Good Bones Farm

Who else is dreaming of fresh summer produce? 😅

Yesterday I hit up Seedy Sunday at Boreal and picked up this loaf of haskap berry sourdough from our friends Hazel & Rosemary Micro Bakery & Kitchen. So this morning I made a grilled cheese inspired by the "Dad Bod" from Red Door Provisions in Ottawa. My version was made with our candied jalapeños (2025’s crop was extra hot 🥵), 2 year aged cheddar, cream cheese and, in lieu of bacon, a third cheese - mozzarella.

I had been wanting to make my own candied jalapeños for years, and I’m delighted that I have a few jars of these spicy sweet treats to get me through the winter. Fingers crossed for another bumper crop this year, so y’all can make your own cowboy candy when we return to the market this summer 😉

In the meantime, don’t mind me drooling over pictures of tomatoes while I finish planning the garden!

Bulk tomatoes and a few odds and ends 🍅🫑

It’s not too late to make salsa! I have a couple of flats of very ripe tomatoes that would be perfect to make salsa or sauce this weekend. $20 per flat (and I’ll throw in a few extra tomatoes from my stash of "seconds").

If you’re looking for a smaller quantity of tomatoes or green ones, reach out and I’ll see what I can do.

Also available:
-Bell peppers (red/orange/green) $5 for 2
-Snacking peppers (mixed colours) $5/quart
-Ground cherries $6/quart
-Tomatillos (limited quantities) $6/quart
-Sunchokes (harvested upon request) $6/quart

***Please reach out in advance via messenger to place an order and arrange for pick up at the farm in Val Caron***

In the iconic words of Britney Spears: “Oops!…I did it again” 😅 I bit off more than I could chew and burnt out mid season, but I haven’t forgotten about you! So I’m finally back with a long overdue update.

Thank you to everyone who looked for us at the Sudbury Market, checked this page, or reached out via messenger or phone! I truly appreciate that people want to support this little farm. And a big thank you to Jane and the Sudbury Market for being so flexible and understanding.

This year was difficult. It started with those few weeks of heavy rainfall early in the summer. Our primarily clay soil was perpetually waterlogged. (I’ve attached a picture of the current state of the road to the field to give you an idea of what that looks like.) And I watched seeds and young plants rot in the ground. The plants that survived were stressed and slow to bounce back. The frost came early. The pests were voracious. And the list goes on…

I did my best this year, but ultimately the scale of the garden has been a tad ambitious. However, it has Good Bones… So I’ll strip it down to the studs and rebuild something that can weather the storm. Mother Nature may be getting more unpredictable, but where there’s a will, there’s a way and I’ve been called stubborn on occasion 😉

We look forward to seeing you again next year!

Until then,
Sam

We aren’t at the market for a couple of weeks while we get work done in the field! Keep an eye on our page for updates on when we’ll be back.

In the meantime, I hope your seedlings are doing well! Our thermometer read 0°C this morning in the Valley 🥶 Fingers crossed for warmer nights moving forward.

THANK YOU to everyone who came out to the Sudbury Market annual Gardener’s Day Market last Saturday!! Your support truly blew us away 🥹❤️ It was particularly appreciated after we ended up with an emergency vet bill on Sunday because Turnip found a baby porcupine… (Both are ok)

Chriss and our friend, Ben, will be at the market today with what’s left of our seedlings. You can find them *inside* Elm Place Mall, 9am to 2pm.

I pulled a few more cherry tomato plants from the farm’s stock, since we sold out last week. There’s even a handful of larger Sweet Million plants available for $10 😉 Other instock seedlings that sold out (or weren’t available) last week include: ground cherries, slicer cucumbers, bell peppers, sprouted sunchoke (Jerusalem artichoke) tubers and basil. Most varieties are in limited quantities, so get to the market early!

Lastly, they also brought a few bunches of fresh asparagus!

Tomato sneak peek!

The seedling sale is TODAY at 9 am and we have 25 different types of tomato seedlings!! However, many of the varieties are in extremely limited quantities (i.e. 2 to 4 plants). So if you see something you are interested in, get to the Sudbury Market early.

Beefsteak varieties:
-Crnkovik
-Sam Hiebert Mennonite
-Striped German
-Black Krim
-Yellow Radiance
-Mennonite Orange
-Oaxacan Jewel
-Absinthe
-Pink Berkeley Tie-Dye

Cherry varieties:
-Sweet Million
-Sweet Baby Girl
-Principe Borghese
-Dancing With Smurfs
-Black Cherry
-Sungold
-Sunrise Bumble Bee

Slicer varieties:
-Moskvich
-Quebec #13
-Jaune Flamme
-Black Zebra
-Green Zebra
-Wapsipinicon Peach
-Lucid Gem

Paste varieties:
-Amish Paste
-San Marzano

See you soon :)

Our seedling sale is in TWO days!!

