The Sir Andrew MacPhail Homestead is reaping the rewards of the pumpkin-growing prowess of staff of ADI International (PEI) in Brookfield and the quality of compost produced at the province’s Central Compost Facility.
ADI International (PEI) Inc., the operators of the Island Waste Management Corporation’s Central Compost Facility in Brookfield, won national bragging rights last year by growing the largest pumpkin in the Annual Composting Giants, The Great Pumpkin Growing Contest. In essence, the competition pits composting facilities from across Canada against each other to see whose compost can grow the largest pumpkin.
ADI beat over 16 entries from across the country to win the title and, with it, a donation to a local gardening initiative of their choice. Chris Snively, ADI’s facility manager on Prince Edward Island, said they chose the Sir Andrew MacPhail homestead as the beneficiary of the cash award for many reasons.
“This historic homestead is rich with agricultural history,” said Snively. “Sir Andrew MacPhail was credited with the first experiments in the seed potato industry on PEI, so his legacy certainly speaks for itself. Presently, the MacPhail Woods Project is doing tremendous work with the Island’s indigenous tree species, while the restaurant located there serves vegetables grown on-site.
“In the spirit of returning nutrients to the soil, they produce their own compost, so this donation in some small way recognizes all the good work they do.”
Janice Whalen, vice president of the board of the Sir Andrew MacPhail Homestead, said the organization appreciates the recognition and the financial support.
“I want to thank ADI and the Composting Council of Canada for this assistance,” Whalen said. “I can assure you the donation will be put to good use because we are in the process of restoring the heritage flower and vegetable gardens on site.”
Susan Antler, executive director of the Composting Council of Canada, congratulated ADI for their victory in the competition and explained that the award recognizes the work of everyone at the Central Compost Facility in Brookfield.
“This is extremely important, given the fact that each and every citizen of Prince Edward Island sorts their waste and provides material to the facility,” Antler said. “During International Compost Awareness Week, we should recognize these efforts and acknowledge the fact that the creation of such high-quality compost is a credit to everyone involved.”