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Norfolk Farms

For The Love of Farming

Regardless of how many hours in a day a farmer spends ‘working’, he will be the first to tell you that the work is never really done.


Two people standing in front of a greenhouse
Left : Niraj Grajurel. Right : Sandesh Acharya

For J P Gural his days are long, his chores constantly changing and there is no need for a watch…if it needs to be done he just gets it done. As a third generation of farming heritage, farming has been his long-time passion, with little time to stop and visit, so you just go with the flow, follow along and you’ll soon learn just what is involved in running the operation.

When I visited his Boston,Ont. farm, I found J.P. and his crew …Sandesh Acharya and Niraj Gajurel, both from Nepal… working out the logistics and challenges of erecting a 75’ long and 24’ wide greenhouse from the ground up while fighting the wind. While they weren’t able to complete the project that day they persisted and had it up and standing in just a matter of a few days.


Picture 1: Survived the winter in ground! Picture 2 & 3: A Sampling of Stormin’ Garlic products at Simce Farmer’s Market

Gural’s main crop is his garlic. He first incubates the seedlings at his other farm location on Conc.5, under lights, then transfers them to the protected greenhouse where they will remain until they are ready to be replanted in the adjacent fields.  In total he will have about 9 acres of garlic in 2024. Other crops at Gural’s farm will include Tiger eye beans, scapes and fiddleheads. When the crops are ready, they will be harvested and prepared for sale in their certified kitchen, located at their Conc. 5 farm.


“I rotate my 9 acres of garlic every 4 years between potatoes, tomatoes, corn, spinach, kale, sweet chard…just a few of the alternate crops. Heirloom tomatoes are a popular choice of market shoppers largely because of their many shapes and colors. Last year I planted 25 varieties and have done as many as 90”.

 

Gural’s real love is working the farm as it is absolutely blue collar. “It grew out of a family’s commitment to preserve a farm after witnessing global food shortage, conflict and poverty” adds Gural. “It has been 14 years of challenges but you just breathe deep, figure it out and keep on going. We also produce fermented, canned and freeze- dried products that are popular sellers at not only Simcoe Farmer’s Market but the Good Bread Company (now in Port Dover) as well as Evergreen Brick Works, Bayview Ave., Toronto.“ Gural went on to explain that Brick Works is  ‘a place where nature and community come together…a place where the world can experience sustainable practices that enable thriving cities of the future. ‘


For Gural his philosophy for his farm is seeds + dirt + water + light + time + love to community and Farmer’s Markets. “It’s been a journey of learning, growing and sharing for me” …and one he truly loves. He provides some of the most unique heirloom varieties of local produce such as vegetables, grains and preserves. It’s been said that Gural will introduce customers to anything related to garlic.


Samsara Fields grew out of a family’s commitment to preserve a farm and it became a path of healing and love in return. Gural continues to do his part to provide heirloom fresh food throughout the growing season and provide local food security.


You can follow Gural on Facebook under Samsara Fields Organics. You can check out Samara Fields Organics every Thursday at the Simcoe Farmer’s Market, from 8 am to 3pm. Not only can you purchase from Gural you can also shop other vendors for everything needed to tease your tastebuds while shopping fresh and local. 



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