Farm
Saskatchewan
You've never been to the prairies? You've probably been told there is nothing to see there! Think again! Do you know there are antilopes in southern Saskatchewan? Have you ever seen a full double rainbow? A full moon over a rolling field of wheat? A storm coming from 40 km away and not an obstacle in the way to block your view? A family of foxes fooling around in the ditch? Millions of birds you can watch at your leisure since they have nowhere to hide? Why do you think Saskatchewan is called "Land of the living skies"!
I have been all over the world but have chosen to settle here, raised my family and grow our food. We have been farming 1120 acres of organic cereals, legumes and oil seeds (Spelt, French Green lentils, Brown flax, wheat) for over 35 years. We also have our own cleaning plant : we clean, bag and export our products to Europe and the USA.
For the past number of years, we have been building our own log house and doing everything ourselves with very little help.
In the summer, we have laying hens and chicks to take care of. We have apple trees, choke cherry trees, black and red currants, Seabuckthorn, Saskatoons and raspberries which we harvest to make our own jams, jellies and syrups.
We have a large garden to weed and care for as well as 20 000 trees we have planted over the years. Not to mention lots of landscaping for our future home sight!
In August, we start harvesting our lentils and garden. There is lots of work picking fruits and vegetables, cleaning and, canning or baking.
So, from farming, to building, gardening, landscaping, canning, homeschooling and jamming sessions (pardon the pun!), there is room for all the talents, interests and strong arms in the world!! Not to mention bird watching and taking a dip in Lac Pelletier after a hot day's work!
French is our mother tongue, but English is also spoken fluently. Some German and Spanish is spoken. Musicians are welcome! I will be alone with our two teenagers this summer so I need people that can help around the kitchen as well!
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Fruit or nut farming
Grain farming
Poultry farming
Forestry
Flower farming
Green Building
Renewable energy production
Food justice / sovereignty
Mechanics / tools / technology
Methods or systems
Holistic management
No-till farming
Regenerative agriculture
Host type
Production farm
Certified organic
550
Hectares
|
1,359.1
Acres
Accommodation
Henri
Member since 2010
Languages spoken:
English, French
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 40%
Response time: typically within 1 day
Saskatchewan
Saskatoon, Regina or Medecine Hat bus station and/Or airport
Reviews
Johan
France
•
July 2024
J'ai passé un agréable séjour chez Henry et Samuel. J'ai beaucoup aimé discuter avec eux, j'ai appris pleins de chose sur l'agriculture en Saskatchewan et sur le Canada en général, c'était très enrichissant. Merci beaucoup pour votre accueil !
PS : ça y est je suis dans les montagnes
Reply from Henri
Que dire de Johan? Travail motivé, mêtiiculeux et complet. Un homme intéressant et intéressé. Samuel et moi ont beaucoup apprécié ta visite. Porte toi bien Johan!
Jamie
Canada
•
July 2024
Thank you to Henri and Samuel for sharing your knowledge about farming in Saskatchewan with me. They were charming hosts, making sure that I was well-fed and comfortable. Farm chores were thoughtfully selected. Thank you!
Reply from Henri
Thank you Jamie! You were diligent, motivated and knowledgeable . Great having you, Jamie 😊 Henri
Timothée
France
•
August 2023
Notre séjour avec Henri était bien agréable, nous avons bien ri et ce fut une bonne expérience dans sa prairie. Il a été bienveillant avec nous et il nous a accueilli avec beaucoup d'enthousiasme.
Antoine
France
•
June 2019
J'ai passé 3 semaines avec Henri fin mai-début juin et j'en ressors très enrichis ! Malgré les préjugés que les gens peuvent avoir sur les prairies, j'ai décidé de voir le Saskatchewan par moi même et je ne regrette pas du tout: Henri vit un chalet au bord d'un lac magnifique à toutes saisons entouré de petites charmantes collines. J'ai passé toutes mes soirées à admirer le couché de soleil.
