Blog

A great piece by Greenhorn Zoe Bradbury, posted on Civil Eats. Next Spring Break, Get a Real Tan - A Farmer Tan All around the country, classes are back in session this week and a lot of college kids are recovering from week-long hangovers. Fort Lauderdale, Cancún, or Cabo, spring break has earned its rowdy […]

Here's an update from Greenhorn Nic Koontz out in Fort Collins, Colorado.  We posted another letter from him back in February. Native Hill Farm is very much moving forward in this crazy Colorado spring of ours - 80 yesterday and a foot of snow coming tonight. Thankful for the additional snowpack for irrigation water this […]

Another Greenhorns Ally, Al Attara, in the News: The Green Economy, A Work in Progress http://blogs.journalism.cuny.edu/nycondeadline/tag/flatbush-avenue/

NPR on Seed Balls... http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103129515 Neighborhood organizations across the U.S. that want to improve the environment are using a surprising weapon: seed balls. It's a technique for planting in abandoned places and often inhospitable land that was developed in Japan by Masanobu Fukuoka, a pioneer in "natural farming." The technique has worked its way to […]

This is good follow-up on that controversial op-ed piece in the New York Times... http://food.theatlantic.com/the-food-channel/free-range-pork-really-riskier.php Curator's note: Like pretty much every advocate of sustainable agriculture, including our own Bill and Nicolette Hahn Niman, I took immediate and sharp notice of James McWilliams's New York Times op-ed suggesting that pigs raised in the very epitome of […]

Greenhorns. cowboys. young farmer icons -- we welcome submissions of 'graphic identity' totems. The American Farmer Needs A Cowboy Image by Gary Truit No image of America is more widespread and more enduring than that of the cowboy. Over a century after the heyday of the western cattleman, the image of the tough, independent, hardworking […]

This piece was written by Greenhorns ally Twilight Greenaway for Culinate.  Great work, Twilight! The Young and the Landless here's an excerpt: They're not wearing overalls or brandishing pitchforks, but the young farmers who appear in the trailer for the documentary film "The Greenhorns" are the real thing. Their faces are sun-worn, the dirt under […]

Rodale Institute's Compost powers USDA's organic People's Garden (despite Chemical Ag's concerns) WASHINGTON, D.C. - About the time that Chemical Ag spokespeople were chiding Michelle Obama for promoting home-grown organic food with her White House garden, compost from the Rodale Institute farm was landing on a new organic garden right in front of U.S. Department […]

We got this nice note from Greenhorns ally Michelle Rehme: Today was the official groundbreaking for UVA's community garden - and quite possibly the happiest day of my life. Under a perfect blue sky we had students, teachers, kids, and Charlottesville familes all being rock stars and frolicking around barefoot in the mud building raised […]

A re-post from Time Magazine.  The Suburbs need to be recycled, and Greenhorns have a role in that.  Thoughts? 2. Recycling the Suburbs By Bryan Walsh The American suburb as we know it is dying. The implosion began with the housing bust, which started in and has hit hardest the once vibrant neighborhoods outside the […]

Here's a re-post from Daily Finance, with some promising, happy thoughts. Pollan, Waters influencing food politics more than we know sarah gilbert Mar 22nd 2009 at 6:00PM Filed under: Economy Blame Tom Vilsack's grandchild, blame Sasha and Malia Obama, blame 30 million American children. Blame them for this: food politics are changing mightily, and the […]

This reflection comes from Greenhorns friend Anna Rose... Dear all, It's been a week since I drove down I-20 and began my three day stint in Farmer Heaven, so I thought I'd give y'all an update. I'm writing this monster of a synopsis mostly for posterity, but for anyone who'd like to live in complete […]

Finally, after the bitter cold winter and far too much grantwriting and officeworks: Spring is catching me up and the finger=planet interface approaches the psyche nurture cotyledons and smell must of rabbit worm drippings on the hot greenhouse floor . Thankfully I have flawless cell reception at 2.3 acre Smithereen farm (which is just a […]

