Happy Birthday

If your little farmer or farmette has a birthday coming up you might want to consider joining us for a big barnyard bash! We’re already taking bookings for the upcoming season's farm birthday parties!

With all the different party choices out there, what makes Springridge an ideal place for your child’s celebration?

Spend the day outside without ruining your own lawn! Partygoers will play in and explore the Fun Farm Yard, which features corn trails, straw bale jumping, pipe slides, web climber and giant sandbox. Hike up to the Lookout and learn about local landmarks.

Have a blast mastering the pedal tractor track! This exciting activity has everyone smiling as they zoom around straw bales on mini-tractors!

We’ll take everyone on a farm tour wagon ride! Enjoy scenic views of the Niagara Escarpment while the children find out how we grow strawberries and pumpkins.

Save your own pet from being poked by a roomful of kids, as we will pay a visit to the Animal Barn! Everyone can observe the chickens, rabbits, pigeons, turkeys, peacocks and goats. Children even get to collect a real egg from the chicken coop.

The kids will get creative with decorating their own basket for collecting chicken eggs. They will also make a birthday mural for the birthday child.

Party hosts will lead the pack so you get to enjoy the party too! Each party is hosted by an enthusiastic and experienced high-school student who will make sure everything runs smoothly for you.

When you book a birthday at the farm your package includes a pizza party! Lunch is a personal size cheese pizza, apple juice and delicious birthday cupcake!

So what are you going to encounter at the farm that’s not listed in our birthday party rundown?

1. You could have the chance for a meet and greet with Farmer John! John is like a celebrity at Springridge and he'd love to chat with you about growing the perfect strawberry.

2. On a clear day you can Eye Spy the CN Tower from the Lookout!

3. Get the real farm experience by practicing milking Bessie the Plywood Cow!

Watch an overview of Springridge Farm Birthday Parties!

For more information or to book your farm birthday party call Kim (905) 878-4908 M-F, 8:30-4:30.

Winter Wonderment

Do you ever wonder what is happening when we are closed for the winter? Here’s your inside look at what we’re up to from January-April!

While we have no customers visiting us right now, we have plenty of wildlife stopping by because it’s so quiet in the Fun Farm Yard. Almost like a page out of Matthew and the Midnight Turkeys, Farmer John spied 15 wild turkeys wandering the land last week! He has also seen coyotes catching mice, foxes with beautiful coats, deer nibbling on strawberry leaves and a variety of birds at the feeders.

All of our resident animals from the Animal Barn have moved away from the farm and into a warm winter barn. We just received a postcard from Rocky and he is under good care, enjoying his all-inclusive vacation!

Our bees are covered with insulation blankets for winter protection. They have a low level of activity over the winter but lots of honey from which they get their energy. With 100,000 bees in a hive, they are certainly keeping warm!

Even the strawberries get special attention in the winter! They are in their “senesce” stage (deep sleep) and covered with 6” of loosely packed straw to reduce temperature fluctuation. We will start to roll the straw off in early April.

Our buying team is off to the Spring 2011 CGTA Show in Toronto this week. They are searching for new home décor items in the latest trends! We’re looking forward to accenting in pink, expanding our Canadian-made products and emphasizing our nautical section!

The first spring merchandise has already arrived in our receiving department. We have wonderful garden items including cast iron hooks and acrylic patio dishes as well as some festive Easter treasures.

The Springridge kitchen is busy with traditional jam production. Our 3-person team makes jam the old fashioned way with no preservatives. They use a stainless steel kettle and a wooden jam paddle. At the end of the winter, the jam team autographs the paddle and we keep it as a memory of the labor that went into this year’s batch.

Our home-made jam is poured, lidded and labeled by hand. Springridge jam is truly a craft to create.

We have just announced our special, limited edition ROYAL WEDDING MARMALDE. This celebratory orange marmalade has a splash of champagne to salute the Royal couple and will be available when we reopen in April.



