Welcome to The Market Gardener Podcast!
Join hosts JM Fortier and Chris Moran as they engage with influential members of the global small-scale farming and organic regenerative agriculture community.
Our podcast is your gateway to insightful conversations about farming, food, small businesses, and thought leadership in the world of sustainable agriculture.
We're here to shine a positive light on the practices and principles that drive small-scale farming, agroecology, and community building. Tune in for high-level discussions that inspire and empower a new era of positive farming.
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58: 5 Costly Mistakes New Market Gardeners Make (And How to Avoid Them)
Season 5 · Episode 58
Thursday, September 24, 2026 • Duration 56:14
In this solo episode, Jean-Martin Fortier breaks down the five critical mistakes that new market gardeners make and explains how to avoid them. Addressing common traps, he advises against working seven days a week, dogmatically trying to avoid debt, and overpaying for ideal land views. He further stresses the necessity of mastering proven, standardized growing techniques instead of winging crop management. Finally, JM cautions growers against over-burdening themselves with rigid, impractical ideals such as refusing to use plastics or operating off-grid; an idealism that ultimately jeopardizes farm longevity.
Timestamps
[00:00] Intro
[02:30] Acknowledging August burnout and supporting long-term growers
[06:46] Reflecting on Eliot Coleman, cover crops, and long-term soil health
[11:51] Introduction: 5 costly mistakes new farmers make
[14:10] Mistake 1: The folly of working seven days a week without rest
[24:02] Mistake 2: Trying to start a farm entirely debt-free
[33:35] Mistake 3: Buying land your business model cannot afford
[39:28] Mistake 4: Winging it instead of following proven growing practices
[46:50] Mistake 5: Overburdening the farm with impractical idealisms
Sponsors
Dubois Agrinovation: Get 10% off by choosing the promo code ‘MasterClass – Jean-Martin Fortier’ when you create an account. Some exceptions apply.
57: How They Started A Farm At Age 50! The Inspiring Story of Harmony Farm | Greg & Kate Stainton
Season 5 · Episode 57
Thursday, September 10, 2026 • Duration 01:57:04
In this episode, we sit down with Greg and Kate from Harmony Farm in Brockville, Ontario, to explore their journey of starting a multi-enterprise farm in their 50’s! They discuss how a desire for purpose and environmental responsibility led them to transition from their previous careers into managing market gardens, livestock, and maple syrup production on a 250-acre property. Kate, a psychiatrist, shares her insights on lifestyle and culinary medicine, emphasizing how ultra-processed foods drive chronic inflammation and why farmers play a vital role in public health. The group also dives into practical strategies for farm viability, including selling wood-fired pizzas at local markets and partnering with community programs to provide work opportunities. Finally, they examine the value of strong local networks, continuous learning, and how simple choices like real food can create rapid, meaningful change.
Timestamps
[0:00] Intro
[05:00] Defining the role of farmers in the public health care system
[10:45] The transition from city life to buying Harmony Farm in Brockville
[16:15] Examining ultra-processed foods, inflammation, and culinary medicine
[20:20] Partnering with "Heart Hubs" and prisons for community farming programs
[25:45] The true environmental and health costs of conventional food
[29:00] Finding purpose and starting a full-scale farm at age 50
[37:00] Exploring the six pillars of lifestyle medicine and nutrition
[1:03:00] Rethinking public support: Farms operated like community hospitals
[1:22:00] Turning extra garden produce into value-added wood-fired market pizzas
[1:28:00] Essential resources: Masterclass, Heirloom software, and community support
[1:45:20] Rapid fire Q&A on books, advice, and life lessons
56: $300K From 3/4 Acre Market Garden & Pastured Chickens (And They're Not Overworking?!) | Noah East
Season 5 · Episode 56
Thursday, August 27, 2026 • Duration 01:59:35
In this episode, we sit down with Noah East, co-owner of Wild East Farm and founder of Small Scale Revival, to explore how human-scale design, efficient systems, and clear values create a thriving small farm. We dive into Noah’s journey from managing a high-volume 8 acre vegetable farm to co-founding a mixed enterprise farm in North Carolina, examining how human-scale farming benefits both personal well-being and soil health. Noah explains how they integrate market gardening, agroforestry, and rotational livestock without overworking or scaling beyond ideal capacity. We explore their practical strategies for small-farm viability, including balancing wholesale with retail outlets and securing long-term land access through flexible leasing. Finally, we discuss the philosophy of thrift, relational agriculture, and why cultivating life outside of work is essential for long-term sustainability.
