Harrowsmith Radio

Listen in to Canadians living sustainably.

Up Schitt's Creek and a Walk in a Historic Garden 06/08/2022

Up Schitt's Creek and a Walk in a Historic Garden The Rundown In this episode, I chat with Andrew Barnsley, an executive producer of the Canadian comedy Schitt’s Creek. We discuss how and why small-town Canada has found a place in the hearts of audiences around the world. Next up, is a walking tour of the historical kitchen garden of Dundurn Castle in Hamilton, Ontario. We learn about how two acres of produce sustained the family of Sir Allan Napier McNab a Premier of the United Canadas in the mid-1800s. So huge gardens and small towns all in one episode. By the way, if you want to read Harrowsmith Magazine instead of listen to it you can subscribe to the print version online at and you can find Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newsstands across Canada. But for now, settle in for the next half hour of Harrowsmith Radio. Up Schitt’s Creek The comedy series Schitt’s Creek is a sitcom phenom. Over its six seasons, the show, set in the fictional small Ontario town of Schitt’s Creek, hard by the bigger smaller town of Elmsdale, attracted a passionate international audience. Its final emotional and heart-felt season hit the streaming service just as COVID hit that audience hard. Andrew Barnsley, an executive producer on the show along with show creators Dan and Eugene Levy, says the epidemic of isolation is of the reasons for the show’s unparalleled success. But, he argues, there’s something about small towns like Schitt’s Creek that resonates with folks looking to reconnect with simple values, family, and the ties that bind. Even when the going gets tough. Here’s our conversation about a huge success and small towns. A Walk in a Historic Garden Victoria Bick is head gardener for the historic kitchen garden for the Dundurn Castle in Hamilton, Ontario. That means she carries on the work started by William Reid, the gardener there when Sir Allan Napier MacNab was Lord of the castle in the 1800s. Amazing, Bick is still growing the same varieties of flowers, vegetable,s and herbs Reid did. In Reid’s time that two acres of produce sustained the 18 residents of the castle. These days Bick keeps the garden thriving to sustain interest in the gardening heritage of centuries past. Here’s my conversation with Victoria as we strolled the pathways of a castle’s garden. End Notes Want more Harrowsmith? No problem. Visit our website. Or you can check out Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newsstands across Canada or you can order subscriptions online at . By the way, the music in the podcast? It's by good ol' Canadian singer, composer, and friend of the 'cast, David Archibald. You can find more of his music at his website, . /episode/index/show/harrowsmithmag/id/23367617

A Reborn Mill and the Sustainability of Birds 05/14/2022

A Reborn Mill and the Sustainability of Birds The Rundown In this episode, we learn how COVID and a fortuitous canoe trip led to an affordable housing expert and an architect buying and giving fresh purpose to a 135-year-old grist mill in Paisley, Ontario. Next, how cities and citizens can make their communities more friendly for birds, and why that makes sense for urban sustainability. So birds and flours all in one episode. By the way, if you want to read Harrowsmith Magazine instead of listen to it you can subscribe to the print version online at and you can find Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newsstands across Canada. But for now, settle in for the next half hour of Harrowsmith Radio. The Reborn Grist Mill When COVID hit, Graham and Emma Cubitt wanted to get outside and away from it all. For the affordable housing expert and architect, that meant an August 2020 canoeing on the Saugeen and Teeswater Rivers, just east of Lake Huron near the little town of Paisley, Ontario. That trip, in turn, led them to discover the old Stark mill, once a thriving flour then grist mill on the Teeswater River. The mill imported grain from across Canada and delivered flour around the world through a robust railway system and the port of Owen Sound to the north. In 2002 Paul and Helen Chrysler renovated parts of the mill and opened it as Nature’s Millworks, a beloved hub for artists, crafters, and tourists to Paisley. The Cubitt’s bought the mill 18 years later, after that canoe trip. Their plans for the five-storey mill and four-storey wooden silo are ambitious, as you’ll hear. And they intend to be good stewards of the 30-acres of wetland and two kilometers of Teeswater riverfront they now own. Here’s our conversation about a conversion that started with a canoe outing. You can learn more about the Paisley Mill at The Sustainability of City Birds Barry Coombs is a visual artist, an avid bird, and the former co-chair of Bird Friendly Hamilton-Burlington. Barry’s been tirelessly working to make cities more sustainable for birds, which in turn contribute to urban biodiversity and sustainably. Here’s our conversation about the biggest threats cities pose to our feathered friends and what we can do about it. You can learn more about saving birds at End Notes Want more Harrowsmith? No problem. . Or you can check out Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newsstands across Canada or you can order subscriptions online at . By the way, the music in the podcast? It's by good ol' Canadian singer, composer, and friend of the 'cast, David Archibald. You can find more of his music at his website, . /episode/index/show/harrowsmithmag/id/23108816