In the meantime, we are setting out on a mission to deliver the marmalade to Prince William and Kate Middleton in time for the wedding! We are rallying for our community to become involved and help us. If you know a friend of a friend of Prince Harry or can make sure Stephen Harper takes a jar on the big day, we need your help with sending along this token of Canadian well-wishes!

Our farm office is now taking bookings for School Tours and Birthday Parties. Call Kim (905) 878-4908 to get your first choice of dates!

The Year in Review

2010 marked the celebration of 50 Years on the Farm for Springridge! Our special year was filled with wonderful memories. We became connected on social media, began a new author event series and rejoiced in every season with our visitors! Last spring, the weather had Farmer John harvesting one of our earliest crops of strawberries ever; yet the fields were still producing beautiful day-neutral berries into the wee hours of autumn.

We hope you enjoyed your year with us! Now let’s reminisce about our farm favourites from the past year!

Best Use of a Musical Instrument at the Farm:
Bagpiper at our first annual Halloween Parade during Harvest Festival

Favourite Addition to the Fun Farm Yard:
The ultra-cool double pipe slide

Most Fun with Local Moms:
Girls Night Out on the Farm with Kathy Buckworth

Best Introduction of a Canadian Product:
Wine Planks

Hottest Hostess Gift:
The Brie Baker by Wildly Delicious

Most Honorable Farm Guest:
Elizabeth Baird at Springridge Farm Presents: An Evening with Elizabeth Baird

Best Creation to come out of the Springridge Kitchen:
Limited Edition 50th Anniversary Jam

Favourite Farm Partnership on Twitter:
Our summer contest with @HerrlesMarket

Best Question Asked in the Strawberry Fields:
Are these Ontario grown strawberries?

Spookiest Specialty Pumpkin of the Year:
The Peanut

Most Likely to Rustle some Feathers in 2011:
Rocky the Rooster

Customer Favourites:
@rlr2 on Twitter votes for our granola!
@Kelly_Balance on Twitter votes for anything baked with our strawberries!
Melissa on Facebook loves our famous pumpkin-face cookies!

From the Springridge Family to yours, Happy New Year and all the best for 2011!

Making a List, Checking it Twice

Who’s the most difficult person to shop for on your Christmas list? Everyone plays that guessing game with a friend who has everything or teenager that only wants a certain kind of clothing! For me, it’s Granny. With the best intentions, family members, friends and neighbours purchase her the same bath soaps annually. She has now entrusted me with getting the word out that she does not need more soaps this year! So, I’m faced with the dilemma of what will Granny like instead!?

At Springridge we have treasures that are sure to please anyone on your list! Here is our Holiday Gift Guide of the top 10 best kept secrets at the farm.



1. If you know a family that loves visiting our Fun Farm Yard, surprise them with a Springridge Farm 2011 Season Pass! We are happy to write-up a gift certificate for the amount of next year’s pass and we’ll indicate on the card what it’s for. We offer season passes for individuals, families of three and families of four. This gift will be a nice treat for when we re-open April 8, 2011.

2. We feature an extensive selection of gift baskets that are assembled on the farm and include many of our signature gourmet products. But did you know we will custom make you a gift basket too? Here’s how it works: come to the farm and choose your goodies and a stylish basket, fill out a gift basket request form and your personalized basket will be ready for pick-up in two weekdays!

3. Our Gift Loft will solve any shopping conundrums you have for your girlfriends! We are featuring the ultra-trendy rosette design on scarves, purses and wristlets. The feminine, flower style will make the recipient of this gift feel like they’ve just walked out of the pages of In Style Magazine!

4. Looking for an interesting hostess gift? Try the award-winning Brie Baker by Wildly Delicious! We offer this tasteful gift in a variety of colours including red, which is perfect for holiday entertaining. Pair with a Springridge Farm Red Pepper Jelly to create an extra-special gift.