We’ll be outside the Elm Place Mall on Saturday May 31st, 9am to 2pm, as part of the annual Gardener’s Day Market with Sudbury Market and Sudbury Horticultural Society.

As usual, tomato plants will be the star of the show! By popular request, this year we have paste tomatoes, as well as cherry, slicer and beefsteak tomatoes in a variety of colours. We’ll have other vegetable seedlings, including peas, beans, cucumbers, zucchini, peppers, eggplants, as well as assorted herbs.

The Gardener’s Day market is coming up quickly, and our vegetable seedlings are doing well! Fingers crossed for a few nice days to give them one last growth spurt before May 31st 🤞☀️🌱

We’re thrilled about the vibrant group of local vendors lined up for this year’s Gardeners Day on May 31st at the Sudbury Market! Whether you're a plant lover, a garden newbie, or just here for the good vibes — there’s something for everyone.

Expect fresh finds and local flair from:

🌼 Beckie’s Creations • Good Bones Farm • Wildflower Seed Acres • Northern Wildflowers • HouseLeaf • McGrows Farms • Villam Farms Sudbury • Long Lake Honey • and more!

🗓️ Join us for a day of community, creativity, and green inspiration!.

The season isn’t over just yet! We still have lots of good food available for pick up in the Valley, including the surprise return of your favourite summer turnips 😉

Here’s what we currently have:
-Summer turnip bunch $5 (turnips are currently about the diameter of a loonie, meaning more turnips per bunch and a ton of edible turnip tops for salads or stir fries)
-Purple top turnip 2.5lb bag $5
-Sunchokes/ Jerusalem artichokes quart $6 (nutty, earthy flavour perfect for roasting or pan frying)
-Winter radish 2lb bag $6 (Choose only watermelon radish or do a mix with purple, green and white daikon as well)
-Red radish bunch $3
-Carrot bunch $4
-Red or green tomatoes $2 for individual large, $5 per quart, $10 per 3L basket
-Cherry tomato quart $5
-Tomatillos $6 per quart or $12 per 3L basket
-Ground cherry quart $5
-Green bell peppers $2.50 for individual large, $5 per quart (2-3 medium/large), $10 per 3L basket (small/medium peppers)
-Poblano pepper quart $5
-Spaghetti squash $5
-Red kuri squash $4
-Acorn squash $4
-Butternut squash $4
-Small delicata squash $2
-Small summer cabbage $3
-Medium winter cabbage $5
-Mixed greens 150g bag $5
-Bok Choy bunch $5
-Green or black kale bunch $4

Send us a message to place an order and arrange a time for pick up on the farm! We aren’t set up for drop ins and some items are harvested to order, so please reach out in advance. Thank you!

Many of you will be feasting with friends and family this weekend, so why not nourish your loved ones with vegetables grown with care here in Val Caron? Not to mention that tomorrow is our LAST DAY at the Sudbury Market!! Find us inside Elm Place 9am to 2pm, Saturday October 12th.

We will have:
-Winter squash (spaghetti, acorn, red kuri and delicata)
-Sunchokes/ Jerusalem artichokes
-Fingerling potatoes (red, purple and white, very limited quantities)
-Mixed winter radishes (watermelon, green, purple and white daikon)
-Classic red radishes
-Carrots
-Purple top turnips
-Green onions (mixed red and white, or shallots)
-Yellow and green beans
-Bell peppers
-Poblano peppers
-Tomatoes (red, green, limited heirlooms)
-Cherry tomatoes
-Tomatillos
-Ground cherries
-Bok Choy
-Mixed greens
-Green and black kale
-Swiss chard
-Cabbage
-Kohlrabi
-Parsley (curly and flat)
-Mini herb bunches (thyme, sage, oregano and rosemary)

The sun feels extra dreamy this time of year ☀️

The frosts last week wiped out the tender cucurbit plants from both the field and high tunnel. So I took full advantage of the beautiful weather on Monday to harvest the pie pumpkins and remaining squash from the patch. I’ll leave the luffas to cure a little longer on the vines though.

I also can’t get over the flowers on the Jerusalem artichokes this year! Last year a hard frost killed the buds before they had time to open. This year hundreds of yellow flowers are swaying on the tops of these towering 10 foot tall plants 🌼🌼🌼