Woodleigh Farms is a historic farm founded in 1902 that is located in the hills of Cavan, just outside of Peterborough, Ontario. A multi-generational (6th generation) family-run business, it has a diverse set of activities—from harvesting 500 acres of corn, soy, wheat, and oats to tapping 1,500 trees for maple syrup.
When tragedy struck the property, Norm Lamothe took the opportunity to reimagine the business:
“We had a big fire here on the farm in 2018 that basically wiped out all of its infrastructure—save for the house. So that was a real pivot for us in deciding where the farm was going to go and what we were going to do.”
Norm set his sights on the bank where one of the property’s barns had burnt-down, realizing it could now be used as natural insulation for a greenhouse.
The farm’s previous greenhouse had also been lost, but it was a very traditional, tunnel-shaped structure without any climate control capabilities. It did little to add to the longevity of the farm’s growing season.
“We had a market garden and a cold frame greenhouse, and we saw the opportunity to put up another greenhouse,” said Norm. “I always wanted a year-round greenhouse and an education space where we could share some of the things that we’re doing on the farm.”
During his research, Norm came across a passive solar greenhouse design course Rob Avis, Chief Engineering Officer at 5th World, offered at the time.
“I basically just followed the curriculum that was laid out,” said Norm. “I reached out to Rob two or three times throughout the process, just to bounce some ideas off of him, before we finally pulled the trigger and built the structure.”
Through Rob, 5th World’s guidance empowered Norm to:
- Design the passive heating systems, including subterranean geothermal, energy mass storage, and heat sinks
- Understand technical calculations, like the volume of air that needed to be moved
- Select the best building materials for insulation, roofing, and piping for air exchange systems
The passive solar greenhouse at Woodleigh Farms is 1,800 square feet. It’s primarily used to house flowering plants: Annuals, perennials, hanging baskets, and planters. Approximately 25% of the greenhouse is devoted to growing flowers for a cemetery client.
The space is also used to ‘start’ plants for the farm’s market garden. Meaning, vegetable seeds are planted in small pots in the greenhouse, then they’re replanted outside once they grow large enough.
The greenhouse is also used as a beautiful space to spend time in:
“My mother in law is in there every day, even in the wintertime,” said Norm. “It’s a showpiece. When we have tours of the farm, it’s certainly something everybody wants to see. And it’s the main building as far as entertaining goes.”
Regeneration is a concept that’s close to Norm’s heart, and is heavily integrated into the business. With the motto “Soil is our legacy,” the farm implements crop rotation, cover crops, and variable rate fertilization, as well as uses clean energy solutions wherever possible. Woodleigh Farms is also committed to no-till practices throughout the land, which reduces soil compacting and carbon emissions.
“We’re always looking to transform waste into anything meaningful,” said Norm. “We have a compost program here on the farm that utilizes municipal waste. So if you picture your grass clippings, branches, leaves, and stuff that you put out at the curbside in the fall and in the spring, we have a program here at the farm that takes that material and transforms it into organic amendments. We also use that as a potting mix in the greenhouse.”
Additionally, Woodleigh Farms composts hay from its harvested crops, mulch deadwood from the forested areas of the property, and even chips the branches leftover from the firewood business to use as soil amendments.
With its commitment to regenerative practices, diverse product offering, strong resilience, and role as a community hub, Woodleigh Farms serves as a shining model for farms everywhere.