5. The Ty Pluffies PJ BEAR is a great stocking stuffer for children! These bears like to snuggle up by the fire in their pajamas, while watching A Charlie Brown Christmas and drinking hot chocolate with extra marshmallows. This affordable plush bear has been rereleased in the Ty collection wearing pink or blue PJs!

6. During the holiday season you may just need to show someone a small token of appreciation and we suggest giving them one of our special Christmas tree ornaments. We have a variety of ornaments that will suit traditional or modern décor.

7. Hot on the heels of our recent Evening with Elizabeth Baird, we have signed copies of The Slow Cooker Collection, the Complete Canadian Living Baking Book and the Complete Christmas Book! These autographed cookbooks are a unique option for food lovers and hard-to-buy-for Grannies alike!

8. Men can be just as tough to shop for as women, so I asked Farmer Tom what his top Christmas gift would be from our shop and he chose a picture. We have wonderful wall-art in winter scenes that will capture the attention of any man in your life. In addition, we’re having a HOLIDAY SPECIAL on our small Group of Seven prints. Regularly priced at $99, these select prints are now on sale at 40% off!

9. Are you participating in a cookie exchange and have no time to bake? We have you covered! Our scratch bakery team is making traditional gingerbread cookies!

10. Stonewall Kitchen Italian Night is the perfect grab gift this season! The attractively packaged box includes everything you need for a homemade dinner: Traditional Marinara Sauce, Garlic Herb Bread Mix, Balsamic Fig Dressing and Angel Hair Pasta. Anyone on your Christmas list can sit back and enjoy this meal!

Thank you for celebrating our 50th year on the farm with us. Just a reminder that we are closing for the season on December 24 at noon. Save the date because Springridge is reopening April 8, 2011!

'Tis the Season

We are busy making the switch from harvest to holiday season. Christmastime at the farm is all about romancing traditions with charming décor, festive baking and children’s activities.

Our outdoor décor expert, Anne, is getting ready to create fresh displays for the entrance to the barn. Visit us next week and get inspired by her designs. Feel free to ask her questions about putting together winter arrangements. Anne offers the following tips for sprucing up your own holiday urns:

1. Start with using the soil from your summer planter or sand from your local hardware store (approx. $5 a bag). Line a plastic container, like one from your fall mum plant, with a garbage bag and fill with soil or sand.

2. Begin with your greens. BC Cedar or Ontario Pine help create the nicest arrangements. Place all greens toward the centre of your urn (like a wheel).

3. Incorporate colour. Use ilex berries, magnolia, pine cones, bows or battery operated lights to add twinkle!

4. Accessorize with colourful picks, twigs and Christmas balls, which are all available at Springridge.

5. Remember to water your urn with warm water until the first freeze. Your outdoor arrangement will last longer.


With the cold November weather coming along, we’re warming up our kitchen with some seasonal baking! Complete your dinner party with Holiday Berry Pie, Cherry Mincemeat Tarts or home-made Gingerbread Cookies.

Food for thought: the tradition of gingerbread cookies dates back to the court of Elizabeth I of England. It is documented that she had gingerbread figures created that resembled some of her important guests. Consider the history of your cookie next time you’re securing jujube facial features with icing!


Our Children’s Activities kick-off November 13 & 14 with our Christmas Open House. Santa will be making a stopover at the farm for one weekend only! Join us in making holiday family memories with gingerbread cookie decorating and ornament painting! Activities continue every weekend until Dec. 12. For additional information please visit our website.

Christmas trees will be arriving by mid-November. Enjoy a stroll through our fresh-cut forest and find the perfect Fraser Fir!

The Great Pumpkin Preview

Are you fed-up with waiting patiently in a local field, year after year, for the Great Pumpkin to arrive? Look no further because we have all of the greatest pumpkins for you to choose from. Farmer John and Farmer Tom have harvested some of the prettiest, weirdest and spookiest pumpkins of the season! Here’s a rundown of the specialty pumpkins at Springridge:

Peanut - The newest addition to our pumpkin family! This pumpkin looks like a raw peanut on the surface. While its appearance is creepy, it tastes good in soup or eating as a squash.

