Crop Farming

Introduction

Métis farming began during the Fur Trade, alongside hunting, fishing, and trading. In the 1830s, Catholic and Anglican missionaries introduced cereal crops and gardens to the Red River Métis in present-day Manitoba.

A piece of art by Leah Marie Dorion made with mosaics shows two Indigenous people standing near animals, sun, and water.

Cereal crops include wheat, barley, rye, and oats

The missionaries encouraged farming to promote a more settled lifestyle, fitting the approach, which aimed to integrate the Métis into Euro-Canadian society.

Early farming focused on providing food for families and trading with the Hudson’s Bay Company.

Photo Credit: Provincial Archives of Saskatchewan (R-A21944)

A threshing crew from Willow Bunch, SK taking a break

Challenges

Growing conditions were challenging—droughts, floods, grasshoppers, and long-maturing wheat varieties often led to crop failures. Over time, Métis farmers began rotating crops, fertilizing fields, and using simple tools like sickles and scythes.

An example of a cradle scythe

Grains were threshed by hand or livestock, and flour was often made using hand grinders. By the late 1800s, equipment began to make the work easier.

Learn the differences between a sickle and a scythe

Flip

Prince Albert, Saskatchewan was known for having many Métis in the wheat grinding industry. James Isbister had started growing wheat since 1863, and by 1874 grist mills were coming to Prince Albert to turn the grain into flour. There were several different types of grist mills that were being operated around the Prince Albert area during this time.

Grist mills were powered by either water, wind, or animals and grinded grain into flour by spinning a large wheel that moved the grain between two large stones.

Flip

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