Growers Daily

Despite the risk of pivoting their business, Lindsay Steele of Garden Fort in Dexter, Michigan (outside of Ann arbor), chose to switch from farmers markets to direct-to-retail sales and ended up reaping unexpected rewards - from more time with his family to increased profitability.

In this episode, Alex Ball of Old City Acres and Lindsay dig deep into successfully shifting from farmers markets to direct-to-retail sales, selecting profitable crops for year-round production, how clever packaging and branding set their products apart, scaling-up and effectively managing farm labor, and how all of those things contributed to a better work/family balance while farming.

Also mentioned in this episode...

• Follow Garden Fort on Instagram.
• They use Rimol Greenhouses Nor'Easter series for year-round greens production.
• Consider focusing more on high-profit-margin crops like salad greens for year-round production and potential wholesale opportunities.
• Evaluate your farm's workflow (i.e. wash/pack) and systems (i.e. tarping, reduced tillage) to increase efficiency for a better work/life balance.
• Consider the benefits of incentivising well-trained and returning farm workers and how that can contribute to the overall success of your farm.

The Rough Draft Farmstead No-Till Farm Tour!

Folks who make the show possible...

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

Tilth Soil amazing compost-based living potting soils and soil blends.

Orisha for wireless greenhouse+ automation, get 15% off with code "No Till Grower"

Real Organic Project for a whole farm certification program to distinguish crops grown in health soils.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

We all know how important it is to start with a quality plant.

With a degree and experience in applied industrial ecology, Kurstin of Purple Springs Nursery discusses the transition from IPM to regenerative agriculture in the nursery space. Her work at Purple Springs allowed her to explore innovative ways to improve plant health and soil quality. Kurstin's dedication to sustainable practices and her understanding of the intricacies of soil health and plant nutrition make her a great guest on perinneal production. Check out their website where you can download their free guide to regenerative agriculture. Also, garlic? Yes, garlic.

In this episode...

- Explore Advancing Eco Agriculture's website and learn from John Kemp's core concepts for plant health.

- Read the book Science and Agriculture by Arden Anderson to understand the importance of soil health.

- Implement the Morgan Extraction Method soil test (developed by Dr. Kerry Reams) to analyze and improve soil conditions.

- Apply plant SAP analysis to determine the nutritional needs of plants at different growth stages.

- Adopt regenerative principles in managing tree nurseries, including using mulch, living mulch, and cover crops.

- Utilize tools and equipment that help manage regenerative practices in tree nurseries without causing soil compaction.

- Focus on increasing plant growth efficiency to improve inventory management in tree nurseries.

- Read Agriculture and Transition by Donald Schneissman and Albrecht on Calcium to further enhance understanding of soil health and plant growth.

Quotes:

"Weeds tell you a lot about the condition of your soil. It can be messy when you're transitioning, but you're really challenging the status quo."

—Kurstin Barta

"A healthy plant will resist pests and disease, so how can we make these plants healthier?"

—Kurstin Barta

"Redefining what beauty means: does beauty actually mean clean rows or does it mean that rejuvenating your soil and focusing on what plants are actually doing?"

—Kurstin Barta

Folks who make the show possible...

Certified Naturally Grown grassroots, peer-to-peer, holistic certification.

Johnny's Selected Seeds vegetable, flower, and cover crop seeds.

BCS America for two wheel tractors + implements.

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

Hi everyone, it's Natalie again, and I am putting the ecologists back-to-back here on the podcast. This time with microbial ecologist Terry Bell of the Microbiome Manipulation Lab at the University of Toronto. He came highly recommended and did not disappoint. We talk about what is the soil microbiome, how can we manage or change it, whether soil microbial inoculants work, and why microbiome breeding is not analogous to plant breeding. If you one of those people who listen to podcasts to get to sleep I really don't think this one is going to work for you, because there is so much here to get the gears turning in your head! Enjoy.

Folks who make the show possible...

