As we begin to transition into our 2025 spring programs, we wanted to take a moment to look back at everything we have accomplished together in 2024.
In 2023 we began expanding our winter cover crop program. After decades of success in Richmond and Delta, we opened the program to farmers in the rest of Metro Vancouver and Abbotsford. Historically, an average of 3,079 acres were planted with cover crops in Richmond and Delta each fall and winter. Our first year of expansion saw that number more than double, with 7,363 acres now participating in the cover crop program, with 2,953 acres coming from new regions.
A 2024 cover crop field in Agassiz, BC.
In 2024, we expanded the cover crop program further, now including the rest of the Fraser Valley. We saw our biggest year yet, with a total of 10,652 acres planted in cover crops, including 6,435 acres planted outside of Delta and Richmond. Over the past two years, this expansion has helped us connect with 46 new farms, which was an exciting sign of growing interest in cover cropping across the region.
The Forage Pilot program also had a standout year. The program began in 2017 to support grass forage producers who were seeing extensive damage to fields due to waterfowl grazing. 2024 marked the program’s highest participation year, with 662 acres enrolled in Richmond and Delta.
We were also pleased to see a renewed interest in the Hedgerow Program. With funding now offered to Metro Vancouver and Abbotsford we have been able to support 4 new hedgerow projects, including a new Hatfield Legacy hedgerow which can be seen at Barnside Brewing. Together, these hedgerow projects created a total of 652 meters of new habitat composed of native shrubs as well as coniferous and deciduous trees. These hedgerows will provide resources for birds, pollinators, and small mammals, which is especially important in farmscapes, where natural habitat can be hard to come by.
2024 Fall-planted hedgerow being installed in Chilliwack (left). A 375m long fall-planted Hedgerow in Pitt Meadows included many conifers (right).
We’re grateful for the continued enthusiasm and dedication from farmers throughout the Lower Mainland for on farm stewardship. These nature-based approaches allow farmers to incorporate more wildlife habitats onto working farms, proving that conservation and farming go hand in hand.