[15:00] Origins of Wild East Farm and homesteading background
[17:30] Overview of the 44-acre mixed farm and livestock integration
[29:00] Management roles, delegation, and preventing burnout
[35:40] Systemizing micro-processes and setting work-week boundaries
[42:30] Business strategy: Wholesale food hubs vs. direct retail
[46:40] Financial transparency, farm earnings, and frugal living
[58:10] Creative land access models and long-term lease structures
[01:23:00] Applying the Wendell Berry concept of thrift to daily life
[01:37:50] Relational agriculture and Small Scale Revival consulting
[01:47:40] Rapid Fire: Favorite books, best advice, drums etc.
55: From Vegan To Animal Farmer: Why Animal Agriculture Matters For Health, Ecology & Climate | Abey Scaglione
Season 5 · Episode 55
Thursday, August 13, 2026 • Duration 01:59:57
In this episode, we sit down with Abey Scaglione, author of Radical Farm and farmer at Ruckle Heritage Farm in Salt Spring Island, BC, to explore the ecological, nutritional, and ethical case for well-sourced animal foods in our food system. We dive deep into Abey’s journey from being a low-fat vegetarian and Pilates instructor in Los Angeles to managing a holistic livestock farm in British Columbia, examining why so many former vegans evolve into supporting well-managed animal husbandry once they understand real food systems. Abey reflects on the emotional complexity of raising and harvesting livestock; she deconstructs common environmental arguments against meat; and she explains the relationship between the natural carbon cycle and rotational grazing practices. We explore Abey’s homesteading experiences, from calf-sharing with dairy cows and raw milk cheese-making to the benefits of mobile chicken tractors and mob grazing for soil fertility. Finally, we discuss the economics of small-farm profitability, the shift from self-sufficiency to community sufficiency, and how consumer choices ultimately drive change in our food system.
[03:45] The former vegan arc: Unpacking animal agriculture, ethics, and maturity in food choices.
[12:05] Overcoming low-fat diet trends, disordered eating, and returning to traditional real foods.
[21:04] Navigating the emotional complexity of farm life and slaughtering animals.
[32:17] Regrowth, bale grazing, and debunking methane myths in ruminant agriculture.
54: How To Stop Fighting Nature & Grow A High-Yield Orchard | Permaculture Orchard Design with Stefan Sobkowiak
Season 5 · Episode 54
Thursday, July 30, 2026 • Duration 02:17:53
In this episode, we sit down with Stefan Sobkowiak, permaculture educator and renowned Youtuber at The Permaculture Orchard, to explore how to design and manage holistic, diverse agricultural ecosystems. We dive deep into his guiding philosophy that “nothing beats easy,” his background in wildlife biology, and the catastrophic tent caterpillar outbreak that transformed his conventional apple orchard into a biodiversity lab. Stefan deconstructs Bill Mollison’s three phases of abundance and introduces his innovative “grocery store” design concept, explaining how grouping companion trees by harvest date completely revolutionizes the pick-your-own farm experience. The conversation highlights the powerful ecological synergies of combining perennial fruit trees with nitrogen-fixing species, annual vegetables, and pastured poultry to naturally optimize soil fertility. Finally, we discuss his playful "magic model" for farm planning, his perspective on utilizing AI as a personalized learning tutor, and how his parent’s experience during World War II instilled in him the importance of food security, resilience, and human relationships.