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

Farmers Friend for caterpillar tunnels, harvest equipment, tarps, & more! Get free shipping through ->> farmersfriend.com/notill

Tilth Soil amazing compost-based living potting soils and soil blends.

Real Organic Project for a whole farm certification program to distinguish crops grown in health soils.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

Hey everyone, it's Alex Ball, and today we sit down with Bill and Kathy of Argus Farm Stop in Ann Arbor, Michigan. We dig deep into running a consignment-only grocery store, working with farmers in the community, and building food access.

Mentioned in the show...

The Retail Edge Consignment POS

Check out the Argus Farm Stop Website

Follow Argus Farm Stop on Instagram

Folks who make the show possible...

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

Certified Naturally Grown grassroots, peer-to-peer, holistic certification.

BCS America for two wheel tractors + implements, on sale through the end of the year!

Orisha for wireless greenhouse+ automation, get 15% off with code "No Till Grower"

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, check out our YouTube channel, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

Hey fellow passengers, it's Mimi. My most sincere hope is that, by now, I'm growing on you, not unlike a fungus. You know what they say, falling in love is like eating mushrooms, 'you never know if it's the real thing until it's too late.'

Today, my guest is Dr. Michael Beug. If you don't know who he is, you may be familiar with some of his proteges, including Paul Stamets, and many others who studied under Dr. Beug. He taught chemistry, mycology, and organic farming at Evergreen State Collage in Olympia, WA, for 32 years, now retired, but that hasn't slowed him down! He's had a very interesting career and I can't wait for you to hear some of those stories from his life.

Fungi are so critical to everything that we do in agriculture. They synthesize a truly limitless array of secondary metabolites and have played a role in the great phylogenetic tree of life since it crept out of the ocean. Dr. Beug is very passionate about the intersection between fungi, chemistry, agriculture, and the particular moment in which we all find ourselves in the modern age.

Mentioned in the show...

Take Podcast Host Natalie's Survey!

Mushrooms of Cascadia

Ascomycete Fungi of North America

Folks who make the show possible...

Real Organic Project for a whole farm certification program to distinguish crops grown in health soils.

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

Johnny's Selected Seeds vegetable, flower, and cover crop seeds.

Tilth Soil amazing compost-based living potting soils and soil blends.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

Hi everyone, it's Natalie. It's hard to believe this is my sixth episode for The No-Till Market Garden Podcast. It felt super intimidating to commit to finding and interviewing ten people, but it turns out to have been a lot of fun to talk with people I've admired from a distance and also some of my friends. For this episode, I talked with my friend and colleague, Sonja Birthisel. She is a weed ecologist and agroecologist by training, but her interests and expertise are wide and varied. We get into some of her research on the effects of tarping and solarizing on soil biology, important traits of weeds, seed predation, and her work in the community.

Mentioned in the show...

Take Podcast Host Natalie's Survey!

Bulletin #1075, Tarping in the Northeast: A Guide for Small Farms

Folks who make the show possible...

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

Certified Naturally Grown grassroots, peer-to-peer, holistic certification.

Farmers Friend for caterpillar tunnels, harvest equipment, tarps, & more! Get free shipping through ->> farmersfriend.com/notill

BCS America for two wheel tractors + implements.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

Hey everyone, it's Alex Ball, and on today's episode of the podcast we talk to Liana Glass who, along with her partner Duncan, run City Beet Farm on leased yards and lots in urban Vancouver. These first generation farmers are actually the third owners of this farm! We dig deep on buying & valuing their farm business, partnering with local organizations & businesses, & mobile wash/pack solutions.

Mentioned in the show...

Take Podcast Host Natalie's Survey!

The Super Rad City Beet Farm Mobile Wash/Pack Trailer (PDF of the build process, costs, and tons of photos)

The City Beet Farm for Sale on Young Agrarians

Follow City Beet Farm on Instagram

The City Beet Farm Website

Folks who make the show possible...

