When a business is driven by a passionate belief it becomes so much more than an offering of services.
For Mark Burke and his wife Susan, supporting the environment and doing their part in fighting climate change meant opening a business post-retirement and endeavouring to make a difference with business practices that are aligned with their love of nature.
The Burke’s have always lived in a way that supports nature and wildlife, including creating habitats for local wildlife and insects by planting trees and shrubs. In May 2021, they bought 23 acres in Collingwood, to continue their practices of supporting the environment on a larger scale and to launch a business that can help their clients do so as well.
White Willow Farms Ltd is a landscaping company, however, Mark Burke said, it so much more. The business model was created to enhance the environment with every service they offer, and an educational and environmental component is always included within each job they do.
A business where services rendered create a giant environmental circle of giving back to nature
Since buying the property almost a year ago, Burke said they’ve planted thousands of trees, with some available for clients but mostly to provide natural habitat for wildlife. They also create, and use, their own nutrient-rich soil by taking top soil from the area and adding organics and other ingredients.
“We’re not selling just any topsoil, we’re offering special custom mixes of soil that are very high in organics and the type of soil mix that you would want to plant a garden in your backyard,” he said.
While their services are available for residential, commercial, and municipal clients, and include a variety of landscaping services, what remains the same with each job they do is implementing environmental best practices.
“You can almost look at our business like a giant environmental circle so we don’t want to be known as a landscaping company,” Burke said. “The trees grow much faster, much healthier and prosper better than trees in normal soil, and it’s really a giant circle what we’re doing and every component ties in with the other.” “We’re not just going out there and mowing lawns and taking the debris to the dump, we’re using it for compost and we’re adding it to our soil mixtures.”
As well, with any client, Burke’s team can educate others on ways they too can make a difference by suggesting what trees, shrubs or flowers would beautify their property while supporting the environment, explain the importance of soils and what promotes the heathiest growth, or teach them about compost and reuse practices, all of which will benefit them and the environment.
“It’s a triple win for our clients, they get a very sharp price, they get professional, high-quality approach and they’re giving back to the environment,” Burke said.
Supporting the environment, the community and encouraging others to do their part
Burke said their business and how it operates is their way of giving back to the Collingwood, The Blue Mountain and Thornbury communities by them helping to beautify landscapes and supporting the environment.
Avid lovers of horses and dogs, the Burke’s have recently began supporting the Georgian Triangle Humane Society, with monthly monetary donations.
To learn more about White Willow Farms Ltd. and the services they offer, call 705-351-1295, visit their website or contact them today to learn more!