In this Episode of the Growing Farms Podcast I bring in a couple of my friends from around the country to give their perspective on what life is like on their farms in the first quarter of the year. 

We all manage mixed livestock farms, with a diversity of sales avenues for our products. Personally I gain a lot from having these types of conversations with my friends and peers, and I hope you do too. There's something to be said about stepping off your farm for a minute, talking with like-minded people, and remembering that even though all of our farms are individual, we're all in this together.

It’s the year 2050. My grown daughter looks me in the eye and asks what I did to help make the world a better place. What do I tell her?

When you woke up this morning, you got up with at least one core belief - something in your mind that defines how you see the world. Such core beliefs are unshakable, unmovable, and dictate what actions you take on a day-to-day basis.

When you head for the door, you are going to act out your day based on your belief. That action represents your commitment.

Everyone’s level of commitment will be different, based on the resources they have available. Resources - time, money, energy, experience, land base, manpower, etc. - are different for each of us. Everyone will have advantages to draw on, and disadvantages to face. But we all have at least some resources to commit, which allow us to put our beliefs into action.

Who are “they” exactly?

They told us it can’t be done. They told us you cannot make money farming. They told us you can’t raise sheep without a heavy parasite load. They said you can’t have 0% mortality in the brooder. They said that you have to farm this way or that.

I’m not saying that educated people are nonsense. That would be a gross misinterpretation of my point. What I am saying, is that there is an inherent flaw in the human to human interpretation of the scientific method in that variables are often isolated and taken out of context. Sure you can get more grass by adding nitrogen, but is that what you farm needs? And are there other ways to add nitrogen into your soil without paying a chemical company?

Today Troy and I discuss what makes an expert. They’re not always right, and they’re not always wrong. They are merely presenting facts based on their research that you as the professional farmer have to take and adapt to your goals, your farm, and your systems.

It all goes back to continually asking the question, “why?”

There is a lot to farming that will keep you awake at night. Is the brooder closed, are all the birds in, are the predators out, is the greenhouse warm enough, did you remember to check this or that?

Then there’s all the life stuff that keeps you up at night. On today’s episode of the Growing Farms Podcast Troy and I cover three areas of concern that are universal to most people.

With all that advice and information floating around how do you tell what is good and what is not? With a wealth of knowledge at your fingertips, what’s the best advice? That is what Troy and I tried to capture with today’s farm podcast episode. The best piece of advice we have ever gotten.

The most common question we get here at Farm Marketing Solutions is “how do I start a farm?”. That question comes from all walks of life and all corners of the globe. Seriously, we’re data nerds and our analytics say we get visitors from over 97 different countries.

Because there are 7 billion people in the world inevitably all of our stories and circumstances are going to be different. That is one of the inherent difficulties in agriculture. There is a lot of good information out there on “how to grow stuff” but the real art of farming and being a farmer is adapting that growing information to your specific situation.

Working to find a balance that works for you between farm life, home life, and your personal life is the ultimate goal of sustainability. You want to be a member of your community, a member of your family, and at the same time take some time for yourself. In this episode Troy & John discuss their efforts at a balanced sustainable life.

It is a pleasure to bring back the Growing Farms Podcast with my good friend and mentor Troy Bishopp. In today’s episode we tackle the topic of getting into agriculture as a hobby or profession. What draws people back to the land? Once they are there what keeps them working when things get difficult?

It’s a cliche as this point that “farming is hard”. Yeah, we know. Anyone that has tried to work the land knows full well how ruthless Mother Nature can be and how unforgiving the farm can seem at times.

What gives me hope for the future is that the current generation of farmers getting into agriculture are bringing with them tools of all kinds. Drones, software, new planting innovations, and the knowledge sharing tool that is the internet. We now have the opportunity to farm in ways that have never been done before.

With each new farm season there are adaptations based on what you have learned from previous years as well as adapting to what your goals are for the coming year. We are making some big changes on our farm this year and I am really happy to be able to share them with you through the Growing Farms Podcast.

I am using the Farm Marketing Solutions website to take notes this year. I am organizing my thoughts, my research, my production numbers into the Resources section of the website.

• My farm set-up (complete with map)
• Broiler chickens
• Egg layers
• Pigs
• Orchard/Fruit

...and in the works are sections on:

• My equipment
• Marketing Strategies
• Writing a farm business plan
• Whatever you ask me about in the form below

Have a question that you can't seem to find an answer for? On the main resources page you'll find a simple form to submit your question to me and I'll create a piece of content around it. You should drive the direction of this website as much as I do, after all, I'm sharing this stuff for you.

The podcast is back for a while by popular demand. Having taken some time off from podcasting to publish not one, but two books, I'm coming back with simple, straight-forward, and honest podcasts about my farm journey.

In a more rapid succession than my usual pace I'll have episodes on the operations listed above. We're going to cover what I'm doing on all areas of the farm so that you have a good idea of where I am at and what I have learned to date. After we're caught up Kate and I are going to do updates throughout the season so you get a taste of farm life, share in our successes and failures, and continue to grow the community.

It's good to be back. I had a blast recording with Kate for this episode. It's a busy and kind of stressful time on farm right now but at the same time it is really exciting! Thanks for supporting FMS through the years. If you're new here, welcome! 

Let's all work to grow personally, professionally, and as a community. Thanks for stopping in and until next time I will see you out in the field.

Cheers,

John

• Chicken Tractor Plans
• APPPA - American Pastured Poultry Producers Association
• Feed Testing
• Pasture Fencing I Use
• Support the Show on Patreon

This farm podcast episode updates you on my:

• Pastured Poultry
• Pastured Pigs
• Apple Orchard
• Hop Yard
• Book release!!!

In this episode of the Growing Farms Podcast we will discuss all of the decision-making that goes into raising pigs in 2022. There are a lot of things to think about, and a lot of variables outside of your control.

• where are you going to process?
• what breed should you raise?
• how do you manage them?
• are they profitable for your farm business?

We are joined by Grazing Specialist and all-around nice guy Troy Bishopp -The GrassWhisperer - to add FOUR DECADES of farming experience to the podcast.

Raising pigs has to be one of the most fun things that I do on farm. I truly enjoy almost every part of it. I mean, don't get me wrong, they could smell a little better every once in a while but who can turn their noses up at their floppy ears, curly tails, and curiously happy demeanor?

I get my pigs for the season in less than a week. I'm raising 20 pigs this year for various different markets. It's a step up for me. A far cry from big production, but big enough to feed some serious people. I plan to market and sell through:

• Whole and Half Hog
• Pig Roast
• Retail at Famers' Market and Farm Store
• Restaurants for Beer and Spirits Dinners

• Ethan Book the Beginning Farmer
• The Beginning Farmer on YouTube

"Never wrestle with a pig. You'll both get dirty but the pig will love it..."

—

• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

No matter what you've done before you got into farming, it applies. It all applies!!! Granted some of us are going to get into farming full time and run our own farms and others are going to be happy with a backyard garden. The important thing here is that we're all willing to get our hands dirty.

I take a small amount of pride in that I've worked hard over the years to make my life interesting. It sounds a little egotistical perhaps, but I'm alright with that, because it's been fun.

In past years I've biked across the country, worked with Howard Stern, put on plays, worked as a food photographer, web designer and programmer, and so many other odd things. Through it all I have finally learned one important lesson.

That lesson: enjoy the process! Nothing is going to go according to plan and it is certainly not going to happen as quickly as you want it to. And that's OK. If you learn to love the day to day tomorrow will eventually come. Find something you love to do, pursue it, and enjoy "getting there".

That was a major hurdle for me to overcome. I still get stressed. I still get down sometimes. But the majority of my time is spent appreciating what I have and wondering how I can make it even better. If I work to make it better, it usually happens, and guess what? It's even better!!! It all sounds so silly to put into words, and a few years I might have even made fun of the guy I've become. But on the other side of my freak out, I feel good, and I'm ready to get my season really moving.

I have been in love with the idea of more farms appearing in urban settings. That is how we bring food to the masses and help wrangle that ugly beast called food security. Clever uses of otherwise untapped resources.

On today's farm podcast episode we visit one of those urban farms to see how it all fits together.

• Double N Urban Farm
• Double N on Facebook
• Farm Marketing Solutions on YouTube
• Permaculture Voices Conference

"Don't worry. If plan A fails there are 25 more letters in the alphabet." - Anonymous

—

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

• Farm Marketing Solutions on YouTube
• Ask Voices with Diego Footer and Me, John Suscovich
• Camps Road Farm
• Kent Falls Brewing Company
• Neversink Spirits

I'm a day older than I was yesterday, but today I got to use a whole new number. I've made it to 31 and I'm pretty happy about it.

In this podcast episode I talk about what my plans are for the farm this year and why they are that way. Then I go over what's happening on Farm Marketing Solutions and content for the year and I ask you for help.

Ya see, I cannot do this without you. Talking into the abyss of the internet means nothing if there is no one to listen and interact. That's where you come in. I share some of my thoughts for how I think the podcast should go this year but I would much rather do something that you guys and gals are going to want to hear rather than just guessing and hoping to get it right.

That's where the comments section of this post comes into play. Get on there and let me know what you think I should be doing this year for Farm Marketing Solutions. I'm trying to keep it simple so that I can do a little more than I've done in the past, but I don't want it to lose any value to you.

There was a problem that I now had a farm stand, I did a lot of work to make my farm beautiful and accessible, but no one was showing up. How do you get people on your farm without breaking your marketing budget? The answer: Farm Crawl

A farm crawl is a one day event where multiple farms in the same area open their doors, hold tours, and cross-market each other to the benefit of all. Customers travel from farm to farm to see what the farms have to offer, get tours, meet the farmers where they work, and become more connected to their food.

