E. Earth and Space Systems · Soils in the Environment

Ontario Soils Grow Our Food

E2.3 E1.1 A1.1 A1.2 A3.3About 45 minutes

Learning goals

I can describe some different types of soils found in Ontario.
I can explain why some foods grow better in some soils.
I can describe how the Three Sisters are grown together and how they help the soil.
I can research where a food is grown in Ontario.

Words to know

crop
A plant that farmers grow in large amounts for food or other uses, like corn, wheat or soybeans.

glacier
A huge, thick sheet of ice that moves very slowly over the land.

muck soil
A very dark soil made mostly of rotted plants. It holds lots of water and nutrients.

Canadian Shield
A huge area of very old rock that covers most of northern Ontario. The soil there is often thin and rocky.

Three Sisters
Corn, beans and squash, grown together by the Haudenosaunee and other First Nations for many hundreds of years.

manoomin
The Anishinaabemowin word for wild rice, a plant that grows in shallow lakes and rivers.

Where does your carrot come from?

Crunch! You bite into a carrot. Before it was in your lunch, it grew in the soil of a farm, maybe right here in Ontario. Ontario has many kinds of soil, and farmers choose the right food to grow in the right soil.

Last lesson you learned about sand, silt, clay and loam. Today you will travel around Ontario to see its soils and the food they grow.

Rows of carrot plants growing in dark soil on a large farm field, with freshly pulled carrots lying in front. — Carrots grow well in soft, dark soil where their roots can push down easily. Farms like this grow food in Ontario's rich soils. AI-generated image

How did Ontario get its soils?

A very long time ago, during the last Ice Age, giant glaciers covered all of Ontario. The ice was more than a kilometre thick in places! As the glaciers slowly moved, they scraped and crushed rocks.

When the glaciers melted, more than 10 000 years ago, they left behind sand, gravel, clay and rocks. Over thousands of years, plants grew and died and became humus. Much of the soil in southern Ontario formed this way. That is why Ontario has so many different soils: sandy places, clay places, and places with a good mix.

Place in Ontario	What the soil is like	Some foods grown there
Holland Marsh (north of Toronto, near Bradford)	very dark muck soil made from rotted plants; holds lots of water and nutrients	carrots, onions, lettuce, celery
Norfolk County (along Lake Erie)	sandy soil that drains well and warms up quickly in spring	strawberries, asparagus and many other fruits and vegetables
Many fields in southwestern Ontario	loam and clay loam soils	corn, soybeans, wheat
Niagara region	mild weather near the lakes; fruit trees and grape vines are planted where soil drains well	grapes, peaches, cherries
The Clay Belt in northern Ontario	flat land with clay soil	hay and grains, often used to feed cattle
The Canadian Shield	thin, rocky soil, often sandy, over bedrock	mostly forests; wild blueberries grow in many places

Some Ontario soils and foods

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Foods from Ontario soils: carrots and onions (Holland Marsh), strawberries (Norfolk County), corn (southwestern Ontario), grapes (Niagara) and wild blueberries (Canadian Shield).

Matching food to soil

Different plants need different things:

Root vegetables like carrots and potatoes grow under the ground. They grow best in loose soil with no big stones, like sandy soil, loam or muck. In hard clay or stony soil, carrots grow short and crooked!
Strawberries and asparagus like soil that drains well, like sandy soil. Their roots don't like to sit in water.
Lettuce and celery need lots of water. Muck soil holds water like a sponge.
Corn, soybeans and wheat grow well in loam and clay loam, which hold water and nutrients through the summer.
Blueberries like sour soil (scientists say acidic), like many sandy soils on the Canadian Shield.
Cranberries grow in wet, boggy places. Ontario has cranberry marshes in the Muskoka area.

The Three Sisters

For many hundreds of years, the Haudenosaunee and other First Nations have grown corn, beans and squash together. They are called the Three Sisters, because they help each other like family.

Seeds are planted together in small mounds of soil.
Corn grows tall and strong. Its stalk is a pole for the beans to climb.
Beans climb the corn. Bean plants help put nitrogen, an important plant food, into the soil.
Squash spreads big, wide leaves over the ground. The leaves shade the soil, keep it damp and block weeds.

This is very smart soil science! The plants share the soil and help keep it healthy. The Three Sisters are also important in Haudenosaunee teachings and ceremonies, and they are still grown today.

The Three Sisters growing in one mound of soil: tall corn, beans climbing the corn, and squash with big leaves shading the soil.

Manoomin: wild rice

Manoomin (wild rice) grows in shallow lakes and rivers in Ontario and nearby. Its roots grow in the soft mud at the bottom, and the plant reaches up above the water. Manoomin is a very important food and gift for many Anishinaabe communities. In late summer, people harvest it from canoes, gently knocking the ripe grains into the canoe. Caring for clean water and healthy lake bottoms is part of caring for manoomin.

Worked example

Let's be farmers: choose the right soil

A farmer has two fields. Field A has loose, sandy soil that drains fast. Field B has dark muck soil that holds lots of water. Where should she plant strawberries, and where should she plant lettuce?

