The Holistic Approach
The Holistic Approach
Our goal is to help provide folks across Canada with the opportunity to create a sustainable (and edible) future, one tree at a time. Our dream is to help people gain more food sovereignty, become more self-sufficient, be more connected with the land and their food again; we want to provide the opportunity for people to produce their own nourishing food from healthy plants and soil!
We run our business, the same way we strive to live our lives. At our fruit tree nursery, we believe that the health of the land and the trees go hand in hand. We strive to work with and attain natural, sustainable, holistic and regenerative farming practices; it’s at the heart of everything we do in our orchard. We cultivate a polyculture ecosystem, nurturing biodiversity that thrives in a harmonious balance—from the chickens roaming the yard to the earthworms working beneath the soil.
This holistic approach ensures that our trees grow strong and healthy, creating a balanced environment that focuses on the soil and helps build the plants natural immunity. This natural approach often negates the need to rely on the use of harmful chemicals; we thoughtfully select natural pesticides and fertilizers that are approved for organic use and focus on the plants natural immunity over death of the disease or pest.
When you choose our trees, you’re not just adding to your orchard—you’re supporting a sustainable future, one tree at a time.
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8 products
8 products
We use this in our orchard for all trees (both in our experimental orchard and nursery stock) as part of our holistic spray system. You can download the holistic spray recipe here.
Cold-pressed, live and nutrient-rich, this liquid fish hydrolysate is not sterilized with high heat like an emulsion. 100% no chemicals added, suitable for organic production. Excellent source of probiotics and mycorrhizae that aid the roots in nutrient and water absorption, and for earthworms that increase organic matter in the soil.
Bottle contains 1L. Enough to make 50L of spray mix.
We use this in our orchard for all trees (both in our experimental orchard and nursery stock) as part of out holistic spray system. You can download the holistic spray recipe here.
Full of trace minerals, this liquid seaweed comes from the Ascophyllum nodosum plant in the Atlantic Ocean.
945mL bottle is enough for 200L of spray mix, or 4x 50L mixes.
Terra Biosa is a dynamic, microbial soil inoculant. It is categorized as a Biological Compost Aid for the cultivation and stimulation of soil productivity and plant health. This all-natural and organic product is useful in orchards, vineyards, gardens, and compost by providing the following benefits:
- Stimulates plants metabolism
- Enhances yield as well as quality of fruit and produce
- Improves resistance to fungal infestations
- Improves soil quality by restoring micro-organisms in the soil
We use this in our orchard for all trees (both in our experimental orchard and nursery stock) as the effective microbe component of our holistic spray system. You can download the holistic spray recipe here.
Recommended Application Rates:
Soil: Mix 1 tsp of Terra Biosa per 40 sq. ft. (4 m2) in your water and apply while irrigating. Apply every two weeks for best result.
Foliar care and feeding: Mix 1 tsp. of Terra Biosa per 1L of fresh (preferably structured) water and apply using a spray bottle. Remember to mist leaves on both sides.
Unsulphured blackstrap molasses are a great way of getting some much-needed nutrients to your trees in a more natural way, generally being considered high in iron, calcium, and magnesium. It is also a key ingredient in our Holistic Spray if you are using effective microbes.
Please note the molasses we carry is not food grade.
Contents: Organic, unsulphured, pasteurized, non-GMO blackstrap molasses
Size: 945mL bottle
Application:
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Root Drench - 1tsp per 1L of water during vegetative state every 7-14 days
- Root Drench During Bloom - 2tsp per 1L of water every 7-14 days
- Foliar - 1/4tsp of water per 1L of water every 14 days
Soil: Any
The Holistic Orchard: Tree Fruits and Berries the Biological Way demystifies the basic skills everybody should know about the inner-workings of the orchard ecosystem, as well as orchard design, soil biology, and organic health management. Detailed insights on grafting, planting, pruning, and choosing the right varieties for your climate are also included, along with a step-by-step instructional calendar to guide growers through the entire orchard year. The extensive profiles of pome fruits (apples, pears, Asian pears, quinces), stone fruits (cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums), and berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, gooseberries, currants, and elderberries) will quickly have you savoring the prospects.
Michael Phillips has been a huge inspiration for how we run things here at Silver Creek Nursery. From considering the principles of orchard ecosystems to the holistic spray recipe we have listed on our website, his knowledge and insight has been an irreplaceable resource for us.
Ever wondered about the mysterious 'Holistic Spray' we mention? Learn all about how we care for our trees without the use of harsh chemicals it in this workshop.
Join us bright and early to discuss spraying, the ingredients in a holistic spray, when, where, and most importantly, why we use this method! We will show you our set up and offer advice to make your own spray, for your own localized pest and disease pressures.
We are offering two different dates this year (select from below), for you to join for our 2026 Holistic Spray Workshop in order to accommodate a growing interest.
We are offering you a choice of either Friday, April 10th, 2026 (5:30pm-7:30pm) OR Saturday, April 11th, 2026 (9am-11am).
Registration includes a 2 hour mini-workshop, where you’ll learn:
-the theory behind this method/what is a holistic spray
-how to make a holistic spray
-what ingredients you’ll need
-how to tweak it to suit your needs based on your localized pest pressures
-when to spray (seasonally + time of day)
What to Bring: a lawn chair and note taking material. We will pass around a handout with the basic recipe. Michael Phillip’s book will also be available for purchase; it is an
invaluable resource!
Please also dress for the weather: we will be outdoors or in an unheated hoop house depending on the weather, followed by a quick tour of the orchard when when we do a demo spray.
Sepp Holzer farms steep mountainsides in Austria 1,500 meters above sea level. His farm is an intricate network of terraces, raised beds, ponds, waterways and tracks, well covered with productive fruit trees and other vegetation, with the farmhouse neatly nestling amongst them. This is in dramatic contrast to his neighbors’ spruce monocultures.
In this book, Holzer shares the skill and knowledge acquired over his lifetime. He covers every aspect of his farming methods, not just how to create a holistic system on the farm itself, but how to make a living from it. Holzer writes about everything from the overall concepts, down to the practical details. In Sepp Holzer’s Permaculture readers will learn:
- How he sets up a permaculture system
- The fruit varieties he has found best for permaculture growing
- How to construct terraces, ponds, and waterways
- How to build shelters for animals and how to work with them on the land
- How to cultivate edible mushrooms in the garden and on the farm
- and much more!
Holzer offers a wealth of information for the gardener, smallholder, or alternative farmer yet the book’s greatest value is the attitudes it teaches. He reveals the thinking processes based on principles found in nature that create his productive systems. These can be applied anywhere.
Exploring the science of symbiotic fungi in layman’s terms, holistic farmer Michael Phillips (author of The Holistic Orchard and The Apple Grower) sets the stage for practical applications for working with mycorrhizal fungi across the landscape. The real impetus behind no-till farming, gardening with mulches, cover cropping, digging with broadforks, shallow cultivation, forest-edge orcharding, and everything related to permaculture is to help the plants and fungi to prosper . . . which means we prosper as well.
Building soil structure and fertility that lasts for ages results only once we comprehend the nondisturbance principle. As the author says, “What a grower understands, a grower will do.” Mycorrhizal Planet abounds with insights into “fungal consciousness” and offers practical, regenerative techniques that are pertinent to gardeners, landscapers, orchardists, foresters, and farmers. Michael’s fungal acumen will resonate with everyone who is fascinated with the unseen workings of nature and concerned about maintaining and restoring the health of our soils, our climate, and the quality of life on Earth for generations to come.