A Greenhorn in the U.S. recently told me, "big business has made sustainable farming seem obsolete." Living here in northeastern Thailand, it's easy to think so. Farmers struggle to hold on to their land in the face of mounting debt. Most young rural people leave home for Bangkok or other industrial centers to find work. […]

I am flattered and surprised that you consider me sensible. (Especially considering I spent most of my life up until three years ago studying poetry.) Sensible would have been to stay in my union job with my direct deposit paycheck in New York. Sensible would have been to set up a petting zoo or demonstration […]

Some lovely words from Neil Bertrando... here's a brief rundown of the past weeks events...filling in and finalizing schedule and curriculum details for NV city PDC, pulling together resources and learning materials for this course, organizing and directing delivery of 20 yards of woodchips from local tree services to river restoration project (with Americorp volunteers), […]

This from the News -Record in North Carolina... 100 million new farmers? North Carolina writer calls for agricultural revolution by Morgan Glover Last year, I interviewed Concord resident Aaron Newton, one of the few people I know who has gone beyond academic conversations about peak oil and climate change to making comprehensive lifestyle changes. Newton […]

This from Greenhorns' Ally Taylor Reid.... I'm still working on my dissertation on first generation farmers and taking lots of video now, though I haven't started to edit. Just too busy at the moment. Wanted to let you know about my new site www.beginningfarmers.org. I'm still working on adding content, but the idea is to […]

So. Today being yet another day of cold wind I thought it might be time for a PUNK YEOMAN PEP TALK. Which I think is a new format for missives too short for the book, too relevant for pencil. the art of punk yeomanry is in fact a kind of deliberate and proactive socio-homeopathy. meaning, […]

29 Year-old Farmers are on top!  This from Zoe Bradbury: Did any of you hear this today? http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=101329685 On a similar vein, this financier in Business Week recommends we all marry farmers. http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/09_10/b4122017811535.htm Which commodities are worth buying or holding on to? I recently bought more of all of them. But I really think agriculture […]

Dear Aunty, I need a production loan. Why? Because the farming equipment worth buying costs money. The nice tools are made in England and Switzerland and Holland - but the Chinese ones at the Hardware store fall apart and make me feel like a grunt. Specifically, I would like to buy: a seeder 2 spades […]

This via the High Plains/Midwest Ag Journal Kelly Huenink named Outstanding National Young Ag Professional winner Kelly Huenink from Hudson, Colo., a member of the St. Vrain Valley Young Farmer Chapter was named the Outstanding National Young Ag Professional at the National Young Farmer Educational Institute held recently in Baltimore, Md. Huenink is the operation […]

A New Report From the Oakland Institute Issues a Challenge to Western-led Plans for a Genetically Engineered Revolution in African Agriculture Voices From Africa: African Farmers & Environmentalists Speak Out Against a New Green Revolution in Africa Oakland, CA: A new report from the Oakland Institute, Voices from Africa: African Farmers & Environmentalists Speak Out […]

I once worked for a miraculous biodynamic farmer in Switzerland. It was actually the first 'real' farm I worked on, a dairy farm. We milked 30 cows for making Emmenthal cheese and special yogurt. Because we were Biodynamic, the milk had to go early to the cooperative creamery, so that it would touch only the […]

Here's an excerpt from a recent Canadian Press Article: Young farmers say agriculture must be seen as profitable and 'sexy' to thrive The Canadian Press January 19, 2009 CALGARY - It's no secret that it's a tough time to be a farmer. The agricultural industry is dealing with volatile commodity prices, costly fertilizers and fuel, […]

We were psyched to read about this great adventure/biking project/local food feast.  Follow Ibti's journey, host her along the way, share some good food, get some labor in return. A Bikeable Feast "Sustainability" is such a buzz word these days that I wonder if we've forgotten what it really means. Is it possible to produce […]

