A Windy Newfoundland Homestead with a Sustainable Focus

David Goodyear

Old becomes new.

When David Goodyear began to think about food costs, sustainability, and how he and his family ate, he sat down with older relatives to hear how people used to eat. “Everybody ate root crops because they grew it themselves,” he was told.

Goodyear says there are many root crops that grow well in Newfoundland. It didn’t seem right when his grocery store had carrots from abroad. Nor did it didn’t seem sustainable.

Change in Diet Turns to Growing

Goodyear and his family started by changing their diet and eating more root crops. The food bill went down. They found more locally raised choices.

Then they decided to grow their own root crops.

Today they grow root crops, greens, tomatoes, strawberries…even figs. The next project? A food forest.

As Goodyear explains, his is a challenging climate. His town, Flatrock, is close to St. John’s, the third windiest city in the world. He has 110 frost-free days a year. “Winter starts in November; it doesn’t end till the end of May,” he says.

The focus on growing their own food led to an interest in storing the harvest. “If you’re going to grow a massive amount of root crops you need somewhere to put them,” says Goodyear as he talks about his root cellar.

Goodyear and his family switched up their diet; and have now switched up their life. Their homestead includes the gardens, a root cellar, a greenhouse, and a passive home.