My farm is off a back road that’s off a back road. There is no such thing as incidental traffic from someone just driving by. I needed to think of something that would draw people to let them know that I was back here. As usual when looking for inspiration I looked to the other farmers that I know. Ethan Book of Crooked Gap Farm has a great podcast where he talks about his farming journey. Some one those episodes mentioned a farm crawl and BOOM, inspired.

I borrowed the concept from listening to the Beginning Farmer Show with Ethan to start my own farm crawl. In this episode Ethan and I discuss my new farm crawl, his established farm crawl, and how both of them came to be.

• How setting up systems will make your life better
• How to look for efficiencies on your farm
• How to start your own Farm Crawl
• My “first world problems” with getting a new computer

Ethan Book grew up on a quaint little street in Cedar Falls, Iowa playing with toy tractors on his bedroom floor and pretending to farm with his John Deere pedal tractor in the driveway.

Weekends were often spent on his dad’s farm or the farms of his uncles and extended family. As Ethan grew up his dreams of being a farmer faded a little bit, but never truly went away.

Ethan has pursued that dream of becoming a farmer and has done a great job of documenting his journey through his blog and podcast over at The Beginning Farmer. I am honored to call him a friend. Though we have never met in person I feel like I know so much about him through the stories he shares on his podcast, through his writing, and in conversations I have had with him “off air”.

• Iowa Farm Crawl
• Western Connecticut Farm Crawl
• Crooked Gap Farm
• The Beginning Farmer
• Camps Road Farm

How are you going to get people onto your farm?

What is one area on your farm that is in desparate need of increased efficiency?

“Computers are like Old testament gods; lots of rules and no mercy.” – Joseph Campbell

“Never trust a computer that you can’t throw out a window.”- Steve Wozniak

—

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

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I know we have all learned a lot this year. There have been good times, there have been bad times, and everything in between. This farm podcast episode focuses on five lessons learned by one of the Farm Finance Challenge participants Jonathan Woodford of Sugarwood Acres.

• Better record keeping is the key to success.
• Things don’t always go according to plan.
• It’s important to take time to help others.
• Do what it takes to get the job done.
• A farm is a wonderful place to raise a family.

Jonathan Woodford

SugarWood Acres

160 acre certified organic farm on which we produce hay, maple syrup, small amount of grain and corn. We raise couple beef and pork for meat.

388 North Third St. West Farmington Ohio, 44491

In 2013, we ran a 700 bucket operation, increased to 1200 buckets for 2014. 2014 we sold small square bales, mostly for horse feed. We also did some large round bales, which sold for a beef operation. We bought two angus heifers to start a breeding stock. We have raised a couple feeder cows in our front yard for a few years prior. This year we started with three feeder pigs. For 2015, we are looking into expanding into bees, more feeder pigs, two dozen chickens and half dozen turkeys.

We have about hundred acres of fields and forty acres of woods. My wife and I both work at the local school. I farm to provide my family with food that we know where it comes from and how it was raised. I enjoy farming and try to make a little extra money while doing it.

SugarWood Acres on Facebook

@SugarWoodAcres on Twitter

I started keeping track of hours spent collecting sap for the past two years. I try to start keeping track of tractor time but failed to do a good job at it. I have wanted to get a better idea of how much time we spend doing things and if we are making our time back in our sales.

This year will be the first time doing farm taxes. I have no clue what to expect. I have a hard time pricing my products for sale.

At the end of this challenge, I hope to have a better understanding of where I spend my time. I also will have a better idea of how much time and money it will cost me to run the farm.

How will better records effect your decision making?

How do you create those positive habits that will propel your farm forward?

“Decisions are the hardest things to make. Especially when it is a choice between where you should be and where you want to be.” – Anonymous

—

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

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I am super pleased to bring Curtis Stone back on the show for another episode to talk all about managing the farm, employees, and growing more farmers for the future. We cover the nitty-gritty of harvesting information on farm and what to do with that information once you have it.

Managing employees can be one of the most emotional and difficult things you can do farming. Forget crop losses, acts of God, and poor markets, other humans have the potential to drive you insane like nothing else. I am finding however that there is a way to mitigate and even eliminate that stress. Data.

Data is the key to most things. Knowing where you’ve been, where you are at, and where you are going using cold hard data to drive your decision making.

Alright, so I have fun writing “cold hard data” because I’m sure I saw it in a movie once. I’m not a cold hard person. Far from it. I mean, have you seen my daughter Mabel? She turns me to mush every time I think of her. The problem I run into as a manager is that at times I need to be cold and hard and without concrete facts that can be very difficult to do.

However you do it, and for whatever reason, tracking things on your farm is critical to growing your business. I get asked all the time, “John, I want to start farming, where do I begin?” Begin by tracking your personal finances, budgeting for yourself, using a calendar to keep organized, and if you do all that go out and try to grow some stuff.

• Spreadsheets don’t have to be scary
• Curtis’s three most used spreadsheets on farm
• It’s good to dork out about data management
• Using data to:
• discovery market trends
• sort out best practices
• maintain a financial picture of your farm

Before starting his urban farm in the fall of 2009, Curtis had absolutely no previous experience in farming or even gardening. Up until 2008, he had been living in Montreal, trying to make a go at being a working musician. It was many years ago, when he heard the old cliche, “if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem”. That was a turning point for him in that he knew that it was important for us to be active participants in our society, rather than just being by-standers.

But it wasn’t until Curtis discovered Permaculture, while searching around on the internet for sustainable building methods, that it opened up a pandora’s box of information and inspiration for him. From there, he knew that he wanted to live in a way that was life affirming, not destructive. He left Montreal in March of 2008 to return to his home town of Kelowna, BC, to try and pursue this kind of life style. It was a bike tour down the west coast from Kelowna to San Diego in fall 2008 where he visited off-grid homesteads, eco villages, and urban farms, that inspired him to try to make a difference through his own actions.

Upon returning from the trip totally inspired and ready to do something involved in sustainable ag, but not exactly sure what yet, a friend of his directed him towards SPIN farming. The stars must have aligned at that movement because once Curtis discovered that there was a way to farm that required very little investment, no need to own land or heavy machinery, he was confident that he could do it. He spent the rest of the fall and winter of 2009 studying SPIN farming and various other gardening and farming books, and then decided to go for it. With a little bit of money saved from a 6 month season of tree-planting, he had everything he needed to start a farm.

After completing a successful and profitable first season in 2010, Curtis is a case study example that the methods taught in the SPIN farming models, are simple and easily transferable to anyone, including those who have no experience.

Through the off-season, Curtis works as public speaker on food related issues, and is a consultant for multiple community food projects throughout Kelowna. In September 2010 he was awarded ‘gardener of the year’ from the city of Kelowna’s Communities in Bloom.

• GFP081: On The Shoulders of Giants
• The Urban Farmer Series on Permaculture Voices
• Green City Acres
• Creen City Acres on Facebook
• Profitable Urban Farming Course
• The Urban Farmer Book

Can you think of at least one stressor in your life that could have been solved by having better information?

Ever want to strangle an employee? Think about it. Was it actually your fault as a manager or theirs as a worker?

“Efficiency is intelligent laziness.” – David Dunham

—

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

What separates professionals from amateurs is experience. There’s no getting around experience. You can read all the books, watch all the videos, take all the classes, but until you try and do whatever it is you’re trying to do it’s all just theory. What I cannot help be be fixated on these days is tracking that experience, documenting it, so it is easier to learn from past experiences and work toward my holistic goals on farm.

“Standing on the shoulders of giants” means that you are picking up where someone else left off. Learning from their experiences and building your own. We live in an age where information is processed and passed along at lightning speed, why not take advantage of it and start to share some of your own?

There are two sets of “giants” in your life. The first are the farmers that came before you who have written books, made the videos, set the stage, and carved the path that we’re following now. Those include the people who are discussing what they are doing in real time much the way I am doing with Farm Marketing Solutions.

The second giant is YOU! You have the opportunity every day to gain experience and build on what you have already done. You don’t need to share your experiences with anyone else. Not everyone is comfortable with airing their dirty laundry for everyone to see. But internally, within your farm, you can take pictures, take notes, create records, and detail your actions so that at any time you can go back and see exactly how and why you did something.

You make the best decisions you can at the time based on the tools (which includes knowledge) you have at the time. Looking back and thinking “man I wished I had done that” is pointless. Instead look back and say, “man, I did that and it didn’t work out. Why? What can I do to improve?” Figure out how to improve, and then go do it! Take action! No more theory! Get out there and gain more experience and embrace failure as openly as you do success.

Thomas Edison is quoted as saying, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.”

• the story of a guy who keeps trying
• $75k on 1/3 of an acre farming
• the benefits of being specialized
• the necessity of being agile
• how being organized can save time, money, and headaches
• DATA, F-ING DATA
• it’s ok to make mistakes

Before starting his urban farm in the fall of 2009, Curtis had absolutely no previous experience in farming or even gardening. Up until 2008, he had been living in Montreal, trying to make a go at being a working musician. It was many years ago, when he heard the old cliche, “if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem”. That was a turning point for him in that he knew that it was important for us to be active participants in our society, rather than just being by-standers.

But it wasn’t until Curtis discovered Permaculture, while searching around on the internet for sustainable building methods, that it opened up a pandora’s box of information and inspiration for him. From there, he knew that he wanted to live in a way that was life affirming, not destructive. He left Montreal in March of 2008 to return to his home town of Kelowna, BC, to try and pursue this kind of life style. It was a bike tour down the west coast from Kelowna to San Diego in fall 2008 where he visited off-grid homesteads, eco villages, and urban farms, that inspired him to try to make a difference through his own actions.

