A local sheep and cattle farmer is planting his tighty-whities on his land.
"The Lake Simcoe Conservation Authority told me there's a lucrative market in growing underwear, so I'm pretty excited to see what happens," chuckles Hunter Roberts.
Of course, he's kidding.
The Innisfil man isn't actually hoping to become an underwear farmer. Instead, he's taking part in a campaign to test the quality of the soil on his land.
"I'm expecting the soil to be perfectly healthy, but I'm interested to see if it is or not," he says.
Roberts will plant a clean pair of 100 percent cotton undies in the soil, and after two months, he will dig them back up to check what's left as part of the 'Soil Your Undies' campaign.
"The biological activity in the soil, all of the microbes, will have broken down those natural fibres and it's a good indication of good soil health," explains Peter Shuttleworth, Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA).
Basically, if there's nothing left but the elastic waistband the soil is in great shape.
Roberts believes this will be the case for him since his land is chemical-free. "We don't farm it intensively," he says. "The sheep fertilize it themselves. We don't have to do anything. It's just a much more natural system than say a corn or vegetable field that you would farm more intensively."
Even though he's expecting positive results, he's still curious to see the outcome in eight weeks. Roberts says it's vital to ensure the quality of the land for now, and for down the road. "We've always been very conscious of the environment. We want to make sure we're being sustainable in what we do. We have to be smarter about how we farm our land and try and preserve it for the future."
The LSRCA says anyone can participate in the 'Soil Your Undies' campaign and if those tighty-whities come out of the soil just as they were planted -- ready to wear -- then it's recommended you contact them for more information about funding for proper soil testing.
- With files from Craig Momney
