Blog

The Farm Hack crew headed to NYC last weekend to participate in Maker Faire NYC, a gathering of inventors of all kinds, from 3d printers (there were a lot of those) to a bike-powered transplanter/weeder from Andy and Steve from Pedal Power, based out of Essex, NY.  The Pedal Power group also brought their pedal-powered sewing machine […]

Food, farms, maps and a kickstarter campaign.  We like it! Check it out HERE An atlas of food: a cooperatively-created, crowd-sourced and crowd-funded project of guerrilla cartography and publishing. 5 months + 80 collaborating cartographers and researchers + 8 volunteer editors + An abundance of volunteer campaign wranglers, academics, designers, and artists + You = […]

UVM Extension New Farmer Project:  Direct Market Pricing Clinics for Farmers These FREE one-day clinics will provide hands-on opportunities to learn about various cost-based pricing techniques using your own production and financial data. Participants will also explore market placement and promotion considerations related to the price points you want to achieve. Follow-up mentoring and technical […]

This is a community letter press shop and non profit organization in Buffalo. They have 12 letter presses, workshops, supply store, commercial customers and educational field trips. They take commercial work for broshures, flyers, gigs and events Consider using them, they are very very nice and talented. http://wnybookarts.org/

send to us by Rachel, who writes: "I wanted to let you know about the debut of our new app for food gardeners, Agrisaurus (aka "Ag-Resource") For the past two years, we here at Farmscape have been developing Agrisaurus to help gardeners find more success in their plots. We want to make designing, planning, and managing a […]

As you may know, recent studies conducted in France have shown significant toxic effects from the use of Roundup. And particularly tumors in rats in feeding studies. http://www.gmo-free-regions.org/gmo-free-regions/maps.html

Space still available in CCOF’s Marketing 101 and Sales Basics Webinars! Join organic market experts Dina Izzo and Jeff Bordes on September 26 for CCOF’s Marketing 101 Webinar to learn how to bring your organic product to market and explore what market channel is right for your operation.   Do you feel intimidated by the sales […]

Check it out HERE! What is husbandry? We are not talking about animal husbandry (the care and management of animals). Or crops. Or even husbands. We are talking about something VERY much more. Husbandry is an ancient word which means nothing less than 'the care and management of nature and resources for living'. This meaning […]

Check out this amazing repository: http://cultivate.coop/wiki/Main_Page part of the mission of cooperatives is helping start other cooperatives. THere are also federal cooperative development grants at the USDA available--- so if you have the vision and core group, and identified goals.. perhaps training yourself is the next step!

We like this idea. Let's show them some support! Totem Industries on Kickstarter Totem Industries is a small company out of Boulder, CO, with the goal of getting good people into cool and durable clothes at a reasonable cost.  We have been manufacturing clothing domestically since our inception in 2004. We started as a backcountry […]

we always dig swanky mapping tools -- so we were pretty darn excited to hear about the good work of 596 Acres -- an organization in NYC helping neighbors form connections to the vacant public lots in their lives. Hundreds of acres of vacant public land exist in New York City, hidden in plain sight […]

He and Timothy Webber, who will be at next month's FARMHACK ITHACA event. http://www.storeitcold.com/thestory.html http://www.youngfarmers.org/practical/farm-hack/events/ithaca/ we hope you'll join us to learn more about hacks and small grains processing!

Whole Farm Planning Training Program accepts applications for upcoming sessions – The Central New York Resource Conservation and Development Project, Inc. (CNYRC&D) recently announced that applications are being accepted for the fourth year of the Beginning Women Farmer Program.  "Empowering Beginning Women Farmers in the Northeast through Whole Farm Planning" is provided in association with […]

Registration is now open for the Vermont New Farmer Project farm business classes.  No matter what stage your farm business is in, the New Farmer Project offers classes to help you reach your full potential. Vermont New Farmer Project courses are specifically designed to meet the needs of aspiring and beginning farmers, including topics such as: goal setting, business planning, marketing, and […]

Where are there benefits for young farmers? How do these schemes impact the matrix of farmland ownership? How does it compare with the land-grabs and speculative investment that we have seen in Africa ? ( see  http://www.oaklandinstitute.org/special-investigation-two-land-deals-africa) Are there other ways for investment to benefit the future of agriculture? We are interested in your big […]

Value-Added Producer Grants (VAPG) program is designed to help agricultural producers enter into value-added activities related to the processing and/or marketing of bio-based value-added products. Generating new products, creating and expanding marketing opportunities, and increasing producer income are the end goals of this program. You may receive priority if you are a beginning farmer or […]

History at the Table "History at the Table" aims to serve as a central point of information and discussion about emerging collaborations among working farms, local and regional food networks, and historic sites and organizations, with a particular focus on the American northeast. The blog focuses on the emerging role of historic sites and museums […]

