Paradise saved

From name to business model, New Jubilee in northeast Edmonton exists to share a uniquely situated bit of creation even beyond the 50-year timeframe for redistribution prescribed in the biblical Jubilee. People come to band birds, hold events in the on-site yurt, tour the forest and participate in two thriving U-pick operations: Lady Flower Gardens and Fern’s Flowers.

For people living with mental health and substance use challenges, Lady Flower Gardens offers the quiet joy of helping things grow. Begun by Kelly Mills, the gardens welcome groups from inner city agencies who come once a week, supported by agency staff members, to plant, weed, water, and, as the plants mature, harvest the bounty. In season, they can take a bag of produce home, along with a bouquet of flowers. The Edmonton Food Bank gets the rest – an estimated 26,043 pounds in 2023. Surveys by Alberta Health Services, which supports the initiative, show significant increases in happiness, motivation and inclusion after a few hours in the gardens.

Fern’s Flowers began mid-COVID by Kevin Visser and his wife Fernanda. With mentorship from her father-in-law Doug Visser, Fernanda started growing flowers in hope of supporting Lady Flower Gardens – and discovered a new passion.

After a farmers’ market booth saw disappointing sales, she began inviting people out to pick their own flowers, and the business took off.

“I never understood the flower phenomenon,” Kevin muses. “But people come here and it’s like they’re on acid or something. When they see the garden, they’re like just, ‘Whoa.’”

Unlike Lady Flower Gardens, Fern’s Flowers attracts people who can afford to buy their flowers. “You see some pretty fancy cars,” Kelly notes. “But it seems like it’s a health and wellness thing for them, too. Even though they’re coming as individuals, conversations are happening, and little kids are playing with other kids, and other dogs are terrorizing our Sam. Two different systems are in place to welcome people from a variety of backgrounds with different life experiences and resources, and the common denominator is they’re enjoying the land in a community setting.”

As envisioned, a portion of the income from Fern’s Flowers supports Lady Flower Gardens. That’s essential, Doug and Kelly say. “Lady Flower Gardens can’t exist unless something is happening here that pays the bills.”

A David & Goliath moment

Seven years ago, Christian Courier reported on efforts to protect this fertile farmland nestled in a bend of the North Saskatchewan River (“Edmonton Farmer Battles to Protect Prime Land from Urban Sprawl”). Landowner Doug Visser had just launched a campaign in cooperation with the Edmonton and Area Land Trust (EALT) to raise funds for a conservation easement in hope of protecting the property from development no matter who owns it in the future. The campaign was causing pushback, in part because prohibiting development would reduce the value of the land. Meanwhile, highway engineers were publicly sharing plans for a future river crossing that threatened its longstanding market garden, old-growth forest and gardens.

It seemed a David and Goliath moment, one of many in this corner of the city, where – despite vocal protest – much fertile farmland had already been paved over in the name of development. Farmland that, thanks to its riverside location, boasts not only some of Canada’s best soil but an extended growing season and ample water for irrigation.

As in the biblical story, the underdog prevailed. The Visser land is now part of the EALT portfolio of protected properties. And plans for a new river crossing have been replaced by the twinning of an alternate route, shifting the need for a new bridge into the future – and likely downstream.

“Having gotten the conservation easement on is a great thing, even though it caused some consternation,” Doug Visser says over tea in his home on the land, where we’re joined by his partner Kelly Mills and son Kevin Visser. “It’s a tool for the public to learn about the uniqueness of the land. And a reassurance that the land will be protected, not only to honour my parents’ legacy but because the land has an identity of its own.”

Even before 2007, when the Edmonton and Area Land Trust launched, Doug, his parents Clarence and Jennie Visser and his uncle Jim Visser were playing leadership roles in Legacy Lands, an entity formed with the goal of shielding northeast Edmonton’s farmland from development. Legacy Lands became a founding member of EALT, but the trust initially concentrated on conserving natural areas rather than agricultural land. What’s more, government incentives for conserving land did not yet extend to cultivated property. To gain a place for his farmland in the EALT portfolio, Doug pledged to help raise $400,000 for an endowment to cover anticipated expenses.

With his father, Doug shared the need via local media, along with an offer to match donations up to $70,000, and a “tidal wave of money” (as Kelly puts it) began rolling in. Private donations of $100,000, coupled with Doug’s contribution and a provincial land trust grant of $260,000 gave the EALT confidence to move ahead.

By May 2020, two conservation easements were in place to protect the Visser land. One applies to Riverbend Gardens, named Evelyn’s Acres in honour of Doug’s late wife, with whom he began the market garden. The other covers the adjacent gardens and forest, New Jubilee. EALT owns most of the 17 properties it now stewards, but not the Visser land. Through the conservation easement, the Vissers give up certain agreed-upon rights, including the right to develop this land for a non-agricultural use, but continue to hold the land title. In return, they have the assurance that their wishes are registered on the title, binding future landowners to those same restrictions.

For the EALT, the Visser easements support a key goal of conserving lands that benefit both nature and people, says EALT Conservation Manager Rebecca Ellis. “Those two properties are fantastic for market gardens because of the soil and micro-climate there, and they provide a lot of really nice opportunities for people in the city to get outside and connect with the land.”

The Visser family also benefits from its relationship with the EALT. Already, they have worked with staff and volunteers to collect data about what’s in the forest, combat invasive species, host tours and more. Meanwhile, Riverbend Gardens continues to supply vegetables to local markets under the stewardship of Doug’s daughter Janelle and her husband Aaron Herbert.

The proposed river crossing that threatened Visser land no longer looms large, at least in the near term. Instead, Alberta Transportation is addressing congestion between Edmonton and Fort Saskatchewan by twinning both the highway and an existing river crossing in that community. The need for another bridge may resurrect, but it’s hoped the conservation easements will divert planners from this land, Doug says. “The more people get to know that this land is special, the less likely it will be taken away and used for something else.”

The saga of the bridge highlights the need for public leadership in protecting land, Kelly says. “In the glare of climate change, government needs to step up and save land for the greater good of everybody rather than relying on private owners to do the right thing.”

Rebecca sees roles for both public and private land protection. “To be honest, some people would rather work with a charity than with the government,” she says. “We can fill that role. Habitat loss is this really, really big problem in the whole world, and it can feel overwhelming. To be a part of conserving even just a few small pieces makes you feel you can actually do something really good, make a difference on a local level.”

With spring just around the corner, the greenhouse serving both Evelyn’s Acres and New Jubilee is full of life, seeding the summer’s goodness. “It’s like a small miracle every time a seed germinates,” Kevin says.

“When you grow up with it, you kind of take it for granted,” his father adds. “But when you witness other people come in and see them experiencing joy just for being here, it’s great.”