We want to radically reinvent American agriculture, we want to revitalize rural economies, we want to revolutionize agronomic techniques...but we'd also like to check our email and watch videos from around the world. Dial up is a major major bummer for a lot of young farmers. High speed internet isn't quite the same as a […]

From the Boston Globe... Comes a time to fight for farmers By Neil Young February 26, 2009 When Abraham Lincoln formed the US Department of Agriculture in 1862 he referred to it as the "People's Department" because it served the common interest of so many Americans. America's concerns about food and the economy were addressed […]

Via American Public Television http://www.aptonline.org/aptweb.nsf/vOtherDocs/Interview-Wilfred+Emmanuel-Jones Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones of YOUNG BLACK FARMERS discusses his farming initiative and his new BANFF Award-winning series American Public Television recently interviewed Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, a black farmer in the U.K. and the creator of the new documentary series YOUNG BLACK FARMERS (winner of the best unscripted entertainment program at the 2006 […]

A great piece from  www.culinate.com... read the original at http://www.culinate.com/articles/the_culinate_interview/novella_carpenter Novella Carpenter The urban farmer By Twilight Greenaway February 3, 2009 Most urban farmers confine their agricultural efforts to vegetables, fruit, and the occasional egg-laying chicken. But on her small plot in Oakland, California, Novella Carpenter has raised bees, goats, rabbits, geese, and turkey, among […]

Here's another write-up we just caught wind of - about the Young Farmers Conference at Stone Barns.  Some Great pictures to be viewed... http://gothamist.com/2009/02/14/often_armed_with_not_much.php

This just in from Greenhorn Erin Bullock of Mud Creek Farm in Victor, NY "Lots going on here! check out my front-page debut in the Rochester paper yesterday, and check out both videos on the right. i have a reporter following me through the season. Sold out with a waiting list-- 70 members! And i'm […]

Any Greenhorns out there with advice on funding & other financial matters for start-up Greenhorns? Hello, My name is Nic Koontz and I am working towards starting a small farm of my own in the northern Colorado front range area, near Ft. Collins. I have been a follower of yours since I heard about your […]

For a while we've been mentioning that the reliable data on young farmers was not yet in. Well, it's here!

Recently, we received an inspiring note from "fledgling greenhorn" Stephanie Pierce.  In part, it read: Hello Severine (and other Fleetsters), I am an avid follower of the blog and Greenhorns, as I consider myself to be a fledgling greenhorn.  I am currently interning at the Yestermorrow Design/Build School in Vermont, and I think that some […]

We've had the 'letters from a young farmer' series going on for a while now, but a recent greenhorns ally has emerged with the willingness to write up short young farmer profiles to help inspire and shape our collective understanding of the movement with specific examples of lives lived. Think of it them case studies […]

Great write up on a recent event in Michigan: http://annarborchronicle.com/2009/01/31/local-food-for-thought/ excerpt: "The Chronicle arrived midway through Thursday's day-long Local Food Summit 2009, and found evidence of the morning's work plastered all over the walls of the Matthaei Botanical Gardens conference room: Colorful sticky notes on butcher paper, categorized by topics like "Food policy/legislation," "Resources for […]

The Choice to Farm is a report documenting the current role of new farmers as actors in the social movement for sustainable agriculture in the United States. The work focuses upon the stories of five individuals who have begun farming within the past ten years, all of whom earned non-agricultural college degrees, and most of […]

Hello friends! We started a farm blog to document our year at Island Meadow Farm. Leave a comment & let us know what you think! http://islandmeadowfarm.wordpress.com/ It's still under progress but make it a bookmark & keep updated on our adventures in the plant & animal kingdoms. Plus Roby will be joining us in March […]

From Zoe Bradbury of Groundswell Farm Hi farmer friends, I'm curious how - or if - the economic slump is affecting you as farmers. I'm trying to collect a little informal data to see if our theories about local/regional food systems are indeed holding up right now. Are they truly more resilient & stable? Able […]