Je conseille à tout le monde de venir rendre visite à Henri et sa famille lorsqu'ils sont là, mais venez avec votre motivation car il y aura toujours du boulot à la ferme ! Cela m'a permis d'apprendre énormément de choses d'autant plus qu'Henri m'as tout de suite accordé sa confiance en me laissant autonome. Je fus ravis de donner mon aide, à prendre soin des poussins, du potager, de la pelouse et de tous les édifices de la ferme. J'ai aussi appris à labourer un champs et à analyser l'avancement des lentilles.
Henri est quelqu'un de sympathique avec beaucoup d'histoires à partager, j'ai vraiment passé du bon temps à discuter avec lui.
Il m'a même prêter son Westfalia à plusieurs reprises pour que je puisse camper au parc national des prairies, qui contient une faune et flore superbe !
N'hésitez pas, je recommande la ferme Stringer à 100%!
Merci encore pour tout,
Antoine.
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Former WWOOFer
April 2016
Whenever you think, you better skip the part between east and west while you are traveling- don't do that! It was one of my best experiences here in Canada. Some people say, especially the Canadians are really kind- I am sure those people are thinking of the stringer- family when they are talking about that. The stringer- Family welcomed me with open arms and they made great efforts to let me feel at home. It was amazing, I am still speechless about their kindness and their openness. We need more of those people in the world! I really enjoyed it to help them on their farm. I was able to start every morning with a delicious breakfast and on top of that- Suzanne made great fresh smoothies every morning so you are well prepared for the day! I slept in a quite comfort cabin on the lake and it was wonderful to stand up with a first view onto the lake. We drove together to the farm (Suzanne, Henri and their wonderful children Marisol and Samuel) so I never felt lonely. I did some work in their garden and also spent my time with helping in their log house. They are building that house by their own and I really fell in love with that beautiful house. So it was a pleasure to help them a little bit with that. Henri and Suzanne- I will remember myself on your offer and would like to come back someday and marvel at your home. But it is not just work- they chaired their experiences with me and they didn't just tell me what to do. They told me every time why we do it and why it is necessary to do that. They are really respectful and it feels good to work with them. And even if you are tired in the evening- they made it possible with a relaxing and humorous evening that you fall asleep with a smile on your face. Thank you Henri, Suzanne, Marisol and Samuel for my great stay on your farm, at the lake and as a part of the family for that time.
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Former WWOOFer
August 2015
J'ai passé plusieurs jours en Saskatchewan chez Suzanne et Henri et j'en repars enrichie. Entre la résidence sur le bord du lac, les magnifiques paysages typiques du Land of Living Skies, la famille très unie, les petits plats et ô si nombreuses provisions et desserts que Suzanne offre généreusement, on pourrait se croire dans un havre de paix; mais non! Il y a un parfait équilibre entre le dynamisme nécessaire pour encadrer les enfants, maintenir la ferme, construire la maison de bois rond, s'occuper du potager et le repos qui s'ensuit. Même si je ne suis pas restée longtemps, on s'est donné la peine de m'expliquer en détail tout ce qui avait à trait à la ferme et même plus, si bien qu'entre le tour de combine (qui est en fait une moissonneuse-batteuse, en bon Fransaskois), la rencontre de travailleurs Mennonites, les discours sur la disparition des francophones suite à l'assimilation forcée, sans compter les explications sur le mode de vie agricole et la culture céréalière, je ressors de la Saskatchewan en ayant l'impression d'avoir beaucoup vu et d'avoir compris plusieurs pages d'histoire, pourtant méconnue (pages d'histoire qui ne battent quand même pas celles que dévore le jeune Samuel, qui parle plus d'amphibiens préhistoriques et de Shogun qu'il ne travaille, ce qui n'est pas sans agrémenter une journée de wwoofing, avouons-le). Ce fut une très belle expérience, merci à vous, Suzanne et Henri!
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