“There’s something a little mundane about [farm work], and that mundane work is both beautiful and steadying.”

In this episode, host Sarah Davis speaks with longtime Iowan, Anna Geyer, of the Geyer Family Farm. Anna is an entrepreneur with a vision for sharing her beautiful and sustainable life with other entrepreneurs through her Land Alliance Folk School Entrepreneurship Program. During their conversation, they discussed the Land Alliance Folk School and Retreat Center, shared thoughts on entrepreneurship, and Anna elaborated on the reasons why she is currently focused on farm work.  

If you are a farmer (or an entrepreneur), can you relate to what Anna discusses in this episode? I’d love to hear from you. Email Sarah at [email protected] with your reflections. For the next episode, we’ll be chatting with Kathy Byrnes of Birds and Bees Urban Farm, for more of an urban farm outlook.

About Anna

Anna Geyer farms with her husband Dave on a farm west of Iowa City, IA.  In addition to participating in the general work of the farm, one of Anna’s significant contributions over the years has been to create a series of agritourism enterprises.  Beginning with cut flowers for u-pick and weddings (Anna’s Cutting Garden), then moving into artisan wood-fired bread, (Crust & Crumb), wood-fired pizza events (Geyer’s Oven), a folk school and retreat center (Land Alliance) with lodging, camping and glamping experiences on the farm. Most recently, she has begun working to transition some of their acres to agroforestry, focusing on perennial food, fiber, and natural dyes. Anna also teaches entrepreneurship through the Land Alliance Folk School Entrepreneurship Program.

Resources mentioned in this episode

* Land Alliance Folk School and Retreat Center

* Land Alliance Folk School Entrepreneurship Program

* Wikipedia Entry on Agritourism 

* Practical Farmers of Iowa

* Anna’s recorded talk for Practical Farmers of Iowa

* The Artists’ Way

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