Upon returning from the trip totally inspired and ready to do something involved in sustainable ag, but not exactly sure what yet, a friend of his directed him towards SPIN farming. The stars must have aligned at that movement because once Curtis discovered that there was a way to farm that required very little investment, no need to own land or heavy machinery, he was confident that he could do it. He spent the rest of the fall and winter of 2009 studying SPIN farming and various other gardening and farming books, and then decided to go for it. With a little bit of money saved from a 6 month season of tree-planting, he had everything he needed to start a farm.

After completing a successful and profitable first season in 2010, Curtis is a case study example that the methods taught in the SPIN farming models, are simple and easily transferable to anyone, including those who have no experience.

Through the off-season, Curtis works as public speaker on food related issues, and is a consultant for multiple community food projects throughout Kelowna. In September 2010 he was awarded ‘gardener of the year’ from the city of Kelowna’s Communities in Bloom.

• The Urban Farmer Series on Permaculture Voices
• Green City Acres
• Creen City Acres on Facebook
• Profitable Urban Farming Course
• SPIN Farming
• FFC003: Talking Nonsense
• The Urban Farmer Book

What are you doing to document and learn from your mistakes?

Are you making time on farm for record keeping? Is it enough time?

“To achieve great things, two things are needed; a plan, and not quite enough time.” – Leonard Bernstein

—

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

In this episode of the Growing Farms Podcast we discuss:

• why email is still foundational to your marketing
• how to get your first 100 subscribers
• what to write in your emails
• how to grow your list over time

Whether you are just starting a farm or you are looking to grow your business, this episode is packed with simple actionable advice to help you along your journey.

Hello everyone! The podcast was on hiatus as we deal with the technical issues of a 3 year old website and podcast. Technologies change and I was unable to farm and keep on top of the changing times.

But that’s OK!

Because the Growing Farms Podcast is back. Back with the every other week schedule. Scott has a new day-job which is monopolizing his time so Farm Fantasy Camp is on hiatus until further notice.

In today’s show I go over what I’ve been up to on farm and with Farm Marketing Solutions as well.

• Camps Road Farm
• Permaculture Voices Podcast
• Farm Fantasy Camp Episode 4: Lightbulbs

If you had to pare-down to the minimum you needed to do to get by, what would that look like?

Is there anything you can take a break from in order to come back fresher?

—

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook, or leave a 5 star rating iniTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

1. John & Scott do not like Skype
2. Windows 10 might reinvent how we look at garbage
3. John’s going on vacation, Scott too has gone on vacation
4. Is there valor in working long hours?
5. Hours Tracker App on iPhone for logging work hours
6. Accepting that things will not be perfect
7. How many things would fix themselves if I did not touch them?
8. John uses an iPhone 6+ to shoot, edit, and upload videos
9. Lower polish and increased iteration
10. Adjusting what you grow to suit your needs and the needs of your market
11. John goes camping in Canada
12. Why take time off in the summer?
13. Things are going to go wrong, and that is OK!
14. John speaks nonsense…
15. Mabel is the 4th generation going to this camp ground in the Suscovich family
16. Sugar Island of the American Canoe Association
17. Does camping losing its’ novelty when you live on a farm?
18. Scott loves to take trees out of the ground, very exciting.
19. Flame weeders are not sophisticated
20. Work-life blend vs. work-life balance
21. Finding work that you love makes everything easier (surprise)
22. Four lightbulb theory: family, friends, work, health
23. Getting to the core of why John & Scott work together
24. John strokes his ego and thinks he’s super-human
25. How easy is it to “check out” and quiet the chatter in your brain?
26. The E-Myth Revisited
27. Diego and Curtis on The Urban Farmer: Systems
28. John recaps the Farm Crawl, it was a success

• Mistakes made when starting a hop yard
• What hops are
• How hops are grown
• How many plants can you fit per acre for production
• Sometimes there’s just no choice but to spray
• Insight into the Craft Beer Industry’s effect on hop production
• Where do you find good farming information

Geoff has spent the majority of his life as a Maine resident, leaving only to earn his bachelor in Communication and study the principles of marketing at colleges and universities in Vermont, New Hampshire and London England. He returned to Maine in his 20’s to co-found Level8 Design Studio, a design and development studio focused on innovative web solutions.

Beyond internet technologies, Geoff’s passion and curiosity has led him into the world of craft beer. Captured by the allure of beers intangible flavors, and retained by the continuous exploration of craft beers industry pioneers, Geoff has embedded himself into this exciting field.

• The Hop Yard
• The Hop Yard on Facebook

“The basic thing is that I want to do the best work possible, and I can only do that if I’m relaxed and have a lot of energy. And that can only come from taking time off.” – Jason Scott Lee

How can you help spread useful information for other farmers?

What mistakes have you learned from that you wish you knew when you were starting out?

—

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating iniTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Past Episodes
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1. Scott’s microphone is marginally improved, though slightly robotic
2. John’s feelin’ good post-meltdown and the farm’s running smoothly
3. Bears! A bear on the farm
4. There are B.S. artists out there. Dr. Oz is one. The Food Babe is another
5. The Food Babe makes some pretty outrageous claims
6. John gets questions about “chicken hormones” at the market
7. Among other things, worrying about food trends (e.g. uh oh, eggs are bad for you again) encouraged John to pay closer attention to food
8. John read a book about how information spreads on the internet, Trust Me I’m Lying by Ryan Holiday
9. Generating ad revenue from content tends to dilute credibility
10. A portion of the internet runs on “Google University”
11. John started Food Cyclist Farm as a result of reading about how approachable and profitable farming can be
12. We think Joel Salatin is great…
13. … but his is one of the books that paint a rosy picture of farming
14. Poultry farming was tough, but it resulted in an opportunity to manage Camps Road Farm
15. The “farming is easy” content seems to mostly homesteading-skewed
16. Young people getting into farming use the blog posts and books as a means to convince them it’s easily achievable
17. Call to action: share your story. Share your insights with the farming community
18. YouTube has become the great source for how-to; a major change from 10 years ago
19. Hacking/remix culture has been a great way to iteratively improve methods over time

Have you considered diversifying with a commercial kitchen?

Diversifying your farms’ offerings is always a good idea. Many of the guests who have been on this podcast have talked about it, and it is a large part of my business model. Have you considered diversifying with a commercial kitchen?

On today’s episode Laura McKinney of Riverbank Farm talks about how her kitchen got started. She also talks about life on farm, how she got started in AG, and where she sees it all going.

• triumphs and failures from an experienced farmer
• pros and cons of starting a commercial kitchen on farm
• good advice for farm apprentices
• great advice for dealing with farm apprentices
• perspective on why we toil

Since colonial times, the farm has passed through the hands of four different families who raised crops and milked cows. Currently, Riverbank Farm grows a diversity of certified organic vegetables, cut flowers and hay. Nourished by the fertile bottomland soil of the Shepaug River, the farm uses no herbicides, synthetic fertilizers or synthetic pesticides.

David Blyn founded Riverbank Farm twenty years ago and was joined by his wife, Laura, in 1996. David originally moved to the farm in 1989 in hopes of running a carpentry business. Although, the barn and house were in poor condition, David was drawn to the landscape and river bordering the farm and decided to call it home.

As David began to work on the barn, he also decided to grow a half acre of vegetables. The half acre increased each year until David began farming full time in 1991. He continued to farm on his own, jumping from tractor to tractor as he managed his small, diversified operation with old cultivating equipment and an array of farm machinery.

In the summer of 1996, while delivering produce during a full moon in Long Island, David met Laura. She had come east for the summer after finishing sustainable agriculture studies in Santa Cruz, CA. Laura knew she wanted to farm, but never anticipated being on the east coast. Their love for farming and each other blossomed into a bountiful farm.

Through hail storms, deer damage, late work nights, frosts, unpredictable weather patterns, and bug and weed outbreaks, they have learned to build a resilient farming operation and truly enjoy the harvest. They now have three children, Lily(8) and Alice(5) and Stella (2) who add love and laughter to each farm day. David and Laura believe that once you eat vegetables from the farm, the farm becomes part of you.

• Riverbank Farm
• GFP072: Proper Farm Planning Makes All The Difference
• UC Santa Cruz Apprenticeship Program

How can you add value to your unsold harvest?

Do you have an “apprentice guide” that you have new workers sign? Could save you a lot of headaches.

“The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.” – Masanobu Fukuoka

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating iniTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

1. Scott traveled to Iceland and Denmark
2. John tailoring FMS to different situations than New England farming
3. John disliking possessions/responsibilities as it relates to travel
4. Scott taking stock of possessions while moving, realizing there’s very little
5. Micromanagement and preventive measures to extend the life of possessions
6. Having “your name on something” resulting in high standards
7. Soylent follow-up: John had Soylent, Scott might not rebuy, case closed
8. John’s getting a root canal, Scott hadn’t been to a dentist in a long while, Dr. Oppenheimer
9. Mini excavators versus regular ones
10. Dr. Oppenheimer wants some chickens
11. We’re not yet very good at segues
12. John’s still post-meltdown
13. Recycling doesn’t matter? Sustainable farming doesn’t matter?
14. Chipotle is great. Scott even had it three meals in a row

It’s too common for people within the permaculture and sustainability movement to do work that they care about, but scrape by financially.

And the reality of that is, at the end of the day that type of lifestyle isn’t sustainable – the values are there, but the economics are not.

Can you make a living from a career that aligns with your values?

We believe you can.

Our mission at PV is to help people who embrace permaculture’s ethics to make a profitable and comfortable living doing work that aligns with who they are and what they stand for.

This means doing work that is financially profitable, and looking beyond the numbers to make sure that the work is environmentally, social, and emotionally profitable.  Think of it as whole systems business.  Without looking after each of these components the whole thing falls apart.

