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Masterclass in FencingBrass Bell Farm is a pasture-based, mixed livestock farm in East Sooke with a focus on sheep, cattle, pigs and poultry. Join Julia Smith and Tristan Banwell of the Small-Scale Meat Producers Association at Brass Bell Farm, for an electric fencing masterclass! Learn how to implement new fences, and improve existing ones to create effective, multi-species fencing for rotational grazing and more permanent paddocks. Learn about different electric fencing products, and gain hands-on experience planning and implementing effective fencing for farms of any size.
Seed Production On this field day event, participants will get an inside look at on-farm seed production and the opportunity to see some very innovative cleaning tools and methods.
ALM Farm and Full Circle seeds got started in the early 90’s on a 10 acre farm to the west of Sooke. Mary Alice Johnson is a farmer and a teacher and loves to talk about saving seeds. Full Circle boasts over 30 varieties of tomatoes and 25 varieties of lettuce. All in all over 250 varieties of seeds all grown on 3 ALM properities in Sooke.
The South Vancouver Island Farmers Institute is delighted to be hosting the 2026 South Island Farmer to Farmer Conference again this year. Farmer to Farmer is a week-long annual conference held for farmers on Vancouver Island. The week includes field-days, workshops and a full day conference that brings together food producers for education, capacity building and community building. The goal of Farmer to Farmer week is to provide education and networking opportunities to participants with the intention of building a stronger local food system as a whole. Details of each session can be found here: Farmer to Farmer 2026
This breakfast does not require a purchased ticket as folks will be responsible for their own breakfast bill, but we ask that folks register so we can inform the restaurant on attendance.
Join us for a presentation of new and older technology for irrigation systems directed to small and mid-sized farms. Karen will focus on irrigation equipment for efficiency and effective application and answer questions such as ‘sprinklers verses drip, when and why to choice one option over the other?’ She will go over the equipment available to make your life easier; the length of time to operate for water efficiencies; how the water moves to the roots; the kinds of controls, manual or automatic and what is available; and what makes sense for your farm and your time.
Karen has been working in the Irrigation Industry since 1978. She is certified in Irrigation Design through the IIABC, has worked with the CRD and the Certification Board of the IIABC, and is past president of the IIABC and the Western Turfgrass Association. Karen has been working for water saving with a local distributor for irrigation on the Saanich Peninsula for over 30 years.
Thank you for inquiring with the South Island Farmers Institute.
