Rutabaga Ranch has the ingredients . . .

Preparing for the weekly markets both at home and in Ottawa Jaymie Thurler Henderson

hefts one of the baskets into the delivery van. Left are  Grandma Debbie

Elliott Thurler and team member Kristen Barclay

Friday, Oct. 4th - Over the years we’ve posted notes and photos on this page commenting on or promoting interesting food plates and recipes. More particularly, the food one would enjoy prepared and served at our own table.

It’s never been a secret we do not hesitate to shop at favourite haunts, near and far to gather unusual and or the freshest ingredients available in an effort to create the most authentic flavors possible. And there are times, as we all have experienced living rurally, that the effort to find ingredients at home can be near impossible.

        Some months ago we had posted a story with an agricultural twist, more to do with the subject of dairy production than edible meat or vegetable products. A day or two later we picked up a ringing telephone to be informed, “If it’s fresh vegetables you want visit Rutabaga Ranch in Brinston!”

        Answering that we were not aware of Rutabaga Ranch we asked for directions, and as is the custom in South Dundas we were told, “Just head up to Brinston and take a left. There’s signs all over the place! You can’t miss it!”

        Sounded like welcoming news to us. Thursday morning we turned north off Highway #2 just east of Iroquois, heading straight to Brinston. Obviously an impossible to miss destination, we were on the Brinston Road! 

        At Brinston we turned left, heading west. And soon noted the absence of “signs all over the place!”

        Turning around we made our way back to Brinston, dropped into the H&I Country Supply, asked directions to Rutabaga Ranch and were warmly greeted with “You not from around here eh?”

        The young lady at the counter told us to “Keep going north on Brinston Road, about a half mile and turn left on Kirker Road. The signs are along the road. You can’t miss it! ”

        While touring Rutabaga Ranch attempting an interview with Jaymie Thurler we learned the nine-acre property was purchased in 2019 by Jaymie and Rob Henderson. Over the past four-years, with the assistance of nine employees and three plantings annually, Rutabaga Ranch has built a strong commercial presence locally, and has successfully worked a noted presence into the National Capital Farmer’s Market communities. 

        Asked how the relative short time has so quickly gained success in an ever growing competitive market, Thurler comfortably answered, “We’re as good as the team we have and in that regard we’re blessed so far.” 

        We would soon learn this young, colorful and caring entrepreneur is also a smart and savvy business person, quick to join the work crew building a greenhouse, discuss agro-ecology and biodiversity and subjects in reference to government sanctioned ‘Certified Organic’, all in a near staccato stream of facts.     

        Thirty-year-old Jaymie was raised on a farm, battled her way through secondary school, attending and not attending her stay at  Seaway in Iroquois, St. Mike’s in Kemptville and North Dundas at Chesterville. She would receive notice of eviction from the school program “more than once”, although eventually worked her way to a secondary school diploma. 

        “I didn’t like school but my Mom hounded me persistently.” admits Thurler, adding with a hearty laugh, “She is the reason I got my Grade 12, and the reason I went to college and loved it!”

        “I studied social workafter High School, and here I am now on a produce farm in Brinston, Ontario,” she says,  sarcastically adding, “So you can see where I’d use that degree every day!” She laughs again.

        Husband Rob Henderson is the ‘mechanical everything” that any agriculture operation utilizing equipment must have.”, Jamie says, further explaining, “He can do anything mechanical. He builds, haggles for and repairs, invents, designs and creates all of our work related machinery. All to maintain the daily operation of the farm.” 

        Rob is also actively involved, near full-time, in an off location business, Hacket and Hill Tree Removal.

        Jaymie and Rob met in secondary school, and ran the sweet-heart gamut all the way to sharing nuptials.  

        “We were never foodies but we did fall in love with vegetables, so this was the obvious way for us to go.” She adds, “And now we’re foodies with a family because we grow food.”

Jaymie Thurler and one of her favourite business slogans . . . 

        “This was actually the cheapest way for us to be farmers,” Thurler admits, pointing out she never lost the desire to do anything else but “be a farmer!” 

        “I really learned about growing produce while attending a program at Ferme des Quatre-Temps in Hemmingford, Quebec,” she says. The  Ferme des Quatre-Temps website offers  “Ferme des Quatre-Temps is an agricultural project inspired by the principles of agro-ecology. It is committed to nourishing our community with the best possible products and training the next generation of farmers. This is achieved drawing from traditional methods of agriculture without pesticides or heavy machinery, where every element of biodiversity plays a role in the sustainability of the farm and its soil.