And we believe that when more people start doing that type of work, then we change the world.

We are at a point in time where there is a lot wrong out there. And we can either complain about it and accept it and live with it, or we can step out of our comfort zone and change it.

Permaculture Voices is a catalyst for that change.

Many times that change comes in the form of business. Whether we work for someone else or for ourselves we spend a huge part of our lives doing work.

Does that work matter? Does the world care about your work? And more importantly do you care about your work?

On the flipside, are you doing work that matters to you, but is it financially sustainable? Not just now, but into the future. Will the work that you love support the life that you want to live?

These are important questions to ask, and difficult questions to answer. We are here to help you with that process.

We want to see you align your work with your values and grow your business, revenue and impact so your life both purposeful and sustainable.

It’s totally possible.

Stick around for a while and you will hear the real stories of people out there doing it.

Cheers,

Diego

Founder & Head Story Teller

 Right-click here to download the MP3

• Ideas evolve, keep them in check
• "Behind the Scenes" of Permaculture Voices
• "You are not going to achieve great things flying close to the middle."- Diego Footer

• Permaculture Voices
• Book: Anti-Cancer, A New Way of Life
• Paul Wheaton

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

The Growing Farms Podcast was started to share my journey into agriculture. Like most journeys this one has been made more enjoyable by sharing it with others. One of the people I share my agriculture experiences with is my good friend and business partner Scott.

In this every other week podcast series we talk about the kind of things that come up when one friend lives in the City and the other in the Country. Scott works in advertising in New York City and I manage a 52 acre farm in Connecticut. The dichotomy of our lifestyles is married with our shared values for a better world.

This is an experiment for us without a clear ending. We are counting on you, the listening audience, to provide feedback, share your stories, and if nothing else enjoy being a fly on the wall for a conversation between two good friends who are trying to make sense of what it all means.

Losing your sh** is not an easy thing to talk about. No one is really proud of not being able to keep it together under pressure, yet as small business owners it is something we all go through.

While I do not feel comfortable being this open and vulnerable (yeah, even me) I think that it is an important topic to merit a few episodes about the different elements of why burnout happens. I am bringing on some guests to discuss the topic and we’ll keep it light.

There is a community that has formed around Farm Marketing Solutions of honest hard-working people. You are literally and figuratively out in the weeds just as I am, and you know what it is like to be in my shoes.

Right click here to download the MP3

• Contributing factors to burnout
• What to do if you feel yourself in the "tornado of negativity"
• How deep the politics can go at a farmers' market
• How Humble Hill Farm has developed over 15 years

Humble Hill Farm is a family-run farm in New York’s beautiful Finger Lakes region, close to Ithaca.

For almost 15 years we’ve been growing flavorful food which is totally free from pesticide residues.

We passionately practice sustainable agriculture by relying only on natural methods to increase our soil fertility and never use chemical fertilizers.

We offer affordable accommodations in the hills of Spencer, just 18 miles south of Ithaca, NY. In less than 30 min you can trade the constant construction, traffic and heat of the city for a peaceful stay in the country.

Humble Hill Lodge is one of the Ithaca area’s longest running culinary agri-tourism destinations.

Fuel up with our delicious breakfasts made from farm fresh foods. If you have special dietary needs or preferences please let us know in advance so we can meet your needs with excellence.

• Humble Hill Farm
• Humble Hill Farms' Farm Finance Hub
• Farm Finance Challenge
• Farm Marketing Solutions on Patreon

That's right, you have the opportunity to support and sponsor the podcast. Patreon is like a recurring KickStarter where you donate $1-3 per episode that I publish. That way it is a little easier for me to keep generating content which makes everyone happy.

1. Visit the FMS Patreon Page
2. Create an account
3. Choose to donate either $1 or $3 per episode
4. Walk through the rest of the set-up (it's easy)
5. Wait for me to publish new episodes

By supporting me on a per-episode basis it encourages me to create more of the shows you have come to enjoy. By having flexible support options (like putting a monthly cap on your donations) it keeps me from abusing our relationship. That, and you can quit any time.

Scott and I plan on maxing out at a once a week podcast to ensure we keep the quality up and to make sure we do not detract from the farm. That's 4 episodes a month tops.

• Pay my hosting fees
• Help me repair my equipment
• Help me purchase new equipment to produce better content
• Compensate me (and Scott) for the many hours we commit to serving you
• Help to keep the content free for those who need it but cannot afford it (farming is a tough gig)

What repetitive stress injuries, physical or mental, can you avoid with a slight shift in your work or mindset?

When is the last time you took time for yourself?

You can do anything as long as you have the passion, the drive, the focus, and the support." - Sabrina Bryan

--

Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Past Episodes
• Support the Show by Giving $1

This was a tough podcast episode for me to publish. I have been dealing with burn out lately and that has lead to depression.

I am definitely not the only person to have run a small business and have experienced this. There are high highs and low lows when it comes to small business management and farming is perhaps worse than most.

I wanted to share this story, as vunerable as it makes me feel because:

• This is the stuff you will not find in any text books
• I’m not the only one going through this right now
• If you get into agriculture there is a very good chance you will go through this
• You have my support

Right-click here to download the MP3

Yes, I have felt lower than I ever have in my life. And no, it's not over yet. I am actively working on changing my mindset and getting myself emotionally back on track. I have already instituted changes that have had a positive effect on my well being.

The day this publishes is a day off for me. Something that I really haven't let myself have this year. I am sleeping in, the farm is covered, and I am going to take it easy.

As low as I felt it never reached complete rock bottom. I am coming back up for air a little quicker than I imagined. I am definitely able to put on a happy face when I need to and part of the vulnerability I feel is the people close to me finding out. But trust me, I'm going to be fine. I just need a readjustment of my goals, my perspective, and my work load.

Most people would not have known about this if I had not said anything. I am only sharing because I have fully embraced transparency with Farm Marketing Solutions. This is my case study of my journey through agriculture. It would not be complete without the lows as well as the highs.

The beautiful part of all of this is that I have an amazing support system. Thanks especially to Kate.

The next podcast episode will be back on track and all positive, I can already feel it. Scott and I have some great stuff in store for the coming months and we are planning to implement them in a way that does not add to my work load. In fact, the new stuff we're going to roll out actually decreases my workload if you'll believe that.

Both on farm and on Farm Marketing Solutions I am regrouping, getting focused, and spending time working on me.

"Success is not to be pursued; it is to be attracted by the person you become." - Jim Rohn

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

In this episode of the Growing Farms Podcast I give you some perspective on what my farm brewery business looks and functions like.

We are all on different paths, and I share these monthly updates to give more depth behind the farming and business advice that I share on other episodes.

Is social media all it's cracked up to be? It is still working for some and yet, not for others. I speak with one farmer in this podcast episode who is gaining some attention through his efforts in Social Media. I have found that in particular I have been unhappy with Facebook as a platform. You have to pay to get people to like your page, then, if you have a post that is popular or you want people to see you have to pay to reach all of your "fans". These are people who have liked you page and would like to see your update show up on their home page.

In the end I'm calling shenanigans on the lot of it. Yes, it is still useful, but I have a feeling that we're in for a big shit in how people are using the internet. For me, that shift is going back to a time before Social Media. I am narrowing my scope and my efforts this year not to try and capture everyone on every platform, but to deliver a lot of value on the platforms that I remain active on.

Right click here to download the MP3

• My opinion on the current state of Social Media
• What hashtags are
• How to find them
• How to use them to get discovered
• What Instagram take-overs are and how they are good for all involved
• The benefits a smartphone can bring to the farm

Howdy!

I am Colby.  On the 14th of May, I took over as the full time Farm Manager and the President of the business.

It was outside of the middle of nowhere on a warm day in the midst of the watermelon ripening season  when I was born to a cotton farming family.  Later we then moved to the city where I attended high school learning that people talk back to the teachers and other enlightening aspects of the city.  Before senior year, I enlisted as a medic in the Army and attended basic training with the medic training occurring between high school and college.  Coming from the farm and being in the military influenced my collegiate school choice.  From Texas A&M I gathered a baccalaureate degree in Animal Science, an Army commission in the Medical Services Corps branch, and a wife whom you will meet below.

After Texas A&M, Kelly and I moved to the employ of Sandia Agricultural Enterprises, Inc.  SAEI was a dairy milking purebred Jersey cattle.  This land and family was a part of the former "World's Largest Jersey Dairy, the Knolle farms.  From this chapter in our lives, we determined that we would need to have a career change in order for us to obtain our own piece of the pastoral lifestyle.   In order to achieve this lifestyle, I earned my doctorate in microbiology from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center.  With this new piece of paper in hand, our first child, as well as a tour in Iraq during OIF I & II, we moved to New Mexico where I performed research in biodefense areas.  This research moved us to a position in Kansas City, MO.

During our first moths in KC, we searched a 60 mile radius from downtown for a large tract of land.  Our criteria included a small home, outbuildings, fencing, and a nearby country church.  We also talked with the extension agencies in both Missouri and Kansas.  From these talks and the information provided we concluded that our dream of a commodity-cattle-ranch was not feasible for us with having only limited capital.  We then reduced our land size requirements and found the place we now reside, our home.

While settling into our home, we began to learn more about nontraditional, non-commodity ways of agriculture which were not included in our formal nor in our experiential education.  We are now practicing beyond organic, natural animal stewardship to directly bring you the nutritious products you deserve.

• Sandia Pastured Meats
• Sandia Pastured Meats FFC Hub Page
• Video Resource: How to link your Instagram Account to Facebook
• If This Than That
• Farm Finance Challenge
• Podcast Archives

What ways are you approaching farm marketing this season?

What do you think of Social Media and has it had an impact on your farm?

