Brian Bates and his wife Anne run Bear Creek Organic Farm in Petoskey, Michigan. A little over a decade after starting their farm, they are grossing over $1.5 million from their on-farm store- which is surprising considering that before COVID, their farm was mostly wholesale, whereas now most of their sales come from on-farm retail. […]
Luke Sheldrick and his partner Dana run Terramor Farm in Burnstown, Ontario, about an hour west of Ottawa. After a decade of growing vegetables and cut flowers for a CSA, local restaurants and retail as well as farmers markets, Luke uses a number of systems to plan out the farm year and keep the plan
In 2020 the conventional metal hoop greenhouse I had been using for propagation was going to be repurposed for COVID reasons and I needed an alternative for 2021, so I built a small wooden greenhouse, just 11’x18’. I chose to do this for a few reasons: It was cheaper than metal construction (at least the
Tips for building wooden greenhouses Read More »
Have you ever been frustrated by (or heard farmers complain about) a technical assistance (TA) provider who is not helpful, not interested in organic production, or not responsive? TA offered by cooperative extension or local non-profits is meant to be a useful resource for farmers, but one bad experience can sour a farmer’s enthusiasm for
How to work with extension agents and other folks who help farmers Read More »
And ideas for shorter breaks if you can’t take a sabbatical “How ya gonna keep ‘em down on the farm After they’ve seen Paree’ How ya gonna keep ‘em away from Broadway Jazzin around and paintin’ the town How ya gonna keep ‘em away from harm, that’s a mystery They’ll never want to see a
Farm sabbatical: how it worked out for one group of farmers Read More »
Storage crops are a key element for year-round income for many farms. Extending your season for the first time, however, may mean extending your work and needed areas of expertise more than anticipated. On top of the normal in-season work to raise a diversity of crops, and know-how to keep them looking good until sold,
Diagnosing storage disorders, decay and diseases Read More »
All of the farmers I know who grow food for local markets find their inspiration in environmental or social convictions. Along with the lifestyle of farming, these convictions motivate farmers to stay the difficult course of growing food for local markets without government support. I have yet to meet a farmer who considers the financial
Ten tips to increase farm financial sustainability Read More »
Spring is our busiest sales season on our flower farm, Moonshot Farm in East Windsor New Jersey. We can never seem to grow enough. Our spring bread and butter are overwintered crops, which we sow in late summer and plant in the fall for blooms the following spring. There are two spiky spring favorites about
Foxglove and lupine: whimsical blooms from seed to sale Read More »
This week’s podcast guest Masha Vernik interviewed nearly 30 farmers in the Pacific Northwest about how they are changing their cropping strategies in response to climate change for her master’s thesis at The University of Washington. In the process, she collected a lot of data and anecdotes about all aspects of how farmers in the
During their first full season, Rick and Rose Bengtson of Ice Moon Farms suffered catastrophic damage from wind and flooding. As devastating as that was, they bounced back and we can learn from the way they rebuilt and the strategies they used to prolong cashflow later into the fall to make up for some of
