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WELCOME TO
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Most people are surprised to learn that there is a commercial cranberry grower in
Eastern Ontario. In fact, the Upper Canada Cranberries farm is located in the City of Ottawa,
just a twelve minute drive south of the Ottawa International airport.
Upper Canada Cranberries came into being as a result of one of those rare,
inspirational “Ah ha!” moments and many people are interested in hearing about
that, so here’s a bit of the story.
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Actually, Upper Canada Cranberries is one of just three commercial cranberry producers in
the province of Ontario. The other two cranberry growers are located in the Muskoka area, north of
Toronto.
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Hi! My name is Lyle Slater – That’s me on my homemade cranberry harvester in
the picture to the left.
I grew up on a farm and I guess you could say, “Once a farmer, always a farmer.”
I’ve had my own excavation business since 1982, so I’ve never really stopped
working with the soil. :^) But deep down, I’ve always had the yearning to
get back to growing stuff.
In 1996, I obtained 100 acres of land not far from where I live and that’s how
I started my move back to farming. But I still wasn’t sure what I wanted to grow.
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Then, one day, while seated in a waiting room before an appointment, I
picked up a magazine that contained an article on cranberries. After
reading just a few paragraphs, I became absolutely fascinated! I learned
there are only a handful of cranberry growers in Canada.
I had already checked the Ph level of the soil on my property and found it
to be highly acidic – just what cranberries love! Plus, the article said
cranberries need lots of water and my property has a creek running through
it! And there it was – my “Ah ha!” moment.
There was also an abundance of peat moss on the property. So this had been
a bog in the past and at one point, cranberries probably grew wild on that
very spot.
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I started reading everything I could find on cranberries and it didn’t take
long to learn about the amazing health benefits of the cranberry. They are
loaded with a number of essential nutrients – Vitamin C, Beta-Carotene,
Flavonoids and more! Continuing research suggests that cranberries can be
helpful in treating and/or preventing a variety of ailments.
I decided this is definitely what I want to do and I became a cranberry grower.
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I don't know that many people would think of me as a romantic, but aside from
the health and nutritional benefits of cranberries, there is another aspect
that makes them special - cranberries are the last fruit of the season.
As mentioned above, Upper Canada Cranberries is located in the City of
Ottawa. I can't say I've done exhaustive research on this fact, but as far as
I can determine, I am the only cranberry producer in the
entire world that is operating within the boundaries of a city.
I hope you enjoy your visit to this web site. I've compiled some
interesting information on cranberries, so be sure to tour the other
pages by clicking on the buttons in the top left corner, or on the links below.
Find out how cranberries grow and how they are harvested. You can also
learn about the history of cranberries, how healthy they are, and you will find some great cranberry
recipes, including an easy to follow recipe for traditional home-made
cranberry sauce and yummy Canadian Cranberry Sauce.
I'm very happy to announce that in 2008, we introduced a small line of
delicious and unique tasting cranberry products under the Slate's brand -
please visit our products page for more information.
And of course, these items are made with our own berries grown at the Upper Canada
Cranberries farm. I hope to be introducing other products in the near future.
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Thanks for stopping by
Kind Regards
Lyle Slater
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