is it usually very hard to farm in subarctic climates, because the soil is "infertile" (it doesn't have the nutrients that many plants need to grow) and because of the many swamps and lakes that ice sheets make, and only very tough crops can survive the short growing seasons. on the plus side, the days last longer in the summer as you get closer to the poles. so the plants that can grow get a lot of sunlight. potatoes, strawberries, blueberries and hay for animals grow well. special varieties of other plants may grow as well.