About Us

Junco seeds grows small-batch HEIRLOOM SEEDS adapted to regional conditions (short-season varieties). All of our seeds are heirloom varieties, ecologically grown and harvested at the farm, with reverence for the natural world, in Lac des Loups (Outaouais), Québec. 

Because our goal is to grow and sell locally adapted varieties, our seed catalog is limited to what we can grow at the farm. Our target growers are ecological gardeners interested in heirloom varieties who can grow these varieties without reliance on special infrastructure or unnecessary plastics. We use organic matter for mulch and all of our varieties are grown out in the field (not in a greenhouse or under a tunnel). Another component of this seed project is to grow drought tolerant varieties; a resilient characteristic we are developing year to year. 

Junco seeds is committed to growing, harvesting and saving heritage & heirloom seeds that are culturally and ecologically important, adapted to the local climate and resilient to changing weather patterns.  Specifically, we are committed to ecological and sustainable farming practices that close loops, sourcing organically and locally,  recycling materials and using only living mulches (no plastics). We adhere to small scale, low-till philosophies of land work that seeks to nourish the living soils, all with a long term goal of growing and saving healthy, tasteful, biodiverse drought-tolerant plants 

Junco seeds is situated on the ancestral territory of Algonquin Anishnaabeg People, forever territory of wild fauna & flora, cultivated and depleted lands of Irish and French settlers in which we hope to breath new and sustained life. It is now the beloved home of junco seeds,  surrounded by the beautiful, buggy forests and marshes of the Outaouais. 

The tool most often used at the farm, following those of mind and heart, is the handy scythe used for weeding, haying, and cutting down cover crops. We have a BCS (push tractor) that makes new beds when necessary. Compost, compost teas, sheep manure, and crop rotations help feed, revive, and renew the land. Living mulches, straw mulch, as well as living windrows are used to keep moisture in, and keep crops shaded and cool in the dire summer heat. 

We have laying chickens and meat chickens that help with bug and parasite control; they also offer us food and manure for the gardens. This year, in early 2024, we purchased our first sheep from a local shepherdess. Having sheep on the farm is a dream come true for so many reasons: wool, manure, pasture revival and so on. We look forward to practicing rotational grazing this year, with our chickens following after the sheep. This is a big step for our farm sustainability - every year we buy sheep manure from a local farmer to add to the soil - hopefully we can become self sustaining in that regard soon. 

If you are interested in understanding "why heirloom seeds", here is a blog post What is an Heirloom Seed, describing the difference between hybrid, gmo and heirloom seeds.