"There is no passion to be found playing small in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living." - Nelson Mandela

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

Imagine that you built a business that relied on someone else doing their job well in order to properly satisfy and impress your customers. Sounds like a lot of small businesses right? Now imagine that you lost that important connection and you are suddenly up a creek without a paddle.

There are people in this world more brave than I am who are willing to take a seriously leap of faith and take control of the critical step in their business. One of those people is my guest on the show today. She saw that her business relied too heavily on outside resources, and not only that, she was paying a lot of money to those sources as well.

She took matters into her own hands when she decided to start her own on farm slaughterhouse or abattoir.

Right click here to download the MP3

• To "go big or go home"
• What it means to "go big"
• What vertical integration can do for your farm
• What happens when you keep hearing "yes"

Kate quite literally grew up in the business of farming- helping on her parents veggie and her grandparents dairy farms- she learned early to embrace her farming roots and hone her skills as an entrepreneur, caretaker, manager, vet, sales person -even undertaker- she has managed to leave no stone unturned.

Kate attended the University of Massachusetts, today she farms her two properties with her sons Trace and Jaide. (They have a little ways to go before they approach helpful!).

Kate has successfully brought Stillman’s at the Turkey Farm to Stillman Quality Meats- developing am extensive CSA network, and creating a vibrant farmers market system.

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• Stillman's at the Turkey Farm
• Stillman's on Facebook
• Camps Road Farm
• Farm Marketing Solutions on YouTube

What is one thing you currently out-source that is crucial for your business? Would it make sense to take that task over yourself?

If you took no this new project, what would it mean for your farm?

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

Does it feel like sometimes you want to just not have a plan? If you don’t have a plan then nothing can go wrong, right? Let me tell you, it is that time spent planning that helps you figure out what is going to wrong and how you will be able to handle it when things take a turn.

Without my planning time and the time spent researching and organizing I would be a total wreck right now. My farm plans for the year have completely been turned on their heads several times already and we’re only not just about to get into May.

Today I interview two farmers from my area that are taking their planning and analysis to make some very positive changes on their farm. I’m even going to cut the text short today and really encourage you to listen to what Paul and Rebecca have to say.

• Analyzing what your farm goals are
• How farming kicks your butt every year
• How farming is a business if you want to make a living off it (I know that seems obvious, but trust me)
• How the CSA model can end up costing you (the farmer) a lot of money

Paul Bucciaglia

Like many small-scale, direct market farmers, Paul did not grow up on a farm. He grew up gardening at the family home in Naugatuc, CT, and studied agriculture at Penn State University and plant biology at the University of Minnesota. After spending time in mid 1990s working with Paul and Chris Burkhouse on their operation, Foxtail Farm, just northeast of the Twin Cities, Paul decided to leave the laboratory and explore small scale organic farming.

In 1999, Paul returned to New England to apprentice at  Brookfield Farm CSA in Massachusetts, and later mangaged Holcomb Farm CSA in Granby, CT. After two successful seasons at Holcomb, Paul had a clear vision of what his own farm would look like. In the fall of 2002, Paul moved to New Milford and plowed the first four acres of what would become Fort Hill Farm on the sandy soils of the Sunny Valley Preserve.

Now, after many years of cultivation and the hard work of friends and family, Paul and Rebecca continue to work the land with the help of a talented crew of aspiring farmers and workers.

Rebecca Batchie

Rebecca came to farming through her combined love of plants and food. She trained in horticulture at Stonecrop Gardens in Cold Spring, NY, and then ran her own horticultural business for 10 years. During that time, she became increasingly drawn to vegetable crops and spent much of her time designing, building, and growing vegetable gardens.

Farming was a natural transition for Rebecca. She worked summers with Paul while earning a degree in Critical Social Thought at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, MA. After graduating in 2011, she joined Paul in running Fort Hill Farm. She and Paul joyfully welcomed their son, Luca, into their lives in July of 2013. In her “spare time,” she enjoys hiking, sourdough bread baking, photography, spiritual practice, traveling, and (in her next life), cheese making and fiber arts.

• Fort Hill Farm
• Farm Finance Challenge
• Brookfield Farm Crop Planning
• Roxbury Farm Farmer Resources

Are you giving away too much on your farm?

What is one thing you could track better to make your farm more efficient?

"Productivity is never an accident. It is always the result of a commitment to excellence, intelligent planning, and focused effort." - Paul J. Meyer

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscribe to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

This month brings a combo post like you’ve never seen before. The Farm Finance Challenge and the Growing Farms Podcast have landed on the same day. In honor of such an event one of the participating farmers in the FFC is the interview on the podcast this week.

Some of the farmers in the FFC are farming full time, others are homesteading or farming part time. Dan Berube of Berube Farm came on the show today to talk about the balance he has struck between farming vegetables part time and continuing a career off-farm.

• That life is about balance...
• How to find a balance that includes agriculture
• How I am planning Camps Road Farm's vegetable production
• Tips for keeping your work-flow efficient
• Notes on feedback

• Berube Farm
• Berube Farm on Facebook
• Camps Road Farm
• New Entry Sustainable Farming Project
• --

Amanda McKelvey Hall - Rockin' H Farm's March Report

Everywhere poultry are laying more eggs, grass is starting to grow, buds are emerging on trees, and the season is warming up heading into the summer months. Q1, the first quarter of the year can be hard on some farms, especially in the NorthEast.

It is a tough time of year where farms don't produce much and therefore do not profit that much. You have to plan ahead with your finances to cover the lean months before nature provides the warm summer bounty. The beautiful thing is that summer always comes.

It is also not an ideal time to start publicly sharing your financials. There's not too much to be proud of income-wise when it comes to the past three months. Regardless, the farms involved in the FFC too a leap, accepted the challenge, and have been transparent about their finances hopefully to the benefit of the community as well as themselves.

It is great to see the farm coming alive again hearalding the promises of a wonderful year.

Spencer Curry - Fresh Farm Aquaponics March Report

Whether you are farming conventional, organic, or aquapoinc, we need more farmers. That's a fact. Some people are called to teach as well as grow. Spencer over at Fresh Farm Aquapoincs helps non-profits and other farmers set up their aquaponics systems through consulting and workshops.

It doesn't matter as much how you are farming, just that you are farming. The rest of the details and motivations will fall into place. WhatSpencer is doing is getting a new(er) was of producing food into schools and other institutions.

The Farm Finance Challenge seeks to educate as well. We are publicly working on making our farms better so that our mistakes are not repeated. With aphids destroying crops, egg sales tanking, and hard-drives crashing this has certainly been a month of mistakes. We're not perfect and that is important to note. The beautiful thing is neither are you.

Scott Stegerwald - Bird Creek Farms March Report

Scott brought up a great point about the Spring thaw on his land. Observation. When you are starting a farm it takes time and observation to learn the land.

• What is the path of the sun?
• What are the water cycles like?
• What areas are full of life on your farm?
• What areas seem like they will never dry out?
• What areas seem like they never get rain?

All of these things are super important to running your farm, and they're questions a real estate agent will not be able to answer for you. It takes time to learn a piece of land. You will grow with that land the way your farm business will, and the way your crops will.

• Vegetables including squash, tomatoes, and beans
• Gross Income: $1,295.00
• Expenses: $1,439.20
• March Report

• Organic vegetables, 200 chickens, and alfalfa
• Gross Income: $0
• Expenses: $2,175.11
• March Report

• Hops, apples, pasture-raised poultry, and events
• Gross Income:$1,931.00
• Expenses: $7,103.00
• March Report

• Aquaponics and consulting
• Gross Income: $2,498.12
• Expenses: $545.00
• March Report

• Grass-fed beef, fowl, and free-range eggs
• Gross Income: $3,605.00
• Expenses: $3,929.00
• March Report

• Vegetables, fruit, livestock, eggs, and honey
• Gross Income: $1804.50
• Expenses: $1601.75
• March Report

• Dairy, eggs, and livestock
• Gross Income: $1,438.84
• Expenses: $2,794.30
• March Report

• Pastured pork and chicken
• Gross Income: $1,272.00
• Expenses: $581.00
• March Report

• Maple syrup, wood, and hay
• Gross Income: $1,884.00
• Expenses: $4,032.59
• March Report

As you can see, this was a tough month for everyone. Hopefully April will be a little nicer.

How will you prepare for the lean months?

What are some creative ways to extend your season?

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

It is not the small farm's place to count on the grain elevator to set the prices. It is our job to go out, market out products in new and creative ways, and hustle in a way that sees out small businesses succeed (hopefully). This is a topic that I've covered in previous podcasts but since I am currently and constantly refining it, I feel it needs revisiting. I also have a guest on the show who is diversifying her farm not only in production but in marketing as a way to deal with the swings in the market.

Weather, global economies, local economies, food trends, etc... can effect how your farm products are selling. If you put all your eggs in one basket you will be in big trouble if that basket falls. If you build variety in to how your business is supported the likelihood that you will be able to weather a storm increases.

Right click here to download the MP3

• Tips for what to look for when finding land
• One way to design and layout a farm
• How to bring educational value to your apprentices and why.
• The benefits of small farm diversity

Anderson Acres is located just around "the block" from me here in Kent, CT. Along with us they are participating in the CRAFT program that we have here in Western CT.

CRAFT stands for Collaborative Regional Alliane for Farmer Training

The goal of CRAFT is to promote:

• Training of farm workers and apprentices in the craft of small scale agriculture and horticulture with emphasis on food production.
• Exchange of ideas among farm people.
• Community of farmers, farm workers, and others who are interested in local agriculture.

Over 2015 I will be interviewing different CRAFT farmers from my area to support the CRAFT program.