Cinderella - This magical pumpkin looks just as pretty as Cinderella's carriage. It's also delicious in soup and good for eating.

Tomato - This pumpkin has a bright red skin. It makes a hearty soup too...squash soup...not tomato!

Ghost - The perfect pumpkin for haunting season! This all white pumpkin is for decoration only. How does the pumpkin turn ghostly white?...it's just a special seed!

Knucklehead - The spookiest pumpkin of our crop is all bumpy and warty. This decorator pumpkin is sure to scare your trick-or-treaters!

Prize Winner - A large orange pumpkin in the 150lb range! Surely the best in show!

Swan Gourds - These gourds look like birds. They dry out well and you can keep them forever.

Come join us in celebration of this year’s pumpkin crop at our annual Harvest Festival! The event is every weekend in October, including Thanksgiving Monday. There’s fun for the whole family – wagon rides to a 5 acre corn trail, face painting, “The Great Pumpkin Mix-Up” professional puppet show, new and improved Boo Barn and entrance into the Fun Farm Yard. Visit our website for all the details.

We’re continuing our love of pumpkins in the bakery with home-made pumpkin pies, tarts and our famous pumpkin face cookies. Our gift shop is also brimming with décor items to enhance your seasonal displays at home.

In other news:

Springridge is honored to be hosting an Evening with Elizabeth Baird on November 10. Space for this event is now full. If you are unable to attend the event, we are accepting pre-orders for signed copies of the Slow Cooker Collection, the Complete Christmas Book and the Complete Canadian Living Baking Book. Please call our Gift Loft at (905) 878-4908 to place an order. Orders will be available for pick-up after Nov. 11.

The Way the Cookie Crumbles...

At Springridge, we strive to support local partnerships that help make our farm shoppe a unique boutique. This year, we are excited to have formed a new relationship with the local cookie connoisseurs at Mary Macleod's Shortbread. In our bakery, we are featuring Mary's mouthwatering Chocolate Crunch Shortbreads and they’ve already become a favourite treat to indulge in amongst our customers!

Mary was the first entrepreneur in Canada to open a business devoted solely to handmade shortbread. She is currently located on Queen Street East in the Riverdale neighbourhood of Toronto. Mary’s Scottish roots have helped her master and reinvent the traditional shortbread cookie.

In fact, Mary developed the Chocolate Crunch Shortbread as her signature cookie in 1981 and her daughter-in-law, Sharon Macleod, says it’s still their most popular! “She was the first in Canada to mix chocolate into shortbread,” explains Sharon. “The unique ingredient formulation and gentle mixing technique we follow give the cookie a ‘crunch’ from the Belgian chocolate. This is difficult to duplicate with a machine-made cookie and believe me, there have been many who have tried.”

Their shortbreads are made using pure creamery butter and premium ingredients with no additives or preservatives. Sharon says, “We believe that making shortbread is an art, not a science. You have to be happy and relaxed when making the dough.”

Keeping their product fresh is a key component in keeping customer’s buying local. While Sharon believes the trend toward buying local means different things to different customers, there is no doubt Mary built her business with the support of her local community.

“Being a part of our community makes our business enjoyable for our family, our staff and our customers,” says Sharon. Mary Macleod’s Shortbreads have a significant following of long-time customers, often consisting of several generations of the same family.

Sharon encourages Springridge customers to just give them a taste and judge for themselves. Her family devotes their time to making top quality, pure ingredient shortbread that is as delicious as when Mary first began her business. Sharon thinks, “If customers like a melt-in-your-mouth shortbread cookie, they’ll love our cookies!”


In other news: We have 2 new attractions in our Fun Farm Yard. Come by and enjoy the straw bale tractor and tube slide! And don’t forget to mark your calendars… Harvest Festival starts Saturday, September 25!