Timestamps
[00:00] Intro
[05:16] Reflecting on Diego Footer and the profound early community legacy of Permaculture Voices.
[08:52] "Nothing beats easy" - Choosing crops based on what grows like a weed.
[15:33] The side quest from wildlife biology to landscape architecture to building functional animal habitats.
[20:51] Professor Caterpillar - Surviving a catastrophic monoculture harvest and shifting to permaculture design.
[30:22] Simulating a volcano: Unlocking high-yielding soil dynamics through compost and basalt rock dust.
[45:31] Bill Mollison’s blueprint: Replanting a diverse layout with nitrogen-fixing guilds.
[56:07] Launching a low-cost nursery.
53: How To Make Any Soil Amazing With Cover Crops: Grow Your Own Fertility! | JM Fortier
Season 5 · Episode 53
Thursday, July 16, 2026 • Duration 37:28
In this solo episode, Jean-Martin Fortier reveals the ultimate secret weapon for healthy soil and high-yield market gardening: cover crops and green manures. While beginner market gardens often focus strictly on profitable cash crops, long-term farm sustainability and profitability depend on embedding cover crop systems directly into seasonal crop rotations.
Jean-Martin explains how standard cover crops eliminate erosion by protecting bare winter soils, while legume-rich green manures supercharge on-farm fertility by injecting nitrogen and building massive subsoil root networks. He breaks down his practical, low-machinery techniques for terminating cover crops on permanent beds and you’ll discover how hitting the "golden ratio" of keeping one-third of your garden in cover crop at all times can drastically reduce external fertilizer inputs and unlock deep, long-term soil ecology.
Timestamps
[00:00] Intro and the importance of multiplying small, localized farms.
[04:35] Why cover crops are the underutilized secret weapon of market gardening.
[05:53] Two fundamental pillars for long-term farm success: Crop rotation and cover crop programs.
[07:53] Protecting bare winter soils from leaching and weather degradation.
[08:51] The difference between standard cover crops and legume-rich, nitrogen-fixing green manures.
[11:18] How to schedule dynamic cover crop successions between your regular cash crops.
[14:51] The "golden ratio": Keeping one-third of your garden in cover crops at all times.
[17:43] Step-by-step technical guide to terminating cover crops using a flail mower.
[19:09] Using a walk-behind rotary plow and silage tarps for rapid residue digestion.
[26:09] Advanced strategies to supercharge growth: Pre-planting broadforking, seed inoculation, and tactical manure application.
52: Why We Should Be Feeding Ourselves With TREES: Nuts, Forests, And The Future Of Food | Elspeth Hay
Season 5 · Episode 52
Thursday, July 2, 2026 • Duration 01:58:57
In this episode, we sit down with Elspeth Hay, Cape Cod journalist and author of Feed Us with Trees, to explore how we can solve our collective separation from nature through the power of tree crops. We dive deep into her journey from learning the “no farms, no food” mantra in childhood to the paradigm-shifting realization that our surrounding forests are actually overflowing with staple foods like acorns. Elspeth deconstructs historical narratives like the term "hunter-gatherer" and the concept of "enclosure," arguing that modern industrial farming models were built upon a violent legacy of privatizing land and erasing highly managed indigenous food systems. The conversation highlights how traditional communities managed ecological resources collectively through the "Commons" and specific cultural rituals. Finally, we discuss how local communities can reverse the "shifting baseline syndrome," her advice on cultivating ecological joy and rituals for the next generation, and her vision of a future rooted in regional food resilience and connection to community and place.
[03:09] Reflecting on a childhood feeling of being separate from the natural world.
[10:51] Deconstructing the term "hunter-gatherer" and rethinking evolutionary food stories.
[12:22] Learning about traditional indigenous forest management and the sophisticated uses of cultural fire.
[19:56] Explaining the violent legacy of the historical "enclosure" movement and land privatization.
