Sustainability

The County of Hastings County includes Hastings County, the City of Belleville and the City of Quinte West and the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, with its forests, farmland, lakes, rivers and small and large communities, is well situated to lead in the field of alternative energy development, conservation of natural resources, sustainable agriculture and forestry and artisan food production.

Harvest Hastings is about living lightly on the land. Sustainability has four sections on land stewardship, tree planting, managing woods and wildlife at Caring for Land; discussion about Climate Change; finfd out about Green Communities, and read about what's happening in Local Agriculture. There are Audio, Videos, and a Photo Gallery. Look for "Know your farmer" video or audio interviews with local farmers and other producers. Web links has l links to local organizations as well as provincial ones. Check Coming Events to find workshops, agricultural events, community meals and much more. Above all get outand explore

Latest Articles

If left untreated, say farewell to Ontario's ash tree

The clock is ticking for Ontario’s ash trees.

The ‘delete’ button was pressed a few years ago and within the next three to five years, all of the untreated ash will be history. The emerald ash borer (EAB) has crept up from the mid-western States, arriving there about 15 years ago from Asia. It begins its nasty work very quickly, gnawing its way under the bark of ash (all Fraxinus species) until they are dead.

In Ottawa, the total number of ash trees represents more than 20 per cent of the tree canopy. Ouch! No matter where you live in the lower portion of Ontario, EAB is one big pain.

Local Forestry

Use local Ontario Wood

May 2, 2013 by Louise Livingstone

Ontario Wood - Look for the leaf. When you choose Ontario Wood, you’re not just making the best choice for building a deck, installing a new floor, or renovating your kitchen; you’re making the best choice for all of us. That’s because our forest industry provides thousands of jobs and sustains hundreds of communities across our province. On top of that, Ontario Wood products are high-quality and cost-competitive and enjoy an excellent reputation around the world.

“Ontario Wood” is an initiative to help you identify and purchase locally made Ontario Wood products. Whether you are a consumer, builder, designer or architect, look for the leaf to be sure it’s Ontario Wood.

Local Forestry

Susan Chan on terroir, vintage and the flavour of honey

May 1, 2013 by Louise Livingstone

Susan Chan, author of "A Landowners Guide to Conserving Native Pollinators in Ontario", spoke to Harvest County beekeepers about the significance of terroir (or the land ) in determining flavour of different honeys. She is keen to develop a language to describe the different flavours of honey. Honey, like fine wine, is a product of the land. Roger and Valerie Kelly of Kellys' Berries organized the event held in Bancroft in early March. They provided an excellent lunch.

This is a recording of her hour-long talk. After the talk we all sampled a number of different honeys and were surprised by the great variety of flavours.

The Hastings Federation of Women's Institutes and the Hastings Cattlemen have invited Susan Chan to talk at the Ivanhoe Veteran Hall in October 10.

China becoming global climate change leader: study

China is rapidly assuming a global leadership role on climate change alongside the United States, a new study said Monday, but it warned greenhouse gas emissions worldwide continue to rise strongly.

The report by the independent Australian-based Climate Commission, "The Critical Decade: International Action on Climate Change" presents an overview of action in the last nine months.

It was released on the same day as a fresh round of UN talks were to start in Bonn on boosting action on climate change -- a two-decade-long process that has been dogged by procedural bickering and defence of national interests.

Climate Change

Declining Bee Populations Pose A Threat to Global Agriculture

The danger that the decline of bees and other pollinators represents to the world’s food supply was highlighted this week when the European Commission decided to ban a class of pesticides suspected of playing a role in so-called “colony collapse disorder.”

Local Agriculture

Liberal government urged to bring back home economics in Ontario high schools

The president of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture says many young people in Ontario don’t know how to prepare a meal from scratch because they have never been shown how.

“We’ve almost got a generation or more who really don’t know how to prepare a meal,” Mark Wales told Premier Kathleen Wynne on Wednesday, when she attended a breakfast meeting at Queen’s Park with federation representatives.

Green Communities

Beekeeping - rural Greece does it best

According to Greek mythology, the god of love Eros dipped his arrows into honey before shooting them. And while other countries are struggling with high bee mortality, that's one global crisis that has yet to touch Greece, where the golden nectar still flows abundantly, free of pesticides and genetic modification.

The rosemary season has ended, but sage is in full bloom.

In the fragrant hills of the Peloponnese in southern Greece, after a few sharp turns along a path, Nikos Reppas' old car arrives at bee heaven: a field full of violet hyacinths, close to the prehistoric ruins of Mycenae

Local Agriculture

Greek bee hives

April 24, 2013 by Louise Livingstone

Photo of Dimitris Tsapelas' bee hives in Greece.

Maple Dale Cheese wins the medium Cheddar category at the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix

Congratulations to the 2013 Cheese Champions!

The Grand Champion and 19 category winners were selected from a record 225 cheese entries submitted by cheese makers from Prince Edward Island to British Columbia. The submissions were then narrowed down to 58 finalists by the jury in February.

Sponsored and hosted every two years by Dairy Farmers of Canada, the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix celebrates the high quality, versatility and great taste of Canadian cheese made from 100% Canadian milk.

Medium Cheddar (aged 4 to 9 months)Medium Cheddar, Maple Dale Cheese, ON

Established in 1888 as a dairy co-op and originally known as Zion Cheese Manufacturing, Maple Dale was purchased in 1987 and is now family-run, specializing in cheddar and especially known for their aged cheddars. Natural aging develops the rich texture and mature cheddar taste with a spectrum of nutty, salty and slightly fruity flavours.