What a difference a week makes! Check out the incredible growth of our raspberry plants.
Our Raspberry Crop’s Week One Growth
While we work mostly as an arts-based group, this time of year is dedicated to our food security and living lab program, established in 2022. For a few weeks in the late spring, our team members transition from our usual artistic disciplines like music, media arts, and craft to the hands-on work of cultivating food crops. This involves preparing the grow boxes, tending to existing plants, and setting up for a productive growing season, and it’s been a lot of work in the hot sun.
See the exciting growth our raspberry crops have achieved in just one week as our food security program gets underway.
This Week’s Progress: Thriving Raspberries and an Exciting Program Year Ahead
Witnessing this transformation is truly inspiring. It reminds us of nature’s resilience and the dedication we’ve poured into this vital project. This second year feels especially meaningful, as we build upon the foundation we established last year. We remain deeply grateful for the incredible support we received in our first year from Manitoba Agriculture’s Indigenous Food Systems and Agriculture Program, the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Global Dignity Canada, and so many other wonderful partners. The initial support we received enabled us to continue building our program.
Our focus extends beyond raspberries. And the great part is, we didn’t have to do the work of planting these ones, as they were put in with last year’s pilot program. With the anticipation of one more final frost, we’re planning to finish up our planting phase. This season, we plan to introduce nearly 30 new apple trees, adding to the six established last year. This year, our crops will also include strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, peppers, cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes, and an exciting addition – giant pumpkins! Follow along with us as we document our progress.
This week though, we’re encouraged by the early successes of the season: the survival and renewed growth of last year’s plants following the winter, and the growing momentum as we enter the second year of our program.
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