HomeMy WebLinkAboutZurich Citizens News, 1978-05-11, Page 18HERE COME THE TOMATOES — One of the crops that will be staying indoors at the Reder
brothers vegetable farm will be this greenhuse full of tomatoes. According to Cam Reder these
tomatoes should be ready to pick in three weeks. Staff photo
Bayfield vegetable farm
is a growing concern
In Ontario, fruits and
vegetables are worth an es-
timated $220 million annual-
ly according to the Ontario
Fruit and Vegetable
Growers' Association and
one local operation that is
part of that picture is Reder
Brother's farm, north of
Bayfield.
It was 1952 when Jake
Reder Jr. moved from the
Leamington area to a piece
of land in Goderich township
that had remained un-
touched since the days of the
Canada Company with only
a large brick house giving
indications of human habita-
tion.
After the land had been
cleared, 50 acres of the san-
dy soil were farmed and a
greenhouse twelve feet by
forty feet was erected to
grow box plants.
Today sees the operation
of four plastic covered
greenhouses, one of the
traditional glass variety and
the changeover of.the farm's
operation to sons Ron and
Cam.
The farm caters primarily
to the tourist trade with the
numerous cottages and
trailer camps being but a
few minutes away.
According to Jake, the site
was originally chosen for the
heat retaining sandy soil in
which such crops as melons,
tomatoes, lettuce, broccoli
and cauliflower are grown.
Cam said that although
they still sell to restaurants
and stores they concentrate
on the tourist trade since
"We have a clientele that is
used to a product."
At the farm everything is
grown from the ground up
with a big boom occurring
when light -weight planting
trays were introduced. The
trays can hold up to 200
plants each which, in the
case of lettuce can be
transplanted to the open
field.
No more is earth used in
the growing of seedlings
with a sterilized, commer-
cially available plant mix-
ture being the preferred
growing medium. Cam said
that the farm goes through
approximately 50 bags of the
LETTUCE NOT FAR OFF — For the consumer who has been
faced with high prices for im ported lettuce, relief is on the
way as lettuce from Ontario growers should hit the markets
in about one month's time. Jake Reder holds a tray containing
200 lettuce plants. About 4,000 of the plants were planted at
the Reder brotherskfarm last week. Staff photo
mixture which contains four
cubic feet each. The com-
bination of the planting
medium and the trays helps
cut plant losses.
Of the plants that will be
growing in the field during
the spring, summer and fall,
100,000 will have been grown
in the farm's own
greenhouses.
"Things have really ad-
vanced a lot in ten years,"
Jake said with one of the im-
provements coming in the
construction of greenhouses.
Most of the greenhouses
which the family firm run,
and constructed in recent
years have been covered
with a two layer
polyethylene film with air
being circulated between
the two layers. This has cut
heat loss by 50 percent, Cam
stated.
Compared to the
traditional glass greenhouse
they cost one tenth of the
price to erect with little or
no maintenance involved.
The special greenhouse
plastic has to be replaced
every two or three years due
to the deterioration caused
by the sun's ultraviolet rays,
but it still works out that the
plastic greenhouses are
more economically feasible.
Although the greenhouses
are kept at their 70 degree
fahrenheit temperature
throughout the winter by oil
fired furnaces, the farm is
investigating the
possibilities of solar energy
to supplement the existing
heating system.
Things have not remained
static in the field what with
increased mechanization
and the ability to irrigate
much of their land during
dry spells.
Another area where the
Reder family is having
success is in the experimen-
tal use of a photo -degradable
mulch on some of their
plants.
The synthetic mulch
decomposes after a specific
period and keeps moisture
and heat' in while reducing
weed growth.
In a half acre plot tried
last year, the farm had their
best sized muskmelons ever,
although they had been
damaged in a spring
windstorm. This year the
mulch will be tried on four
acres with melons, green
peppers and some early
tomatoes being the ex-
perimental crops.
The farm is ever changing
and the Reder brothers
operation is no exception to
this rule.
Citizens News, May 11, 197$
Page 19
uide to Eating
Ontario Sport Fish"
NOWAVAI LE
Environment Ontario has prepared the 1978
"Guide To Eating Ontario Sport Fish" in three editions:
Southern Ontario, Northern Ontario and the Great Lakes.
Each booklet contains a summary of Ontario's
unique fish -testing program.
Ontario
Ministry
of the K.H.Sharpe
Environment Deputy Minister
Hon.George R.McCague
Minister
TO OBTAIN YOUR COPY OF THESE FREE BOOKLETS
Phone, write or drop in to any regional or district office of
The Ontario Ministry of the Environment,
The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources or
The Ontario Ministry of Northern Affairs
or complete and mail this coupon:
[INFORMATION SERVICES BRANCH
ONTARIO MINISTRY OF THE ENVIRONMENT
. 135 ST. CLAIR AVENUE WEST, TORONTO, ONTARIO MAV 1P5
PLEASE SEND ME THE INDICATED BOOKLET "GUIDE TO EATING ONTARIO SPORT FISH"
nNorthern Ontario IT Southern Ontario Ii Great Lakes
INITIALS SURNAME
HOUSE/APT. NO.
STREET NAME/R/R
CITY/TOWN
PROVINCE
POSTAL CODE
0111111111111111111111
IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR
Lawn & Garden Furniture from
ARC INDUSTRIES, DASHWOOD
Picnic Tables
Chairs
Loveseats
Lounges
Pot Stands
Combination Tables
Flower Boxes
Patio Tables
Picket & Lawn Fences
House & Lawn Signs Custom made.
Visit or phone
ARC INDUSTRIES
DASHWOOD, ONTARIO
237.3667
ulunuununtmnmununnluummu Hunnnunnnumm�munnunununnnumnanununnunnnuuunuununlnuiununuunInnnulr