        ‘We grow organic vegetables, raise pastured beef, forest-pastured pigs, and happy chickens in a respectful manner, and transform our meats and harvests into artisanal charcuteries and preserves.” 

        “Even though the experience truly changed my life, unfortunately,” says Thurler, “Covid stole our opportunity to attend the second year of the program, but it was remarkable enough to go through the initial year.”

        The experience Thurler did take part in during her first year included (from the web site)  “apprentices focus on learning all tasks related to vegetable production: greenhouse production, nursery, direct seeding in the field, harvesting and packaging of vegetables, crop maintenance, selling at the farmers' market, etc.

        “The objective of this first year is to acquire the skills specific to the profession as well as the basic knowledge needed to operate a market garden.

        “Each apprentice is also assigned a responsibility on the farm, such as Harvest Manager or Market Manager.”

        Explaining her adopted method of operation Jaymie Thurler tells us “We’re a bio-intensive, human scale, organic farm operating on a small piece of land as tightly as we can. We have to put a lot of love into the soil to maintain this level of productivity.” She obviously has bought in to the Ferme des Quatre-Temps program.

        “We grow enough food on 1.5 acres to support three-farmer’s markets, our own stand that’s open full time here at home, and a number of restaurants in Ottawa.” She further points out, “We feed a lot of people!”

        The high productivity is accomplished by “It’s very tightly managed, meaning we plant in tight rows to shade and eliminate the weeds, a practice that works out to three times the vegetable production and no weeds,” Jaymie says, adding,      

“Human scale means we don’t use tractors or any other machinery to plant or harvest. We don’t have to allow for barren land for the tractor wheels.”

        “And we  are certified-organic, meaning we pay for inspections and we are certified as being up to the Canadian organic standards.”

        “There’s a lot of responsibility in keeping seed bills, harvest records, and production accounts in order for inspections to take place, but I also believe having that certification in today’s market is important to our customers.” Thurler explains.

“If you can iImagine, we have 22-successions of carrots per season, and that’s just one of the 40 crops we grow!” she continues, “That’s a lot of record keeping.”

        Following Jaymie Thurler through the various growing areas is strenuous to say the least. As she explains her story she is checking the progress of each crop, and doesn’t miss a beat in continuing our talk. 

        “This is our 4th-season,” she announces, “I never really planned to sell to restaurants, but because we start things so early, we do the opposite of most growers. We plant the first crops of the season early, tomatoes, salad produce, so we kinda cornered our 1st-year of the market without realizing it.”

        “Then the restaurants approached us because we have heirloom tomatoes in May and now they’re ordering weekly from our provided list.” Thurler adds, “We send them the weekly list, then we deliver every Wednesday to their restaurants.”

        “They like our product enough to put our name on their menus!” she chuckles somewhat proudly.

         As we tour Rutabaga Ranch Jaymie Thurler points out the packing areas and the walk in cooler where a small stack of drinks and barbecue supplies are piled in the corner.

        “We’re about to have a season end party so this is where we’re now keeping the hot dogs and drinks.” she laughs.

        Not missing a beat she opens the door to the nursery and explains, “All life on our farm begins in our nursery. This is the last of our season so these are the last plants we’ve put in the ground!”

        “It’s crazy,” she adds, “I can’t believe the year is over already!” 

Some of the Rutabaga Ranch team sitting in for a photo-op . . . Jaymie Thurler Henderson photo

        For more than an hour we’ve walked with and questioned Jaymie Thurler about Rutabaga Ranch. She has explained in considerable detail how their operation works for both their customers and themselves. Tending more than 40 crops, multiple plantings, harvesting, washing and packing is but half of the demand. Delivering to Ottawa and operating the markets consumes the balance of their seven weekly work days. Not to mention Rob’s mechanical input. Or the hours spent gathering and preparing a massive inventory of fire wood to feed their single source of heat through the winter, including the spring planting season in the greenhouses.

        This somewhat carefree, hippy-ish duo and their team of employees also care for a variety of farm animals (and a peacock), construct the own greenhouses, and organize free range eggs for the home market. Not surprisingly, all gather to enjoy lunch daily, created and served by the boss-lady.