Salt Spring Island Dry Farming Showcase and Field Day

The Institute for Sustainable Food Systems has been working with farmers on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands to trial dry farming market garden crops this year. We’re excited to share the outcome of this work with our agricultural community while growing a collective vision for how dry farming can advance climate resilience in coastal communities. Come join the Institute for Sustainable Food Systems (KPU) dry farming field day to:

• Tour our dry farming market garden trial sites and learn how we grew select market garden crops without supplemental irrigation
• Learn about dry farming practices and supportive technologies
• Further develop your understanding of the movement of moisture in local soils, including how to interpret soil moisture and weather data to inform dry farming practice
• Discuss dry farming this season including successes, lessons learned and farmers’ experiences
• Taste testing, resource sharing, and networking

Topic: Dry Farming Showcase and Field Day

Instructors:

• Institute for Sustainable Food Systems, Kwantlen Polytechnic University

Date & Location: Saturday September 27th, 2025, 10:30am - 2:30pm, Tardigrade Seeds, Salt Spring Island, unceded territory of the SENĆOŦEN and Hul’q’umi’num speaking peoples

• Student: $12.37
• Farmers: $23.49
• General public: $45.73

Included GST and fees

Registration is required. Details will be emailed to registered participants. Light lunch provided.

• Tour select dry farmed market garden crops including tomatoes, squash, and dry beans (tasting as available!)
• Learn about dry farming practices and supportive technologies, including soil moisture sensors and weather stations, and how to interpret data in a way that can inform agricultural practice
• Learn about the experience of farmers trialing dry farming on Vancouver Island and Salt Spring Island, including successes, lessons learned, and hopes for the future
• Network and share resources and experiences with the local agricultural community

KPU Dry Farming Research, Extension and the Pacific Coastal Dry Farming Collaborative

This field day is part of an ongoing extension program developed by the ISFS in response to the Comox Valley Regional Farmer Dialogue on drought, held in December 2023. From this community dialogue in 2023, the ISFS has

• founded the Pacific Coastal Dry Farming Collaborative with the goal of supporting collaborative extension and peer-to-peer learning for soil health, dry farming, and climate resilience
• organized dry farming site suitability and soil health field days with local and international soil science experts
• initiated three dry farming trial sites in collaboration with participating host market garden farmers

If you would like to keep up to date on events like this, please sign up for the Pacific Coastal Dry Farming newsletter.

This field day is organized and hosted by the Institute for Sustainable Food Systems. Funding is provided by the B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation, and the governments of Canada and British Columbia under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative.

For questions, please contact Naomi Robert [bmFvbWkgISByb2JlcnQgfCBrcHUgISBjYQ==], ISFS Senior Research and Extension Associate.

The Institute for Sustainable Food Systems (ISFS) is an applied research and extension unit at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. The ISFS engages in multidisciplinary applied research and extension to cultivate sustainable regional food systems that advance the food sovereignty goals of diverse communities. The ISFS works toward a future where communities are empowered to shape the food systems that nurture their health and well-being, and sustain thriving ecosystems.

The ISFS initiated the Pacific Coastal Dry Farming collaborative in 2024, and is leading collaborative dry farming research and extension with the goal of developing local capacity for dry farming practice and climate resilience. If you would like to participate in the dry farming research, extension, and programing, please register for the Pacific Coastal Dry Farming Collaborative newsletter here.

Supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and producers in B.C., the B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation (BCCAI) is a Simon Fraser University initiative that aims to develop more productive, diverse and resilient food supply chains. In collaboration with government partners, agritech stakeholders, Indigenous organizations, industry partners, agri-producers and post-secondary institutions, BCCAI focuses on the development, testing and piloting of agritech solutions in both simulated and real-world environments, ensuring they are ready for commercialization and practical implementation. Generously funded by Pacific Economic Development Canada and the Province of B.C., BCCAI is strategically positioned to elevate B.C. as a frontrunner in agritech advancements.

More information about BCCAI: https://www.sfu.ca/agritech-innovation

Cover photo credit: Skye Larmour

Also check out other Health & Wellness events in Salt Spring Island, Nonprofit events in Salt Spring Island, Sports events in Salt Spring Island.