MARCH 2020 • COUNTRY LIFE IN BC


Island farm takes long view on


climate change More variable weather patterns hold opportunties, risk


by TOM WALKER SAANICH – When Ryan


Vantreight is picking field daffodils in early January, he knows the climate is changing. “Over the last 10 years,


daffodil season has become more and more unpredictable,” says Vantreight, manager of Longview Farms on the Saanich Peninsula. “It’s climate change, whether that gives us snow when we thought we would never have it, or warmer temperatures when we thought we should have snow.”


The problem, Vantreight


says, is that there is no consistency with the weather. “The trend is just change,” he explains. “That’s the problem for farmers. We don’t have anything that we can really go by.” The variability presents challenges in planting and harvest timing. “The last weekend in


January, we were out picking 12-inch daffodils in the sunshine,” Vantreight notes. “Normally, we would just see the leaf tips popping out of the ground and not be picking until late February.” This year, the farm had 250,000 daffodil buds in cold storage, ready for shipping across Canada, by February 8. Securing staff to cover a variable harvest window is a challenge. “If I arrange to bring in


workers from Mexico for January, it might be way too early,” Vantreight points out. “But if I don’t, I might miss picking the 45-acre crop, so it’s better to overcorrect.” He says that foreign


workers are an essential part of his business. “We used to have people lined up across the parking lot for picking jobs in the 80s and 90s,” he recalls.


But now locals have other options. Signs on the


Locate A Dealer Online


countrylifeinbc.com WEEKLY


FARM NEWS


UPDA S TES ES Helping Hellping


ping oYou YOUR


p Helping Y u


Sign up for FREE today.


countrylifeinbc.com einbc.com einbc.co nbc.com Driediger Wealth Planning


Mark Driediger, CFP, FEA, Senior Wealth Advisor Brent Driediger, BAA, CPA, CMA, CFP, Wealth Advisor www.DriedigerWealthPlanning.com | 604.859.4890 Assante Financial Management Ltd.


Insurance products and services are provided through Assante Estate and Insurance Services Inc. Please visit www.assante.com/legal.jsp or contact Assante at 1-800-268-3200 for information with respect to important legal and regulatory disclosures relating to this notice.


1-866-820-7603 | BAUMALIGHT.COM Dale Howe 403-462-1975 | dale@baumalight.com


MFG A VARIETY OF ATTACHMENTS: BRUSH MULCHERS


BOOM MOWERS | STUMP GRINDERS | TREE SAWS & SHEARS TREE SPADES | ROTARY BRUSH CUTTERS | AUGER DRIVES TRENCHERS | DRAINAGE PLOWS | PTO GENERATORS TREE PULLERS | FELLER BUNCHERS


EXCAVATOR ADAPTERS | SCREW SPLITTERS


highway, in BC Transit buses, on Facebook and the farm’s website are essential recruitment tools. “But we only had two people show up today, on top of our regular crew of 16,” Vantreight says. “You are working in muddy fields, and any day can go from sun to snow to sideways rain. … It’s not the most glorious job, but if you have a background in fruit-picking or tree planting, you can pick 11 or 12 boxes a day and we pay $23 a box.” Vantreight says he has


been working to build a 49- person camp for Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) participants in a corner of the farm that’s not arable. The Agricultural Land Commission has turned him down once and he’s housing staff in rental housing pending an appeal of the decision. “If good ag land is lying


fallow and unused, let’s look at that,” he says. “Houses that are too big, I get that. But when you have a bonafide farm that brings workers in every year, employs hundreds of people and ships literally tons of fresh produce a year, I


Adapting to climate change means trying new things. Daffodil grower Ryan Vantreight of Longview Farms stands inside a greenhouse filled with winter lettuce. TOM WALKER PHOTO


think we qualify as someone you should try and help.” He doesn’t feel the ALC’s mandate to protect farmland is helping him. “They need to start


focusing more on supporting farmers. Save the farmers and we’ll save the land, ’cause it will be profitable,” says Vantreight. Thankfully, when the


daffodils are ready, they can See DAFFODILS on next page o


Save TIME & MONEY with an Automated Irrigation Reel Idrofoglia Reel Model G163/200 (2.5x656ft.) $11,895.00


Ideal for any Crop, Vegetable/Corn or Forage.


Moving Your Sprinklers! Province Wide Delivery


No More Langley 1.888.675.7999 Williams Lake 1.855.398.7757


Financial planning for farm families Customized portfolio strategy


  


Farm transition coaching Retirement income planning


13


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52