• Anderson Acres Farm
• Anderson Acres on Facebook
• Western CT CRAFT
• Camps Road Farm
• The Permaculture Orchard

Are you covered if one of your sales channels runs dry?

What creative ways can you grow your business?

"A friend is one who knows you and loves you just the same." - Elbert Hubbard

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

Information, like matter, cannot be created or destroyed, just changed. Even the most creative works are just the imaginative reworkings of some artists mind. All of our thoughts are distillations of our life experiences. Knowing that, how would you feel if you knew you had the chance to influence the thought patterns of others with your work in sustainable agriculture. I know how I'd feel, pretty darn cool!

Today's podcast guest is a farm educator who has accomplished some pretty amazing things in his area of the world. In this podcast episode he and I talk about motivations for bringing kids on farm, opening your farm up to the public, and weaving an educational element into farm life. Farm life in and of itself is an education. I know that I learn something new every day.  I am now excited that I can share those experiences with others.

Right click here to download the MP3

• How an educational background and a love of farming can bloom into a successful farm education program
• How bringing kids back for repeat visits keeps them engaged
• What the most popular activities are on farm for kids
• How you can work with schools to bring farming to the kids

It was great talking to John for the interview. He has done some amazing things as part of the crew over at Holly Hill Farm.

Holly Hill Farm is an organic farm located 25 miles southeast of Boston in the beautiful coastal town of Cohasset MA and has been in the White family for 5 generations. The Farm consists of 140 acres of land which includes 10 acres of open fields of which 3 acres are growing fields, historic buildings, greenhouses and diversified natural areas for educational purposes. We grow organic vegetables, herbs and flowers that are sold at our Farm Stand, at the Cohasset Farmers Market, and to select restaurants. Seedlings are sold at our annual plant sales.

Friends of Holly Hill Farm, is a non-profit educational organization that uses the Farm as its outdoor classroom. Hands-on education programs for children and adults teach the importance of food grown organically – to us and to the environment. We also design curriculum, partner with area schools, and conduct programs for local community organizations.

• Holly Hill Farm
• Holly Hill Farm on Facebook
• GFP029 Farm Education with Diane Swanson
• Farm Finance Challenge
• Berube Farm

When you think to how your actions today are going to effect the future, are you inspired to start educating others?

In what way would you farm benefit from trying out some sort of educational programs?

"An investment in knowledge pays the best interest." - Benjamin Franklin

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

 “The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” Isn’t that the truth? 2015 has gotten off to a rocky start but things are really starting to look up. Even with three feet of snow outside I can already see signs of Spring. Birds are starting to sing in the morning, maple sap is slowly slowly starting to run, and my order for baby chickens just went out. It has really been a weird past couple of months. Through a strange turn of events I ended up being the only one running the farm this year in a place that need more than one person to run it. It was a good (albeit stupid) exercise on how far I can push myself in the winter.

That is all about to change. I have adjusted my farm business plan to reflect the changing of the guard and we are moving forward in a more positive direction. We’re going to farm smarter instead of harder. This is a change that would have/should have come anyways, but the situation I was in expedited the process.

On farm this year we are not going to grow any of our operations bigger in terms of production numbers, instead we are going to concentrate on making what we already have more profitable. How are we going to do that? Record keeping and analytics!!! Super fun!!!

Alright, as excited as I am for the Farm Finance Challenge, the reason that it is called a challenge is because it is not coming easy. There are many details to iron out and new habits to form. That being said, it is already working to our benefit.

I’ve gotten to the point where at any given time I can go into QuickBooks and run a report on the financial health of the farm. I can be as vague or as detailed as possible, and man do hard numbers really point out your mistakes!

It is the kind of clarity that any small business needs. It shows you the real financial impact of your actions and allows you to make educated decisions going forward. Money is not why I am doing this, BUT it is the most important tool on my farm if I am to keep farming.

Right click here to download the MP3

• How money is a tool to help your farm move forward
• What to look for when hiring staff
• Not trying to do it all, but finding people with skills that complement your own
• Outsourcing major projects in ways that benefit your farm and the people who are helping you out
• How to get people on your farm when you’re located “off the beaten path”
• How I plan what is going to happen on Camps Road Farm
• What my office looks like
• What a TLA is…
• Items mentioned in this farm podcast include:
• Farm Finance Challenge
• New Milford Youth Agency
• NMYA YouTube Channel
• Free Union Grass Farm Podcast, What breed of chicken to raise for meat?
• FatCow.com/farm for 60% off each month for an entire year
• (Heads up, I’m an affiliate for FatCow so I earn a modest commission if you use this link. My websites have been hosted with them since 2009 and we’re still going strong.)

How are you setting up your farm this year? Are you getting bigger? Are you getting smaller? How and why are you making that decision?

What would you do with detailed knowledge about how profitable your farm is?

“Failed plans should not be interpreted as a failed vision. Visions don’t change, they are only refined. Plans rarely stay the same, and are only scrapped or adjusted as needed. Be stubborn about the vision, but flexible with your plan.” - John C Maxwell 

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

Farm marketing is really funny in that is can be very easy, or it can take a significant amount of effort. Today's podcast showcases a good example of both. My guests today Patti & Rick from Breakwind Farm are a good example of choosing the right farm location as well as some really successful branding centered around humor. Camps Road Farm, my farm, is a good example of poor farm location and I'll be honest, some boring branding.

When you're starting your farm and you're looking for land, an important thing to consider is how many cars pass by that spot in a given day. If it is in your farm plan to have any people acutally come to your farm then natural road traffic or "good road frontage" is pretty critical to getting started. If all you have to do is make your farm look inviting and put up a farm sign with what you're offering you're in good shape.

When you're writing your farm business plan and figuring out how you are going to market your farm products, run some experiments. If you have the time and ability, set up some lawn chairs with a friend on the road in front of your farm and invest a day at different times of the year to count how many cars go by. I'm not kidding. I have been facing my own perceived reality vs. the actual numbers and sometimes it can shock you.

Once you have a number of cars at different some of the year you can calculate, "well, if 500 cars passed by, and I can get 10% of them to stop and spend $20 on average, then I can potentially gross $1000 on a Saturday (or whatever it is)." This can help you get an idea of how much to grow before you make the investment in the seeds and end up with a kitchen full of rotten tomatoes if you over produced.

That's just an idea, I literally just made that up as I'm writing this. Did I do that for my farm? No, because there's virtually no cars that drive by my farm. I've kept an eye on the road throughout the whole year, it never gets busy. Let's get into my situation.

If you live in a backwoods section of town like I do, getting people to actually come to your farm is a whole different story. It is nearly impossible for me to get people to come to the farm on a regular basis. Even though I don't feel the drive is that bad, it is just too far for some. What do I do about that? Enter my unfair advantage(s).

I have been doing a lot to encourage some more people coming to the farm. I've registered the farm location on Google Maps, I've hosted events here, I encourage sales here in the winter when farmers' markets are slow, and I am constantlyinviting people up to "see the chickens". In other words marketing marketing marketing.

I also have an on-farm brewery. We're not currently zoned for brewery tours and tastings, so there's only minor benefit of people randomly stopping in to try and snoop around (yes that happens, we lock our doors at night now). If there comes a day when the brewery is open to tours and tastings then the farm should see some increase of traffic as people are drawn to the brewery. I am working on my farm store and signage to best be able to cross-market to any increase of traffic that may come to the farm as a result of my marketing and the draw of the brewery.

What do do if you don't have a brewery starting on your farm? Events and more complete offerings. I am hosting several events and workshops this year as taking more volunteer groups and doing more farm tours. If I give people a specific reason to get to the farm besides just coming to pick up a dozen eggs then my hope is that they'll have a good time, realize the drive isn't as bad as they thought, and then they'll keep coming back. What I mean by "more complete offerings" is having more for sale than just eggs when they cometo farm. Even if I just grow enough vegetables (or whatever) to supply my farm store, having a more complete offering where people can come and get meat, eggs, veggies, and honey, then they have more of a reason to make the trip. A "one stop shop" if you will.

Although Rick & Patti are known for their home-made baked beans, they have other seasonal products built into their farm to keep people coming back and spending time on their farm. They offer seasonal Christmas tress, pumpkins, mums, seed starting kits, hanging plants, and even gifts/activities for kids. They talk about all of that in the podcast episode.

It is in my farm plan, and I am starting it this year, to grow and offer more variety on farm. Not only do I want to feed my family with the variety of food I'll grow, but I want to be able to provide a more complete diet for the customers who make the effort to come to the farm. Will this all work? We'll find out in time. You can bet I'll be talking about it here.

I mean come on, Breakwind Farm, how can you not at least give a little chuckle when you hear that? Rick & Patti have built a fair amount of humor and satire into their farms' branding. That humor has made them approachable, has made them a magnet for media, and has allowed them to sell baked beans with the name FARTOOTEMPTING. What do you get from the first four letters of that?

They are similar to Lucie of Locally Laid Egg Company. "Local chicks are better" and "Get locally laid" I mean, come on now. Their branding is good enough that they're in Minnesota and I've heard of them over here in Connecticut.

Now Camps Road Farm is not bad branding, just a little bland branding. I didn't choose it, and nothing against the guys who did, but it is a bit more work to get people to give a crap about Camps Road Farm. Camps Road Farm is located on Camps Rd. which is half a mile from the more locally famous Camps Flat Rd. I cannot tell you how many times I've had the conversation of, "no no, not Camps Flat Rd., Camps Rd. If you keep going on Camps Flat you'll reach Sawyer Hill and that leads to Camps Rd. a little further East."

Am I saying that I would prefer a funny name? Honestly no, Camps Road Farm (CRF) works really well for our goals, and a brand can be what you make of it. While we're not going to get the buzz of a name that has to do with farts or sex, we'll instead earn our reputation from what we produce and the stories we tell. It takes longer and is more work, but fits well with our holistic goals.