Strawberries like soil that drains well. Their roots don't like to sit in water.
Sandy soil drains fast. So strawberries go in Field A.
Lettuce needs lots of water. Muck soil holds water like a sponge.
So lettuce goes in Field B.

Strawberries in Field A (sandy, drains well). Lettuce in Field B (muck, holds water).

Worked example

Let's research: Where did my food grow?

Noor wants to know: "What foods in my kitchen were grown in Ontario?" How can she find out, like a scientist doing research?

Ask a question: What foods in my kitchen were grown in Ontario?
Find information: She checks labels and stickers on fruits and vegetables. Many say "Product of Canada" or "Product of Ontario". She asks a grown-up and looks at a grocery store flyer.
Record: She makes a table: food, where it grew, part of the plant (root, leaf, fruit, seed).
Share: She finds 5 foods from Ontario: carrots, onions, apples, potatoes and corn. She tells her class which kind of soil each one likes.

Noor followed a research process: ask, find information from reliable sources, record and share.

Just for fun

When a carrot grows in stony or hard soil, it can bump into rocks and split into two or three "legs". It looks like the carrot is going for a walk!

Hands-on activity

Ontario food detectives, plus a planting test

Part 1: Food detectives. Look at the fruits and vegetables at home or at a grocery store with a grown-up. Find 5 that were grown in Ontario or Canada (look for stickers, labels or signs). Make a chart: food, where it grew, and which part of the plant we eat.

Part 2: Which soil grows beans best? You need: 3 small pots or cups with holes in the bottom (a grown-up makes the holes), dry bean seeds (from the grocery store), and three soils: sand, garden or potting soil, and clay soil if you can find some.

Fill each cup with a different soil. Label the cups.
Plant 2 bean seeds in each cup, the same depth (about 2 cm).
Put all the cups in the same sunny window. Give each one the same amount of water (about 2 spoonfuls) every other day.
Measure the tallest plant in each cup with a ruler once a week for 3 weeks.
Which soil grew the tallest beans? Was it a fair test? What did you keep the same?

Safety: Wear gloves, or wash your hands with soap after handling soil and seeds. Keep seeds away from little brothers and sisters: they are a choking hazard.

Your turn

Name two kinds of soil found in Ontario.

Why do carrots grow best in loose soil?

What is special about the muck soil of the Holland Marsh?

Name the Three Sisters.

How do squash leaves help the soil?

What left behind much of the sand, gravel and clay in Ontario?

Where does manoomin (wild rice) grow?

More practice: warm-up

What is a crop?

Which grows in sandy soil in Norfolk County: strawberries or rice?

Is the soil on the Canadian Shield usually thick or thin?

Name one food grown in the Niagara region.

Which of the Three Sisters is a pole for the others to climb?

More practice: on your own

Why is there a lot of forest but not much farming on the Canadian Shield?

A farmer's field has hard clay soil. Should she plant carrots there? Why or why not?

How do beans help the corn and squash?

Name the four steps Noor used in her research.

Lettuce needs lots of water. Which Ontario soil would be a good choice: sandy soil or muck soil? Explain.

Challenge

In the bean test, the beans in sand were 6 cm, in potting soil 15 cm, and in clay 9 cm. Order them from tallest to shortest. How much taller was the tallest than the shortest?

The Three Sisters are planted together. Explain how growing them together is good for the soil, not just the plants.

Ontario has many different soils. Explain how glaciers are part of the reason.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which food grows under the ground and needs loose soil?

The very dark soil of the Holland Marsh is made mostly of...

The Three Sisters are...

What did melting glaciers leave behind in Ontario?

Strawberries grow well in sandy soil because sandy soil...

Soil on the Canadian Shield is often...

For parents and teachers

Big idea (E2.3, part 2): Ontario's soils vary (largely because of material left by glaciers) and different soils suit different foods: muck soils of the Holland Marsh for vegetables, sandy soils of Norfolk County for fruit and vegetables, loams and clay loams of southwestern Ontario for field crops, clay belts in the north for forage, and thin acidic Shield soils supporting forest and wild blueberries. The Three Sisters show long-standing First Nations knowledge of soil (A3.3); this also shows why soil matters to communities (E1.1).

Indigenous perspectives: The Three Sisters are grown by many Nations; for the Haudenosaunee they are also part of ceremonies and teachings (often called the Three Sisters or "our sustainers"). Manoomin is central to many Anishinaabe communities. Present these as living traditions, not history only. If possible, look for books by Indigenous authors or local Indigenous food programs.

How to help: Shop with your child and read produce labels (A1.1 research). The bean test takes 3 weeks: keep a calendar and measure weekly. It is a fair test (A1.2) if only the soil changes.

Common difficulties: Children may think one soil is "best" for everything. Stress that each plant has needs and the best soil depends on the plant.

Safety: Dry bean seeds are for planting, not eating raw. An adult pokes drainage holes. Keep seeds away from toddlers (choking hazard), and wash hands after handling soil.