With over 3,000 acres of soybeans, canola and durum wheat to look after, there’s always farming to do at the Englot family’s Costa Lotta Farms in Montmartre, Saskatchewan. That means they have to work as a team. Dad Norman – the self-proclaimed “CEO of the farm” – runs the farm day to day and gets plenty of seeding and harvesting help from mom Loretta and their son Luc. Daughter Madison, meanwhile, is studying hard for her Agronomy degree at the University of Saskatchewan and finds time to put her knowledge to practice on the farm whenever she can. The Englots’ other son, DJ, runs a tire business but helps out where he can – and makes sure to join the family for Sunday lunch!
Despite juggling an endlessly hectic crop schedule, the Englots still know how to kick back and have fun. Find out which family member is always craving breakfast and more below…
NORMAN AND LORETTA
Husband and wife Norman and Loretta make a great team on the farm…
What’s your favourite thing about living on the farm?
Loretta: The best part of living on the farm is the wide open space from the ground to the sky. During the day, I can look out in the field and watch deer and moose walk past, or different kinds of birds fly by. In the night, if you’re lucky, you can see the northern lights and maybe even a shooting star! It’s fun to see how many constellations you can find.
You’re driving down the highway, the sun is setting, you’re on your own – what’s on the stereo?
Loretta: If I’m driving down a highway with the sun setting, I have country singer Eric Church turned up loud and I’m singing along.
Norman: A local country music station. I like Garth Brooks-style country music.
Do you have any hidden talents?
Norman: I like to invent or tinker to make things better! I came up with a cleaner and easier way to bait a mouse trap and a syringe filler that fills 10 syringes at a time with a nontoxic attractant. Loretta and I brainstormed on marketing it and we even had it in a couple retail stores in Regina and the surrounding areas. It got put on the bottom of my to-do list because of commitments to my family and the farm. But it’s on my bucket list to pursue and market it again in my retirement years!
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
Norman: If you like the job you are doing, it really never feels like work.
Loretta: You get out of this life what you put into it. That’s the advice I pass on to the kids.
MADISON, DJ AND LUC
Norman and Loretta’s outdoor-loving children Madison, DJ and Luc wouldn’t trade farm life for anything else…
Madison, how has growing up on the farm helped you with your studies?
Madison: Spending time out in the field with my dad has given me a lot of experience scouting for bugs, disease, or even the state of the soil. I really noticed it helped in my weed identification!
What do you love to do to relax?
Madison: I love spending time at the lake when I can, soaking up some sun. I also love to fish. Whenever I can get out to my parent’s lake I love throwing in a line and trying to catch a bigger fish than my dad!
Luc: I like to fish in the morning, play a round of golf and end the night with a bonfire with friends.
DJ: I like to spend time with my family quading in the summer and ski-dooing in the winter.
If you could eat anything in the world, what would it be?
Madison: Bacon and eggs, or pancakes with lots of toppings. I could eat breakfast for every meal! In the summer, my favourite treat is having raspberries from Grandma Norma’s garden all mushed up with whipping cream and sugar.
DJ: Mom’s – and only mom’s – lasagna.
Luc: Steak!
What’s your favourite childhood memory from growing up on the farm?
DJ: Driving around with Papa Joe – my grandfather – and my dad to check out the crops and cows.
Do you have any hidden talents?
Luc: Working and dealing with Norman Englot! Haha!