Hello there and welcome to Owl Creek Farm!
We started out as a garden and recipe blog (Garden of Eatin’ founded in 2008), and a handmade soap and skin care company (Alberta Handmade Soap Co, founded in 2011). The website retains and expands on both areas with our Family Cookbook and Handmade Soap Shop.
In 2017, we bought a quarter section (160 acres) and have been bit-by-bit turning it into a home and working farm. The bare land had just 70 acres of hay, with the rest being a lot of muskeg (peat moss) and trees, with no infrastructure. Over 2 years, we added power, natural gas, a water well, and a septic system, and in 2019, our new modular home was delivered.
2020 didn’t see much in the way of obvious improvements, other than coming up with a farm name, finally. We did got a lot done, but 2020 was, well, 2020, and farming is farming (Murphy’s Law everywhere).
We made substantial progress in 2021, including getting the goat pens fenced and a shelter added, plus a waterer and hay feeder; we got our does and a buck and bred them in mid-late August, we got our garden going, a greenhouse partially started, and some yard creation done mainly just trees.
We’ve spent a few years building up the homestead part of our property, and now we’re concentrating more on the farm side of it. We still need to seed the parts of the yard that we want as grass, and build a rock garden, firepit, and other “homey” things, but most of our effort is now farm related. Chickens may come this year or next, depending on how cheaply we can get them started!
We are currently open to discussions with distributors and/or direct sales for butcher shops, restaurants, etc. We treat every animal in our lives, whether they are destined for food/other needs, or companionship, humanely, and with respect. While we don’t intend to go through the organic certification process, we operate with the certainty that our land, and the animals on it, are ours to care for, not force into submission with engineered crops and detrimental chemicals.
Our soil is the reason we are able to exist on Earth and we believe taking care of it is one of the most important things humans should do. The easiest way to do that is with a cyclical approach of animal husbandry, crop rotation, more expensive and intensive pest and weed control options, and other non-chemical methods of making the land the best it can be so we can pass on those benefits to family, friends, and customers.
The same approaches will be given to our upcoming small flock of chickens, as well as our garden, which we hope to grow large and successful enough to start a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture, simply explained best as direct from farm produce boxes).
We hope you’ll follow along on our journey, please feel free to comment on blog and facebook posts, and send us messages.