What's the take-away from all this? Pick a brand that you like and fits your personailty and the personality of your farm. A brand is only as good as the people behind it.

Right click here to download the MP3

• finding an idea and running with it
• accepting a challenge
• the role location and branding play in your farm business
• how to get people on your farm and keep them coming back
• the role humor can have with your farm business (hopefully a big role)

Breakwind Farm is family run business. They started selling fresh vegetables, herbs, seasonal flowers and baskets, pumpkins and wreaths at a stand outside their house in 2009 and more recently at the Contoocook Farmers Market. They have enjoyed welcoming their new and returning customers each year. They concocted the idea of Breakwind Farm's four varieties of FARTOOTEMPTING Baked Beans in the spring of 2011 and started selling them at the Farmers Market where they quickly became a hit.

It wasn't long before their beans were being requested at local fairs, festivals and other venues. They added FARTOOTEMPTING Breakwind Bean t-shirts to their product line by the end of the summer and they too have become a hit. They have four mouth-watering flavors of baked beans, each offering a unique taste, all guaranteed vegan, gluten free, dairy free, and delicious!

• Breakwind Farm
• Breakwind Farm on Facebook
• Farm Finance Challenge HUB
• Permaculture Voices Conference PV2

PV2 isn’t just another permaculture convergence that focuses on hyper-local DIY skill building and resiliency; we instead decided to look bigger.

We are blending the practical techniques and tactics found in workshops with the entrepreneurial spirit and opportunity of a business conference.

We have brought together a diverse group of creative and innovative doers in a variety of fields looking to share experiences, knowledge, connect, and create in ways that increase passion, purpose and profit. These doers come from a variety of fields both within and outside of permaculture. Each field has its own needs and yields. It is this edge that creates the opportunity for things to happen, and it is this opportunity that offers value to the attendees – how can you fill needs and utilize yields to create more value in your life.

Click here for the HUB with all the farms

For the first posting we had some farms that chose to publish late due to whatever reason. Farm life, sick kids, etc... Nothing wrong with that. As we move forward we are all trying to publish as a group on the 15th of every month. So the middle of every month going forward we will have our reports up and to you guys so that we can all grow as a farming community.

• Aquaponics and Consulting
• Gross Income: $2210.31
• Expenses: $262.27
• January Report

• Vegetables and Fruit
• Gross Income: $1043.00
• Expenses: $6365.23
• January Report

Are you maximizing the potential of the traffic you get on your farm? Are you giving them a reason to come back?

What message are you sending with your brand?

"A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well." - Jeff Bezos

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

What if you could save more money every year just by managing your farm a little better and taking care of your land? What if the strategy that made the most ecological sense made the most financial sense as well? Well, turns out people have been doing it for years! We're talking stockpile grazing. Where basically instead of cutting hay you are leaving the grass on pasture and letting the cows graze longer. Seems simple right? Well yes, the concept is simple, but the actual execution is a little tougher, that's maybe why not so many people do it. Also, there's a bottle neck of information into a few books and not a lot of up to date real time information.

Enter The Grass Whisperer.

Troy Bishopp "The Grass Whisperer" is an experienced farmer and great writer that is taking his skills and filling in that information gap. On today's podcast he talks about saving a whole bunch of money by keeping your cows on grass longer, he drops some words of wisdom about how to learn on farm, and the rest of the interview is jam-packed with helpful tidbits whether you raise animals on pasture or not.

Right click here to download the MP3

• What is stockpile grazing?
• How do you do it?
• How do you plan?
• What effects does it have on your land?
• Will is save you money?
• How Troy grazed his cattle on pasture until January!
• How being flexible will keep you sane
• The benefits of letting your grass rest
• What it means to keep your microbes well-fed

Troy Bishopp, aka “The Grass Whisperer” is an accomplished professional grazier of 27 years, a grasslands advocate, and a voice for grassfed livestock producers to the media, restaurateurs and legislators.  In addition to working with the Madison County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Upper Susquehanna Coalition as their regional grazing specialist, Troy is a free-lance writer for a variety of publications, and a popular presenter for workshops and conferences.

Troy is a life-long learner, taking advantage of new knowledge and past experience to bring a holistic approach to grazing planning.  Instead of thinking in terms of grazing 8 inches down to 2 inch residuals, he helps farmers chart a course that pays attention to their personal goals as well as their profits.  Visit his Grazing Help and Speaking & Workshops pages to find out more about what Troy brings to the table (or the pasture).

• TheGrassWhisperer.com
• OnPasture.com
• American Grazing Lands
• Camps Road Farm
• Farm Finance Challenge
• Greg Judy's Green Pastures Farm
• Kevin Fulton on the Grass Fed Network

"I've often been asked what drives me, particularly through the last 50 years of abuse, and ridicule. What has kept me going is one word - care. I care enough about the land, the wildlife, people, the future of humanity. If you care enough, you will do whatever you have to do, no matter what the opposition." - Allan Savory

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

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• Past Episodes

When it comes to owning and operating a farm business there is a lot of talk about scale. Are you big enough? Are you too big? What is right, what is wrong? There is only one right answer, whatever works best for you is what works best for you. I operate at a large small scale. I mean that I only have 52 acres and at the same time I can't believe I have 52 acres, it's insane. It is not 10,000 acres or even 1,000 acres, but there is a lot that can go on with even just one acre. On the show today is a guy with about 10 acres and he is striking a balance that works for him and his family. He is also approaching farming or homesteading in a very smart way and has a lot of good information to share from doing so.

Is there a right or wrong scale, it depends. It all depends on what your holistic goal is. What are you looking to get out of your hard work on farm. And it will be hard work no matter what scale you operate at. For me personally I have been trying to balance the scale of the many different operations on farm to balance the fact that I am unable to do any one of them at a large enough scale to benefit from the economies of scale.

Not only have I been trying to balance how big or small things need to be to make money on farm, but taking into account that I miss my friends, I love spending time with my family, and I want to have a semblance of a life outside of farming. It all comes down to what your goals are and what life you want to live. Can farming provide that? We'll find out in this episode and throughout 2015.

So, can a homesteader be a farmer? Listen to the podcast episode and find out.

Right click here to download the MP3

• Whether you can consider a homesteader a farmer
• How to start and grow your farm sustainably
• How much time is spent marketing vs. "in the field"
• Different business models for farming
• A great resource for all things homesteading
• A free cow is not free
• Getting time off from farming

In Austin's words from his website: "Imagine this scenario. Farm girl moves to city. Farm girl meets surfer boy. Farm girl shows surfer boy country, chickens, and how to shoot. They marry. Surfer boy becomes country boy.

Then came the babies.

After the birth of our son, we quickly realized our third floor apartment was not going to be right for the family we wanted to have. We wanted to find a place where we could put down roots. After a year-long search, we found Squash Hollow.

Surrounded by fields and woods, so began the idea of starting a small farm. With our farm we could provide our family with the freshest food available. Now we grow enough to share our harvest with your family as well!

Our Farms' Mission:

We believe the earth we live on and the animals around us are beautiful gifts to be taken care of!  We strive to give ouranimals the happiest life possible, and enrich the land around us."

• Squash Hollow Farm
• This is Homesteady
• Chicken Tractor eBook
• Homesteady Podcast
• Farm Finance Challenge HUB
• Squash Hollow Farm's Farm Finance Challenge Page

What would be your first step on your farming journey? Or, what is your next step to improve upon your current farm?

What scale do you think you would be most happy operating at?

Answer in the comments section below.

"The road is rocky, make Homesteady." - Austin Martin

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

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• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

Many of us know how to use Instagram, but do we know why we use it? What are you accomplishing, and is it worth your time?

In this episode of the Growing Farms Podcast, host John Suscovich discusses Instagram best practices, his strategy on Instagram, and he shares several accounts worth following if you’re in the pastured poultry space.

We live in an increasingly digital age and as farmers we have a lot of options for how to market our farm online. Where do we focus? Where do we spend our time? At the end of the day, where do we make the investment? Today's podcast is not about registering on places like LocalHarvest.org  or similar sites where we can get a posting that people can find. It is about actively engaging our customers so that once they find us they stay informed, engaged, and keep coming back. It takes a lot more effort to get a new customer than to keep a returning customer, but it still takes effort. I want to break it down into what I plan on doing this year. It is more simple than it may appear at first, and since it's my plan and I'm going to be (have been) acting on it, I am happy to share on FMS how it all works.

The way I see it your active online presence is separated into two groups, Primary and Secondary.

1. Farm Website
2. Email List

Your Primary is your home base on the internet. "All roads lead to Rome." Every other presence, including your Local Harvest listing, should point back to your farm website. This is your opportunity to educate your customers on everything you are doing and to keep them coming back by continuing to add new content.

Your website should have details on what you grow, how your grow it, and where people can buy it. After that it is up to you as to how much detail you want to go into. The more the merrier as long as you keep it organized.

Your email list is your gateway into peoples homes and cell phones. An email can be a very private and important thing. People are always listening for that little bing that tells them they have a new message. If all the Social Networks in the world fail you will always be able to sell through your email list.

1. Facebook
2. YouTube
3. Instagram

This is the second layer of what you are doing online. These three are great for a couple of reasons.

Facebook is very approachable and there are a lot of people using it. It is a great place to get started with all of your farms' basic info and story. Even though the updates that Facebook has been rolling out has made it a little harder to reach your audience these days you still can reach people AND it links to just about every other network so cross promoting outside of Facebook is easy. Here you can post photos, videos, stories, articles, whatever you want that is relevant to you and your brand. If nothing else it is a good gateway drug to the world of Social Media.