Upper Midwest CRAFT and the Biodynamic Initiative for the Next Generation are teaming up for a fantastic farmy weekend August 25-26 atAngelic Organics Farm and Learning Center in Caledonia, IL. Farm Machinery CRAFT Field Day ~ Saturday, August 25, 1-3:30pm Farmer John Peterson will demonstrate 5 different pieces of farm machinery including the overhead irrigation system/traveling gun, power wiggle hoe, soil […]

we'll share them with you all.  THANK YOU CARRIE, our letter press is working and lovely.  BOOKS: INTAGLIO: Practical Guide to Etching and Other Intaglio Printmaking Techniques / (ISBN 10: 0486251659 / ISBN 13: 9780486251653 ) / Manly Banister / Published by Dover, might be out of print LETTERPRESS: "General Printing, An illustrated Guide to Letterpress Printing" Cleeton, Pitkin & Cornwell / Liber Apertus […]

Common Vision is bringing back fruit trees to california schools check out their new video! http://commonvision.org/give/

Upcoming classes: Primitive Goat Harvest This week-long workshop is the uncompromising embodiment of responsibility.  As we take life from two goats, we confidently assume the task before us: to use every ounce.  Kfir of Two Wolves will walk us through how our ancestors, who could not indulge in the luxury of waste, brain-tanned hides and […]

More great resources for you Midwest greenhorns. The Land Connection is an educational nonprofit dedicated to preserving  and protecting our agricultural heritage through farmer training programs, sharing resources on how to acquire farmland and facilitating connections between people who own farmland, want to farm, and love healthy food.  The organization is based out of central Illinois, […]

And a nice family that distributes them right here in Columbia County, NY. Meadowsweet Naturals - Stick Crayons

2012 Seed Camp @ Saving Seeds Farm, Sedgwick, Maine  August 17 - 20, 2012 A weekend-long intensive course on small-scale farming and seed production. Includes full-day workshop with master seedsman Will Bonsall, founder of Scatterseed Project and major curator for Seed Savers Exchange.

Here is a whole nice toolkit of useful thinking featured resource, from Nebraska. http://www.cfra.org/renewrural/grocery

Building a Local Young Farmers Coalition from NYFC

I've been spending a lot of time this year further developing an improved garden cart idea that I originally built at Sauvie Island Organics about 5 years ago. There are now seven versions of this cart in use on farms around the NW. I've put up an explanation of the basic design features and also […]

On July 17, USDA is proudly unveiling the 2.0 version of the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Compass, a digital guide to local food systems and USDA programs that support them.  You are invited to participate in an exciting launch event on Tuesday, July 17 at 3 pm ET.  The USDA and the White House will […]

view the high res image here; from the folks at nasa

Farmers brainstorm simple tools to make their work easier June 20, 2012 in The Gazette IOWA CITY — Carolyn Scherf wants to harvest her peas while lying down. On Wednesday, the Solon-based vegetable farmer and 20 other local farmers and engineers attended the first day of Farm Hack Iowa — a two-day event at the […]

For farmers looking for alternatives to FSA/ conventional lending: http://www.uvm.edu/newfarmer/?Page=business/community-supported-farm-guide.html&SM=business/sub-menu.html here are community driven finance models for your toolkit anthony and sallie. we are adding to our new booklet.. which isn't yet far enough along to share , but soon! S

On Thursday we will be launching Eating Planet–Nutrition Today: A Challenge for Mankind and for the Planet here in New York City with an incredible lineup of speakers including: Jonathan Bloom, global food waste expert and author of American Wasteland;Samuel Fromartz, editor-in-chief of the Food & Environment Reporting Network; Ellen Gustafson, creator of The 30 Project and Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition Advisory Board Member; Brian Halweil, […]

TEDxManhattan “Changing the Way We Eat” Videos of All Speaker Presentations Online and on DVD June 25, 2012 | New York City - Earlier this year, The Glynwood Institute for Sustainable Food and Farming acted as lead sponsor of a one-day TEDxManhattan event whose theme embraced food, and more specifically, how we can inspire a […]

Announcing Call for Pre-Proposals and Collaborators for Biodynamic Research The Biodynamic Association is seeking creative, relevant and innovative research projects that will advance the understanding and practice of biodynamics. By making this Call, we hope to spark a new direction and impetus for biodynamic research through a broad idea sharing process. Projects are invited that address any aspect […]

The CAGE Lab* is seeking maps, map ideas, researchers and cartographers for a special atlas on food.  As a project of guerrilla cartography, Food: An Atlas will be a collection of maps conceptualized and conceived within a very short timeline of 4 months. Any and all subject matter related to food is welcome – from urban food security […]

brought to you by the fine folks at FarmAid -- the Farmer Resource Network connects you to more than 500 organizations developing innovative approaches to producing, processing and marketing food from family farms. We're here to share our stories about successful farm operations and connect you to people with ideas to diversify and strengthen your […]

ohh la la, new greenhorn swag on our etsy page -- bandanas, posters, stickers galore ! these bandana beauties are screen printed by the lovely laura cline, artwork by brooke budner.

[vimeo=https://vimeo.com/43857411] our good friend, andrew plotsky: http://farmrun.com

we like this children's garden story. tell us your favorites ag related stories. [email protected]

We're very excited for farmack Iowa NEXT WEEK!  Don't forget to RSVP. Here's the latest: Farm Hack Iowa team is way excited for next Wednesday, and we hope you are too.  We wanted to give you all a few updates on the event, and also introduce one aspect of the Farm Hack process: the design […]