51: How This Alaskan Farmer Makes 85K On JUST Storage Crops (With 49% NET!) | Sam Knapp
Season 5 · Episode 51
Thursday, June 18, 2026 • Duration 02:05:13
In this episode, we sit down with Sam Knapp, an Alaskan grower and author of Beyond the Root Cellar, to explore what it means to solve the biggest gaping hole in the local food system: winter food security. We dive deep into his journey from chemical engineering and a formative Fulbright grant in Sweden to establishing a successful, low-overhead storage crop farm in Fairbanks, Alaska. We highlight how Sam built a highly viable business on 1 acre by focusing on low-maintenance root crops like parsnips and utilizing efficient, manual systems instead of heavy machinery. Sam breaks down the structural design of his self-built cold storage facility, tips for managing humidity with Inkbird sensors and thermostats, and the reality of fighting thermal mass in the ground. Finally, we discuss how local growers can build predictable, highly profitable “off-season” revenue, his advice on avoiding the "YouTube Academy" trap by finding mentors, and his ultimate mission to democratize cold storage for local communities.
[03:34] Shifting local foods from a summer novelty to reliable winter staples.
[07:47] Pivoting from a PhD engineering track to an intense physical farm season in Sweden.
[17:43] Arriving in Fairbanks and integrating into a resilient community of transplants.
[25:03] Operating an off-grid farm through extreme sub-zero winter temperatures.
50: Why This Top New York Chef Is Dreaming Of Farming | Caroline Hahm
Season 5 · Episode 50
Thursday, June 4, 2026 • Duration 02:13:16
In this heartfelt episode, we sit down with Caroline Hahm, chef at Di An DI restaurant in Brooklyn NY, to explore the beautiful intersection of professional kitchens and sustainable farming. We dive into her journey from leaving Cornell to working in fashion, and explore how the documentary Food Inc. and her grandmother’s garden entirely reshaped her worldview. Caroline shares her tumultuous journey of learning her craft from scratch, discovering farming along the way, and how she ultimately ended up as a culinary leader. She breaks down the economic realities of sourcing ethically for Asian cuisine, paying farmers full price, and subverting toxic kitchen cultures through mindful leadership. Finally, we discuss her guiding mission to live a life of service and her dream of building a hospitality space tied directly to its own market garden.
Timestamps
[00:00] Intro.
[02:08] Reflecting on dinner at the Old Mill.
[08:12] Suburban childhood mentalities and shifting views on gardening.
[14:51] Leaving university to pursue volunteer work and experiencing true poverty.
[22:05] Transitioning into the fashion industry before Food Inc. changed everything.
[27:42] Tending soil later in life and reconnecting with traditional Korean side dishes.
[36:56] Volunteering at a rooftop farm and getting an unexpected start as a line cook.
[44:06] Reflecting on the intense physical toll and toxic culture of professional kitchens.
[51:34] Training under a wild Quebecois mentor and discovering new flavor pairings.
[01:34:21] Analyzing the economic realities and structural underpricing of ethnic cuisines.
[01:50:36] Rapid fire questions on leadership, work habits, and processing grief.
49: Is Social Media Over Romanticizing Farming? (Or Is That Actually A Good Thing?) | Jessica Paige @Jessithefarmer
Season 5 · Episode 49
Thursday, May 21, 2026 • Duration 01:39:20
In this episode, Jean-Martin and Chris sit down with Jessica Paige of Adama Farm to discuss her journey from university student to first-generation regenerative farmer and influencer. Jessica explores the importance of "romanticizing" farm life, explaining how finding beauty in the intensive labor makes the work more enjoyable and sustainable, and how sharing this beauty online can inspire new young people to get into farming. She reflects on her formative apprenticeship at Frith Farm, her spiritual awakening through nature, and the empowerment of leading an all-female crew. The conversation covers the practicalities of starting a farm, from land acquisition to navigating the "year two and three" hurdles of infrastructure and irrigation. Ultimately, she highlights how a small-scale farm can become a vibrant community hub through farm-to-table dinners and shared connection to the land.
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