About Us

Leaf Ninjas is a small family of entrepreneurs; lead by gardener and farmer Luke Kimmel, the Leaf Ninjas team has set out to design and cultivate highly productive urban farms and permaculture gardens in Calgary, AB.

The Leaf Ninjas main goal is to grow good food locally using organic methods, and to educate and empower other people to grow food in this way.

The “ninja approach” to farming and gardening is centered around the application of martial arts, permaculture, and business savvy, to the many aspects of growing food.

Essentially we offer two different landscaping approaches, and both are based on growing food. The most simple option is where the Leaf Ninjas are allowed to farm a plot of land in exchange for a percentage of the food we produce on that land (in this case we can potentially cover most or all of the infrastructure costs). The second option starts as a consultation with Luke regarding a permaculture-based approach to personalized garden design, installation, and maintenance packages.

In both cases, the Leaf Ninja’s goal is to cultivate an abundance of delicious local food, grown using all organic methods, and to make this high quality food accessible for the citizens of Calgary.

The Leaf Ninjas have also prioritized community involvement in order to help facilitate and empower consumers and other producers of quality local food, in an effort to help build a resilient and connected community surrounding local food in Calgary.

The Leaf Ninjas are here to show that growing food in cities is a relevant trend based on good reason, logical thinking, professional practices, practicality, and deliciousness! We are here to prove the merit of sustainable local food and it’s rightful place in urban landscape design, which is often right in the back yards, right where people live.

Who are the Leaf Ninjas?

Luke Kimmel

Here is a list of Luke’s permaculture and gardening related credentials:

• Recently completed a successful work term and 7 month internship with Verge Permaculture in Calgary, AB.
• Has taken two 72 hr Permaculture Design Certificate Courses, one from Verge Permaculture and one from the Selkirk College in Nelson, BC
• Volunteered on the installation of over 15 gardens in 2011, amounting to hundreds of hours of experience in consulting, design, and installation of a variety of permaculture gardens.
• He is booked as a guest lecturer at the University of Calgary to speak on sustainable food in early spring 2012.
• Was the lead hand for a 2 month period on Earth Crafter’s permaculture / biodynamic farm in Winlaw, BC.
• Has successfully planted, designed, and maintained several permaculture gardens in Calgary, AB including planting and maintaining a forest garden for The Mustard Seed.
• Has operated his own ecological landscape services company for 2 years; this company is Leaf Ninja’s predecessor known as “Ninja Services”
• Luke is constantly investing in more education; in 2012 he is already booked for the following courses and workshops:
  • Two courses on water. One with Craig Sponholtz on managing water in degraded landscapes; and one with Brad Lancaster on rainwater-harvesting in urban landscapes.
  • A Soil Food Web course with Doug Weatherbee on advanced composting, soil biology, compost teas, and more…
  • A permaculture and forest gardening course with Toby Hemenway who is credited with writing the best selling permaculture book in the world for the last seven years, Gaia’s Garden. 
  • A greenhouse building and ecosystem design course with Jerome Ostentowski from the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute where they are growing bananas and figs in the rockies.
  • A wild and edible plant walk course with Wildrose College Professor Blaine Andrusek.

(more on Luke coming soon)

The Leaf Ninjas: 

Dave Carlton

Tim Kessler

Kai Boettcher

Andrew Renaux