Desiree DeCoste
Beaver Staff
A farm on Amherst Island is hosting an adopt a bee campaign to help raise money to offer free educational programs and help care for the bees over winter.
Topsy Farms, which was founded in 1972, has 18 bee colonies as well as 580 sheep, six guardian dogs, four gardens and two highland cows.
“To save the farm we have to share the farm,” Michael Murray, assistant beekeeper said. “Our Adopt a Bee Campaign is one way that people can do that.”
This campaign was started because Topsy Farms wants to continue to offer free land access to people of all ages, especially kids, to learn and spend time on a farm.
“Most farms don’t want people walking around for many good reasons. Topsy is different in that way,” stated Jacob Murray, Co-owner and Director of Communications of Topsy Farms. “Our mission statement is to keep the farmland as the farm. If a person believes that their life has been improved by spending time on a farm, adopting a bee is a way to pay-forward that experience. If a person believes that farms and farmers have important life-lessons to teach, this is an easy way to help.”
In 2018 Topsy made a promise called “Connect to the Land” – They would offer free and subsidized activities at the farm. Topsy would fund Connect to the Land through their retail sales (Wool Shed and website). The recession and inflation has made it very difficult to justify continuing for Topsy. They are turning to the public with this fun, new, and creative idea: adopt a Topsy Bee.
“Farmers don’t give up easy,” said Jacob Murray
The money raised through this campaign will go towards helping Topsy continue to offer free educational programs and will help ensure the bees have everything they need to thrive and prosper over winter.
“Our partners, blue marble learning scene, bring school groups to the farm for actual field trips. Topsy doesn’t charge for renting the space,” Jacob Murray stated to The Beaver. “But we do have to cover the costs of staffing, upgrades to the nature trail (also free), and insurance (oh goodness, the insurance). Over the last 12 months alone, Topsy has invested $30,000 in our “Connect to the Land” activities. This includes “re-wilding” one kilometer of the farm for the exclusive use of nature. Free nature activities like scavenger hunts. This money will help us keep the organic garden growing over the years, we have donated thousands of pounds of fresh food to Lovin’ Spoonful. The garden is also a wonderful teaching tool – it is amazing what you can grow with just sheep poo and wool as fertilizer. All these things cost money, but we never want money to be a barrier to spending time on the farm. Topsy has also created a digital app to help people self-guide on their farm tour. In the spring, we give away plant seeds and composted sheep manure.”
As top pollinators of the world, it is so important to help save the bees.
“Bees are the top pollinators in the world,” said Michael Murray. “They are responsible for nurturing the growth of more that 110 crops that North Americans frequently eat; fruits, grains, and veggies. Beyond that, bees contribute to a healthy, bio diverse farm which is good for all the plants, animals, and people.” Michael goes on to say: “Humans have harvested honey from bees for thousands of years, their wax allowed for food preservation and the lighting of homes with candles. Now more than ever we need to give back to these wonderful critters because they have less and less habitat every year.”
Topsy Farms is so grateful for the support of everyone who has adopted a bee so far. For businesses Topsy offers a ‘Sponsor a Hive Campaign’, for more details please contact jacob@topsyfarms.com
“Please consider the kids growing up now who have never been to a farm before,” Jacob Murray expressed. “Many have never even been in the forest or countryside before. If we are to preserve what is left of the natural world, we have a very small window to help kids fall in love with nature. If they don’t know it, why will they bother to value it or save it? So long as we can create a sustainable funding model, Topsy will keep the farm as a place of wild-welcome. Thank you for following our journey, for supporting the bees, for shopping locally; thank you for helping us to keep the farm land as a farm.”
For more information on the adopt a bee campaign please visit https://www.topsyfarms.com/products/sponsor-a-bee-1
For more information on blue marble learning scene please visit https://www.bluemarblelearningscene.ca/topsy