The COVID Departure Lounge 03/11/2022

The COVID Departure Lounge In this episode, I chat with world traveller and advocate for tossing your bucket list Heather Greenwood Davis about how to think about and tackle travel now that restrictions are being lifted, and maybe, just maybe we can start returning to the new normal. Next up cookbook author Claire Tansey tells us how to get dinner ready faster than a trip to your favourite frozen food aisle and back. So jet planes, and fast cooking all in this episode. The COVID Departure Lounge In 2011 Heather Greenwood Davis was a successful but miserable litigation lawyer in Toronto. She’d dreamed of travelling the world with her husband Ish and her two sons, Ethan and Cameron. A one year window opened up on that dream and the unhappy Greenwood Davis, family in tow, leapt out of it. What she learned in that year-long journey, about living for now and not deferring your dreams, can serve us well now as we contemplate travel into a world very different from the one we left behind when we shut our doors and donned our masks. You can learn more about Heather here Uncomplicated Cooking Now, it’s time for a short conversation about living responsibly on our planet, brought to you by Oroweat Organic Bread. Great Taste that’s Sustainably Baked. Claire Tansey has been a cook, a baker, a cooking teacher a restaurant critic the Food Director of Chatelaine and a singer in a rock ’n’ roll band. Along the way, she’s learned to cook in uncomplicated but delicious ways. Her new cookbook, Dinner Uncomplicated unpacks some great ideas about how to cook a meal in less time than it takes to listen to Bohemian Rhapsody and Stairway to Heaven back to back. I talked to Claire about fast cooking and why that can also be sustainable cooking. You can find her latest book and you can find her website at End Notes Want more Harrowsmith? No problem. . Or you can check out Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newsstands across Canada or you can order subscriptions online at . By the way, the music in the podcast? It's by good ol' Canadian singer, composer and friend of the 'cast, David Archibald. You can find more of his music at his website, . /episode/index/show/harrowsmithmag/id/22419803

This Old Smart House and Banana Peel Bread 02/08/2022

This Old Smart House and Banana Peel Bread The Rundown In this episode, I chat with pioneering tech consultant, keynote speaker, and proud PEIer, Amber MacArthur, AmberMac to her friends. I talk to her about how she turned a 140-year-old Charlottetown house into an eco-friendly smarthome showcase. A showcase sporting 38 lightbulbs you can talk to. Next up, former food stylist and chef Christine Tizzard explains how to shop, cook and dine with zero-waste. Is there a banana peel bread in your future? So, smart appliances and smart eating all in one episode. By the way, if you want to read Harrowsmith Magazine instead of listen to it you can subscribe to the print version online at and you can find Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newsstands across Canada. But for now, settle in for the next half hour of Harrowsmith Radio. The 140-year-old Smart Home - Amber MacArthur Amber MacArthur has been helping Canadians and corporations understand technology and social media for decades now. But, she grew up in a decidedly untechy PEI. She’s living in Toronto now, but in 2019 she and her partner videographer Chris Dyck decided to buy a 140-year-old home in the heart of Charlottetown and go to town on a renovation. They also used their connections and social media cache to bring companies like Home Depot, LG, and Google along for the ride. The result? A renovated home with smart TVs, washers, driers, lights, sensors, and outdoor security cameras. Sort of like Tony Stark’s vacation home if he was into Anne Shirley. I had a chance to talk with Amber about that reno and what she learned by doing it. You find more about AmberMac . Zero Waste with Christine Tizzard Now, it’s time for a short conversation about living responsibly on our planet, brought to you by Oroweat Organic Bread. Great Taste that’s Sustainably Baked. As a food stylist and chef, Christine Tizzard has seen her share of food waste. These days she’s doing something about it. Tizzard recently wrote . It’s a terrific guide to buying, cooking, menu planning, and storing food in sustainable ways. You can find her blog . End Notes Want more Harrowsmith? No problem. . Or you can check out Harrowsmith Magazine on selected newsstands across Canada or you can order subscriptions online at . By the way, the music in the podcast? It's by good ol' Canadian singer, composer and friend of the 'cast, David Archibald. You can find more of his music at his website, . /episode/index/show/harrowsmithmag/id/22068524