HARDCORE HOMESTEADERS

     One of the South Shore's great treasures is Mirella Rose Farm.  When my family first moved here we were desperate to find high quality organic pork and chicken, and we found it at Mirella Rose Farm.  Orrin and Tracy Murdoch are so into the quality of the food they grow, they won't even feed their dogs commercial dog food, as their poo would taint the land.  Now that's what I'm talking about.

Anastasia: I've always wondered why you chose the name Mirella Rose for the name of your farm.

Tracy: Naming our farm was really important to us, and it took us almost a year of being on our farm to come up with the name that felt right for the place. When I was pregnant, we had this idea that we were going to have a girl, and this is the name we came up with - Mirella Rose. Mirella is the name of a character from one of our favorite all-time movies called "The Best of Youth". Rose was my mothers middle name, and also our favorite flower (and the flower that Orrin wooed me with when we were first dating). Since we had a boy and never got to use the name, we kept coming back to it for naming our farm. And since the earth is generally considered feminine, this worked for us. So it's kind of like having a daughter too.

Anastasia: You're both from the West Coast.  I've noticed there are quite a few families migrated to the East Coast, buying land and doing the homestead/farming thing.  Why did you choose to come here, and why do think others are doing the same?

Tracy: We moved to this specific area because Orrin's brother and family live in Mahone Bay. I don't think we ever would have been brave enough to move all the way across the country (especially with a 1-year old!) if we hadn't known someone here. We wanted to buy property and start a farm, and prices here were literally 10% of the price on the west coast. It meant we could follow our dream and not go totally broke doing it. I imagine the price is the reason why others are coming here too.

Anastasia: Your CSA offers some premium goods.  Any new products for this year or suprises you have in store?

Tracy: We don't have anything new coming up. We will continue to work on improving our soil to increase the health of our food, to give our family and folks in our community the most nutritious food that we can. 

Anastasia: People love posting quotes from famous people on Facebook.  Do you have any sayings or phrases that you've coined that I would want to post and share with others?  (If not, make one up :) )

Tracy: A  quote that I saw on facebook a while back that resonated with me is "Accept what is, let go of what was, and have faith in what will be." I have no idea who said it.

Anastasia: What do you wish was available on the south shore that you can't find or buy?

Tracy: Thai food - although I hear that a restaurant is in the works. And public transit. I so wish there was a bus that could get me back and forth to Halifax on the occasions that I spend weekends there. 

Anastasia: If you won the lottery, how would your life change (or not) and what would you do with the money?

Tracy: I don't think much would change, as we are doing what we believe in and are passionate about. But it would sure take the pressure off! We'd probably use the money to pay off our mortgage and help anyone in our extended family or friends who might need some support. I would also use some of it to pay to have my yoga studio finished that's in progress on our farm.

Anastasia: What was the last book you read?

Tracy: "Voyager" by Diana Gabaldon, from the Outlander series.

For more information about Mirella Rose Farm or to join their yearly CSA visit www.mirellarosefarm.ca