food system, and help mitigate the climate crisis, is to provide local ecologically grown food and bioregional herbal plant medicines.  We use low-impact human-scale farming and permaculture techniques that mimic natural systems, sequester carbon in the soil, build soil health, protect our waterways, and promote biodiversity.

Growing Practices

• use only organic/open-pollinated/non-GMO seeds
• grow using organic methods without the use of any pesticides or chemicals
• ethically harvest any plants that are foraged
• help protect our waterways and conserve water (by hand-watering, rain water collection systems, garden mulches)
• hand-harvest all vegetables and herbs in small batches when at their peak
• have a relationship from seed to harvest with every plant we grow
• build soil health through adding cover crops, living mulches, compost
• diversify our plantings to encourage pollinators
• use a closed loop approach including zero-waste goals for this property
• use hand tools and human-power to minimize fossil fuel use
• actively practice seed saving of unique and heirloom varieties to help preserve these seeds

Swallowtail Farmstead is a member of:

Seeds of Diversity
National Farmers Union
Direct Farm Manitoba
CSA Manitoba