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

Tilth Soil amazing compost-based living potting soils and soil blends.

Orisha for wireless greenhouse+ automation, get 15% off with code "No Till Grower"

Real Organic Project for a whole farm certification program to distinguish crops grown in health soils.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

You can grow seed on your farm. And it's easier than you think...

Subscribe to The Seed Growers Podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

This is the first of 5 mini-episodes to get ready for the season 2 of The Seed Growers Podcast. Today's episode is about getting into the mindset for your first seed crop. By starting small and taking your time, there is a greater chance that seed growing seems realistic on your farm and that you persist and develop your seed skills. This is how you become a cornerstone in a resilient seed and farming community system.

Ask a question for future episodes

Dan's list of Seed Grower Resources

Follow Dan Brisebois on Instagram

The Seed Growers Podcast is produced, in part, by No-Till Growers

No-Till Growers is powered by the folks who support it every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can also pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on the brand new growers forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

Oh hey, it's Mimi again. Gotcha two for the price of one today, because we're speaking with David Montgomery and Anne Biklé. I'm sure they don't need an introduction, because I know at least some of you all will have at least one of their books in your exhaustive libraries. If you haven't heard of them, David and Anne are married, live in Seattle, and are a pair of writers. To quote them, "Dave is a broad-minded geologist and Anne is a free-range biologist with a bad case of plant lust." If that doesn't make you want to hang out with them, I don't know how much better I'm going to be able to do. The reason I wanted to talk to them is not just because their book, What Your Food Ate, just came out, but also because they have a really great way of going back through the membrane of time and looking at some of the origins of our understanding about the connections between plants, soil microbiology, and our own health. I can't recommend the books highly enough. Dave's mustache is also the mustache to end all mustaches.

A list of some of their amazing works...

What Your Food Ate: How to Heal Our Land and Reclaim Our Health (2022)

The Hidden Half of Nature: The Microbial Roots of Life and Health (2015)

Growing a Revolution: Bringing Our Soil Back to Life (2017)

Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations (2008)

Folks who make the show possible...

Certified Naturally Grown grassroots, peer-to-peer, holistic certification.

Johnny's Selected Seeds vegetable, flower, and cover crop seeds.

BCS America for two wheel tractors + implements.

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat

Hi everyone, it's Natalie, and for this episode I talked with Ryan Fitzbeauchamp of Evening Song Farm in Vermont. Ryan and his wife Kara have an incredible story to get where they are today with a thriving year-round CSA (yes, you heard that right, a year-round CSA in Vermont!). They include what is often called rotational no-till on the farm and this is a production system that is near-and-dear to my heart. What I mean by rorational no-till is that, while they haven't eliminated tillage altogether, they have dramatically reduced it across the farm and completely eleminated tillage prior to some crops. This system is sort of a middle way to get many of the benefits of no-till without the herbicides associated with conventional no-till or the heavy reliance on mulch, compost, or other external inputs that many small-scale organic no-till farms rely on to get started.

Mentioned in the show...

The Evening Song Farmsite

Follow Evening Song Farm on Instagram

The USDA Climate Adaptation Fellowship (Northeast)

Tarping Guidecase Study of Evening Song Farm (w/ photo of toolbar)

Folks who make the show possible...

RIMOL Greenhouses quality greenhouses and high-tunnels.

Farmers Friend for caterpillar tunnels, harvest equipment, tarps, & more! Get free shipping through ->> farmersfriend.com/notill

Tilth Soil amazing compost-based living potting soils and soil blends.

Real Organic Project for a whole farm certification program to distinguish crops grown in health soils.

... and, as always, our work is powered by the folks who support us every month over at patreon.com/notillgrowers, you can pick up a copy of The Living Soil Handbook if you don't have one already, as well as a No-Till Growers hat, and you can ask you questions or share your insights into ecological market gardening on our brand new forum at notillgrowers.community.chat