YouTube has been really good for me. While my farms' YouTube page doesn't have a ton of views, the customers that go there because I included a link to a video in an email have come up to me and said how much they loved the video. It is a way to give people a tour of the farm without actually having to host them on farm. From the comfort of their own home people can see what you are doing, how you are doing it, and you have control over the whole interaction. With the Smartphones getting better at not only taking video, but sharing it to the web, uploading videos to YouTube is getting easier and easier.

Instagram for me is one thing, a means to an end. I cannot attribute many sale directly to Instagram, but I can indirectly. Let me explain. I have an Instagram account @foodcyclist. I have friends and family that follow me there. I also have other people involved with the farm that have their own Instagram accounts. The beautiful thing is that we can use the APP to take a photo, edit it, add a fun filter, and all upload it to the farms' Facebook page. The pictures we post get more engagement than anything else. Because it is so easy from my phone I use it as much as I can.

• Everything you need to know to set up a farm website (free video tutorial)
• Using Google Analytics to Measure Success With Your Farm Website

• How to start an email list (free tutorial)
• Success with email lists at a Winery GFP033
• Leasing Apple Trees GFP016

• Using video for your farm marketing GFP052
• Engaging customers with Facebook
• Getting started with Facebook video tutorial

The world is getting increasingly digital. How are people going to find you online and what are they going to see?

If you had to start or focus on one thing this year online, what would it be? Let me know below!

Farm quote of the episode:

"That's my only goal. Surround myself with funny people, and make sure everyone has a good time and works hard." - Joe Rogan

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

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• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

2014 was a great year for Farm Marketing Solutions and for Camps Road Farm. On farm we expanded in a few areas, built a lot of infrastructure, and learned a lot about our land and what it is capable of. Online I made a lot of great progress as well. I am constantly listening to hear when farmers are struggling with something or if someone needs some advice or to hear a story about life on the farm. My whole goal with this website is to bring as much value as I can to the readers, listeners, and watchers. I am also learning a lot as well. About farming, about marketing, and about my audience. I then share what I learn here and on my other "channels" so that others may learn with me. Well, 2015 is going to be no different. I have a lot to learn and I want to learn and grow as a group. That is why I have already launched my content plan for 2015. I have been very busy.

Right click here to download the MP3

I have to get better at record keeping and financial tracking. Last year was a growth year, and this year is still kind of a growth year but my budget is way tighter and I have to be really smart about what I do and how I do it. I also need to justify all my decisions to the boss and to myself. Keeping on point with my record keeping will make running the farm easier year to year, it will help me make decisions, and it will help other farmers with their businesses as well.

As part of the 12 Month FFC I will have:

• Monthly Production & Income Reports
• Participating farms reports
• Story about each farm
• Podcast episode with each farm

I will keep the podcast going as it is, same format, and same schedule. I have seen the podcast grow from the very beginning to over 100,000 downloads. Considering every episode is 30-60 minutes, that's a lot of podcast time. During the year I will be interviewing more farms from all over the world, I will be interviewing the participants in the FFC (by the way, it turns out they're really interesting people), and I will continue to openly share my story so that we can all grow our farms together.

• Bi-weekly podcast just the way you like it

I found that when there was something I needed to learn on farm I turned to video. Now having learned a lot, I still turn to YouTube, haha! I am also creating a lot of videos from around the farm and in the farm office to share what I have learned. The videos are typically 1-3 minutes on a very specific topic. I really don't sell anything on them. The videos are meant to be actionable pieces of advise that you can walk outside and use.

• Lots of video on YouTube and reposting to the blog
• Tips from the Field
• Tips from the Farm Office

Aside from all the fun content there is not quite as fun website maintenance, restructuring, reformatting, etc... There is a whole back-end side to running a website and building a community. At this time I do everything and I farm full time so you can guess that I cannot always get around to everything. I have a few more big ideas and projects in the works but my mission in 2015 is to stay focused, get my farm running smoothly, get Farm Marketing Solutions running more smoothly, and then we'll think about these new big projects.

I will be and have been creating a lot more content and sharing what I have been doing. What works and what is not working. If one thing I post saves you some time and headache then it has been a good day for me.

• Cleaning things up
• Getting the website I want it (will it ever be done?)
• Thinking about a site redesign (maybe next winter)
• Getting book sales on the website
• Publishing more content

"Entrepreneurs may be brutally honest, but fostering relationships with partners and building enduring communities requires empathy, self-sacrifice and a willingness to help others without expecting anything in return." - Ben Parr

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
• Support the podcast with $1 a month
• Past Episodes

Hindsight is always 20/20. Looking back on 2014 there are a number of things that I would do or manage differently on the farm. There are little things, like how we raise our chickens, or bigger picture stuff like how we communicate as a team to work more efficiently. With the year coming to a close, it is about time I start thinking about the lessons that I learned this year, and how I am going to apply what I've learned in the coming months.

The first thing that I want to change about 2015 is that I want to spend more time with my family and friends. There is always something more to do on the farm. The laundry list of chores and projects just never seems to get shorter. With what it requires to run a farm, it can be easy to get caught up with what you have to do instead of who you should be spending time with. Setting aside time and making the effort to unplug from the grind of the farm allows your brain to reboot. In 2015 I want to make more of an effort to spend time with my family and friends and to maintain a good work/life balance.

It kills me to think that my farm could have had a better year, or could have been a little easier if I had just been able to track my production and finances better. But it is true. While my records weren't quite the mess I might make them out to be, they are still far from where I want them. I fully understand the importance of having detailed records for all areas of your farm. It would make the winter decision making easier if I had detailed records of what the year was like. So, going forward into 2015 I am swearing to hone my record keeping skills. I have a few things that I am trying out to keep organized and better collaborate and I get into that in the episode.

I have a fantastic and dedicated support network involved with the farm. I am humbled to be a part of such a lovely group of people. As part of my support network they are always willing to lend a hand when and if they can. What I need to do is detail out what my tasks are so that my support people can choose an area to help out that best suits their own motivations. I then need to make sure I have the processes figured out so I can effectively delegate that task to that person. This will help me with both #1 and #2. Click here to download the MP3

• My strategies to get more time with family and friends
• The tools that I intend to use more of in my record keeping
• A method for outsourcing at least some of your tasks

• Farm Marketing Solutions on YouTube
• The E-Myth Revisited
• GFP Episode 39 Getting Investment to Start a Farm
• Google Docs

Starting in 2015 I will be publishing a monthly income report for my farm. To better keep on top of my cash flow I am going to make the commitment to publish it. January's report will come out in February, February's will come out in March, etc... Good or bad I will share it with the FMS community so that we can all learn and hopefully better the moment of sustianable farmers. If you would like to add your own story and transparency to the blog in an effort to improve your record keeping and to serve as a case study for other  farmers then contact me and let me know. I would publish your reports on the blog as well as have you on the podcast to introduce you to the audience. I believe in getting farmers on the land and keeping them there. If sharing my numbers and all of my "behind the scenes" info can help that then I am happy to share. If you feel the same way then I encourage you to make the 12 month commitment with me. It's only 12 reports and it could end up being a really big help to a lot of people.

What are you planning on doing differently in 2015? If you could outsource one thing that you do on a regular basis what would it be? How can you manage to delegate that task in the coming weeks?

"The five essential entrepreneurial skills for success: Concentration, Discrimination, Organization, Innovation and Communication." - Harold S. Geneen

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

• Click to subscrible to iTunes
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There are SO many topics to cover when to comes to farming. Each topic reflects on something that the average farmer has to deal with as he or she runs their operation. Today's podcast episode covers it all. The mindset to focus on today is that of the big picture. It is very easy to get caught up in the minutia of each farming task. Exactly what tool to use, exactly how to grow something, or most often exactly how to fix something. As we work through all of the little details, which are super important, we must remember the big picture and our holistic goal.

I have been focusing a lot of my big picture lately. My 2015 budget projections are due. I need to have my plan for next year laid out and I need to have it fairly detailed. With that chore on my plate I have been focused on just how all the pieces are going to fit together and how I am going to properly use my resources to accomplish my goals. Let me tell you, it's a little scary.

As 2014 winds down think of all the things you have done this year in relation to every other thing. What would you change? How could you improve? What are your pain points? What was successful? All of these questions, when thoroughly gone through will help you start the new year on a good foot.

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• How to work with brides to assemble organic flower bouquets
• Collaborate with other farmers for flower bouquets
• How to settle on crops that work for you instead of you for them
• You can’t say yes to everything
• Finding the time/income balance
• How to track profitability of certain crops
• How a computer can me instrumental to record keeping
• Quickbooks as a tool for farm finance tracking

Robbie and Deena grow a variety of vegetables and flowers on roughly four acres in Grass Valley, CA.

They market through a CSA, a local coop, various wholesale accounts, and weddings.

Their mission statement as seen on their website:

We pride ourselves on growing great soil and the quality, flavorful produce that follows.  Through the use of integrated organic systems and the farm’s many microclimates, we produce food, flowers and nursery starts that are healthy and vibrant.  We have a diversity of crops and markets that will build a healthy farm and business.  Farming brings us close to the land, which we will preserve and improve for the future. Our business management and sustainable agricultural practices will eventually support our family while providing equal access for a diversity of community members.

• Sweet Roots Farm
• Camps Road Farm
• UC Extension
• Farm enterprise calculator
• Easily build a farm website
• Farm Marketing Solutions on YouTube

Are you actively keeping the big picture in your head?

How are you preparing for next year?

"If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself." - Henry Ford

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Thanks for taking the time to listen in, and let me know what you think. You can leave a comment below, send me an e-mail, reach me on Facebook , or leave a 5 star rating in iTunes if you liked the show.

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