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farming for love: three b.c. farmers set to pick their partners during season finale
will these single farmers find love after growing relationships on the ctv reality show?
jul 31 2024
6 minute read
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three b.c. farmers are about to pick the romantic partners they hope to grow a future with on the season finale of ctv’s farming for love .
the reality tv show wraps its second season on july 31 at 10 p.m. pt with farmers kirkland and josh, both from the chilliwack area, and mischa from lillooet making their final matches. (last names are not used in the show to protect privacy.)
the season began with four b.c. farmers and seven “daters,” but one farmer, erin of creston, decided during episode 6 to send her remaining contenders home so she could pursue a relationship exclusively with a contestant named jared. (production reports the pair are still together.)
during the show, each farmer invites five romantic hopefuls to their respective farms with the aim of finding a match. one potential partner is eliminated each week.
like the usual reality tv format, cameras follow the farmers and daters as they get to know one another. and, in some cases, really get to know each other.
“at first, it is almost a little overwhelming. but before you know it, you’re making out with someone and 10 people are watching,” said josh, a 27-year-old dairy farmer, during a recent zoom conversation with kirkland and postmedia.
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but like life on a farm, things happen — and you just have to roll with it.
“you get so used to it,” said kirkland, a 35-year-old cattle farmer/horse boarder, about the cameras. “(but) when (the crew) all left the farm just felt so quiet.”
farming for love is based on the long-running international hit farmer wants a wife. first produced in the u.k. in 2001, farmer wants a wife has expanded to 34 countries. according to the production, the series boasts 222 weddings (195 still together) and 555 kids, with 14 more on the way.
in the first season of canada’s farming for love, five farmers searched for a match. out of that crop, one couple (doug and meghan) are still together.
“the series captures real vulnerability and the roller-coaster of emotions that occur on this exciting journey,” said erin haskett, executive producer and the president of lark productions. “it is also a love letter to our hard-working, diverse group of canadian farmers. and b.c.’s captivating landscapes.”
haskett says audience reaction to this season’s love stories has been phenomenal.
“the fans have their favourite couples that they are rooting for,” haskett says. “and they aren’t afraid to tell us.”
as for getting any pre-finale secrets from the farmers, their barn doors were shut tight.
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neither josh or kirkland would offer up any scoops or hints as to their final choices. though both say lots of people have tried to get them to spill the beans while the series has been running.
chilliwack dairy farmer josh will be choosing between alysha and kennedy in the july 31 finale of the ctv realty tv show farming for love. photo: courtesy of ctv
darko sikman
/
ctv
“a neat part of the whole thing is hearing outside perspectives of what people are thinking, and what they’re seeing and kind of putting it together with what you actually experienced on the show yourself,” said josh, who has hosted friends and family for weekly viewing sessions. “i’m also a sales rep for a crop input company, so i’m seeing tons of farmers all the time. it’s pretty hilarious talking to these usually big, grizzled guys and they’re talking about a reality dating tv show. and telling me who i should be picking and all that.”
kirkland has also heard a lot of opinions from people during the season. but the cheam first nation member is not letting anything slip.
“my dad just came home and he’s on council, chief on council, on the reserve, and he said everybody at the band office is placing bets. and they all think this way or that way. i get a lot of that,” said kirkland, who is the first gay farmer to take part in the ctv series.
“what i get all the time is well, ‘are you happy? are you happy?'” added kirkland. “tune in to find out.”
chilliwack farmer kirkland says since the show farming for love began airing friends, family and even strangers have tried to get him to spill the beans about who he picked to pursue a relationship with. that choice will be revealed when he chooses between greg and kale during the show’s finale on july 31 on ctv. photo courtesy of ctv.
darko sikman
/
ctv
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kirkland says one of the reasons he sought out farming for love was that he wanted to widen his dating options. as he says in the show: “chilliwack is famous for its corn, not its gay men.”
kirkland, who will be deciding between toronto guys kale and greg, says he is fine with being a poster boy for gay farmers.
“i’ll take that,” said kirkland. “it’s interesting going into this show there was no blueprint for me, so i did feel like i was leading the way there as the first gay farmer. but, within the community, i felt nothing but support. i’m sure there are a lot of voices i’m not hearing, but within chilliwack i’ve heard great things. “within my indigenous community, they’re all so supportive. all my aunties are posting about it … it’s been really, really great.
“i feel really proud of what i put out.”
while they didn’t know each other before the show, josh and kirkland live close to each other in the rosedale area of chilliwack. since shooting the series last fall, the duo has become friends.
with the finale about to drop, the farmers were introspective about their time shooting the series last fall. they explained the logistics of making a tv show took some getting used to, but the biggest adjustment was the heightened pursuit of a potential life partner.
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“(what was surprising was) how exhausting it is to date five women at a time,” said josh. “as it goes on, and once you develop feelings for each of these girls, it definitely puts a weight on you and you’re tired at the end of the day.
“people can definitely forget the human emotion and the human nature that is involved in it. it is all happening in real time when we are filming this. everyone says, hey you know what you’re signing up for. but emotions get involved, and real feelings start to develop, so it can be tough,” he added, as kirkland nodded along in agreement on the zoom screen.
with a world saturated with reality shows where not necessarily the best side of the human condition is highlighted, both kirkland and josh say their experience with farming for love was a positive one. and one they are both very happy they signed up for.
“there’s 200 marriages and 500 kids come from this show, so for me, i had so much trust in this process and really diving into what it was giving me,” said kirkland. “i was so trusting that the end goal was to find love.
“for queer people, in general, i think it was such a great thing to put out there … i felt so taken care of and met some amazing people,” added kirkland.
josh, the fatigue of weeks and weeks of essentially non-stop dating aside, also looks back fondly on the unique time filming.
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“i’m super happy with this whole experience,” said josh. “honestly, it’s a once in a lifetime thing … and, at the end of the day, an opportunity to find somebody.”
dgee@postmedia.com
twitter.com/dana_gee
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