On-Farm: Conversations with Practical Farmers

This week on On-Farm is Deb Finch of Finch Livestock. Deb farms with her husband Eric near Marshalltown in east-central Iowa, where they raise meat goats for direct to consumer sales. They began raising goats a little more than 15 years ago. On the show, I talk with Deb about all things goats – from feed to fencing to health to markets, and her upcoming field day.

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One of the biggest problems goat owners face is that the animals are highly susceptible to parasites. In the past, when goat owners had problems with parasites, they treated them by administering de-wormer to the entire herd. But Deb and many other goat farmers have moved toward only treating animals they know to be infected, largely in an effort slow resistance to de-wormers. Using the FAMACHA test and doing fecal eggs counts are two ways that goat owners can use to determine which animals need to be dewormed.

On June 27, Deb and Eric will host a two-part event on their farm that will cover those and many other topics. The morning portion — a pre-field day workshop — will be led by Dr. Paul Plummer, a veterinarian at Iowa State University (and goat owner). He will lead a two-hour, hands-on FAMACHA training. The FAMACHA test allows goat owners to assess parasite loads by examining goats' eyelids. The field day will begin after lunch, where Dr. Plummer will give a lesson on parasite management, and Deb will talk about all different aspects of raising goats while leading a tour of her pastures.

Stay tuned to Practical News each week for new episodes! You can find out more information about On-Farm at practicalfarmers.org/podcasts.

The post On-Farm, Episode 003: Deb Finch – Finch Livestock appeared first on Practical Farmers of Iowa.

T.D. Holub was featured on this week's On-Farm.

This week on On-Farm, T.D. Holub of Coggon in eastern Iowa. T.D. and his fiancée, Sarah Gericke, grow fruits and vegetables for farmers' markets, restaurants, grocery stores and for a 100-person CSA. On the show, I talk to T.D. about his upcoming field day – on June 9, "Tractors and Tools with T.D." – focusing on some of the farm machinery he's purchased over the past few years for the vegetable operation. Included: a water wheel transplanter, a Williams tool bar system, an Allis Chalmers G tractor, a homemade walk-in cooler and more. Also, we talk about whole food and health, selling "weird" vegetables and coming back to the family farm.

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To learn more about T.D. and Sarah, check out their website, Garden Oasis Farm. Stay tuned to Practical News each week for new episodes! You can find out more information about On-Farm at practicalfarmers.org/podcasts.

The post On-Farm, Episode 002: T.D. Holub – Garden Oasis Farm appeared first on Practical Farmers of Iowa.

"On-Farm: Conversations with Practical Farmers" is a new podcast from Practical Farmers of Iowa. Each week, I'll interview a different farmer. We'll hear from new and experienced; young and old; small and large; horticulture, livestock and row-crop farmers. We'll talk with farmers about the issues most relevant to the farming community: the nitty gritty of growing and raising all sorts of plants and animals; on-farm research; protecting and improving soil and water quality; farm profitability; the challenges facing beginning farmers; building community in rural areas; and of course, food.

And… the first episode is up! Our first guest on the podcast is long-time PFI member Jill Beebout. Jill owns and operates Blue Gate Farm near Chariton in south-central Iowa with her partner Sean Skeehan. They raise fruits and vegetables for a small CSA (community supported agriculture) and also sell their produce at the Downtown Des Moines Farmers' Market. In addition, they produce free-range eggs, raw honey, alpaca fiber and handspun yarn.

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On this episode, Jill talks about her upcoming field day about two-wheeled tractors (find out more about the field day here), the history of Blue Gate Farm, vegetable production, the roots of the Farm Crawl, being a female boss in farming, PFI's Labor4Learning program, and her alpacas.

An example of a two-wheeled tractor that Jill discussed in the podcast.

Stay tuned to Practical News each week for new episodes and information on how to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

The post On-Farm, Episode 001: Jill Beebout – Blue Gate Farm appeared first on Practical Farmers of Iowa.