Holy Stick Farms is a farm located in Cobble Hill in the beautiful Cowichan Valley and is run by Damian and his family, who moved to the area in 2018. Starting literally from scratch, they have been turning their piece of land into a farm, where natural and sustainable methods of farming are employed. Damian’s view is that farms should be beneficial and viable parts of local ecosystems and not be detrimental to them. Thus the name of the farm: Holy Stick, as it is a play on words to represent the farm’s holistic approach.
The holistic approach is accomplished by implementing practices such as permaculture, the rotational grazing of pastures, holistic management, regenerative agriculture and others. By following patterns found in nature, there is no need to use pesticides, herbicides and fungicides in their operation. For example, beneficial insects are attracted by planting a variety of plants, the excess of slugs is controlled by farm-raised ducks and organic matter is composted in order to provide a healthy environment for organisms living in the soil.
On the farm, the family produces: vegetables, fruits, pastured eggs (chickens and ducks) and pastured pork. Soon also honey and mushrooms.