ideas + models

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tools by the century

Antique Farm Tools.info What a collection!  There's much to learn from these tools.  Seed fiddle, anyone? Peter Charles Dorrington collected and restored over 750 antique farm tools between 1985 and 2001. Most of these tools were agricultural hand implements and fenland tools that were used in England, Wales and Scotland, dating from about 1600 to […]

Posted: June 27 2011
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news from the living lands agrarian network

2nd Annual Living Lands Farm Tour -July 17th A celebration of Farming, Local Food & Community We only offer the event once a year! You’ll have the opportunity to tour three of our local farm sites and see first hand how Living Lands Agrarian Network is creating more local food and more local farmers in […]

Posted: June 23 2011
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grand opening of sheepscot general

Maine greenhorns Taryn Hammer and Ben Marcus are celebrating the grand opening of their general store in Whitefield - Sheepscot General - this Saturday! We love projects like this! Congratulations, guys.

Posted: June 21 2011
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a great model for towns

Town of Cato Adopts Plan for Agriculture and Farmland Protection Town demonstrates its commitment to enhancing its agricultural economy and protecting farmland by adopting new, forward-thinking plan and its 13 strategies   (Cato, NY) – Tonight the Town of Cato will adopt a plan that provides 13 strategic actions that the Town intends to take to enhance […]

Posted: June 8 2011
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up-river

Resources & models for creatives in small post-industrial cities. Yes! Abundant they are: The Sanctuary for Independent Media: http://www.mediasanctuary.org/ EMPAC @ RPI: http://empac.rpi.edu/ Otto's Bakery (My friends who have an intentionally-empty storefront in South Albany. They've also bought some abandoned lots in the neighborhood and are calling that project "Streetlight Gardens."): Travis: [email protected]

Posted: June 7 2011
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toil making tools

Tool Making Supplies from Kestrel Tool The Northwest coast has a long tradition of tool making. Building your own saves money and is often the only way to obtain the exact tool required. All our raw steel is supplied with with heat treating instructions.

Posted: June 1 2011
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really young farmers summer program

at Sylvestor Manor.   Young Farmers ages 8-12 and Farm Instructors in Training ages 13-16. Excellent! Looking for a greener summer program for your kids? Enroll your children ages 8-12 for a week or more in our Young Farmers Program. They’ll learn about the cycles of planting and harvesting; tend vegetable, flower and herb beds; care […]

Posted: May 18 2011
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cultivating food entrepreneurs

La Cocina - an incubator kitchen in San Francisco. a model to be replicated across the country need a kitchen? check it OUT

Posted: May 14 2011
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barn renovation

There are thousands of old timber frame barns around the country in need of the kind of love this one is getting at Broadturn Farm in Scarborough, ME. Check out all the photos HERE

Posted: May 11 2011
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economic theory

Here's a wikipedia bit on Distributed Economies: "There is no official definition for DE, but it could be described as a regional approach to promote innovation by small and medium sized enterprises, as well as sustainable development. The concept is illustrated in the figure below, that shows centralised, decentralised and distributed economies respectively." At the […]

Posted: May 2 2011
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your backyard farmer

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIUfeKt_LwQ&feature=related] The farmer comes to you, within the Portland, Gresham, Lake Oswego and Milwaukie areas. Pioneered in March of 2006, Your Backyard Farmer is an innovative approach to community supported agriculture through urban backyard farming. We create small sustainable organic method farms at your backdoor & provide fresh, in-season produce from your farm to your […]

Posted: May 2 2011
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csa 2.0

lots of these mommy-helpful CSA type buying clubs popping up these days. http://www.field-goods.com/how-to-order.html Cool to see entrepreneurship, cooperation, buyers collectives. LOCAL FOOD: the scaffold of small business development

Posted: April 28 2011
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marcin on ted talks

[ted id=1122] Using wikis and digital fabrication tools, TED Fellow Marcin Jakubowski is open-sourcing the blueprints for 50 farm machines, allowing anyone to build their own tractor or harvester from scratch. And that's only the first step in a project to write an instruction set for an entire self-sustaining village (starting cost: $10,000). Marcin Jakubowski […]

Posted: April 27 2011
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coffee csa

Nora of Strongtree Organic Coffee Roasters in Hudson says that the specialty coffee market is screaming about global climate change, crop failures, drought, supply chain dysfunction, and in general the feeling that their sector is a canary in the coal mine of the global food system. here is a small project that is quite hopeful,  […]

Posted: April 27 2011
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greens for chickens

These folks have written up a nice breakdown on the greens (not grains) that they grow to feed poultry.  Useful information for small-scale poultry raisers! Growing Forage for Poultry This year I managed to implement a pretty good schedule for keeping a plot of forage growing all season to feed to the chickens (broilers & […]

Posted: April 20 2011
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one straw revolution

Posted: April 18 2011
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weed dating!

now here's a great idea... weed dating. Finally! What you've dreamed of...the details for the Weed Dating. Cost $25 Total capacity-50 participants Gay? Straight? We don't discriminate! You must RSVP and prepay to save your spot (working out the pre-payment details now...probably through our online store, which we need to get up and running...) Starts […]

Posted: April 14 2011
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pa is radical

check it out: Lancaster Farmacy  

Posted: April 11 2011
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weavers way co-op

an awesome philly institution and a good model to keep in mind. Weavers Way Co-op

Posted: April 6 2011
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new project for fertile underground

an artist agricultural initiative in Providence, Rhode Island. They've got a new project, which you can help support through kickstarter. Here's the scoop: Our mission primarily involves reclaiming "vacant" land for growing food, producing compost and forming beautiful living environments.  Continuing to share our love for fresh & non-toxic food, we are organizing some new […]

Posted: April 4 2011
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mad scientist's tools

useful for greenhorns... and some good press for our cause! A Mad Scientist's 50 Tools for Sustainable Communities By Leah Messinger, March 23, 2010, The Atlantic In the middle of rural Missouri there is a physicist-turned-farmer looking to redefine the way we build the world. Marcin Jakubowski is the mastermind behind a group of DIY […]

Posted: April 4 2011
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greenhorns are going to philly

meeting up with other young farmers on marathon missions http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1429384230/marathon-farm-an-urban-agriculture-project

Posted: March 31 2011
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local produce around the dock

Check out the Farm Boat Floating Market Why Deliver Farm Goods by Boat? Thousands of vessels plied the waters between Puget Sound and Alaska a century ago, delivering fresh local farm produce, lumber and passengers to welcoming ports along the way. The inland waters of the Northwest was once a bustling highway linking even the […]

Posted: March 31 2011
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those michigonians... getting organized!

Their website is chock full of resources, projects, events and more. Check out their media section, and the "Young Farmers of 2010" page!

Posted: March 30 2011
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at the table

oldest future farmers of america program. This is a place where urban youth are beginning their careers . An old article, but a good one. Whole student body eats their gourmet vegetables BY Peter Kadushin, October 5th 2007 for the Daily News Gourmet vegetables such as butternut squash, plum tomatoes and osmin purple basil, usually […]

Posted: March 29 2011
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high tech

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyywfrAT1S0]

Posted: March 24 2011
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internships at sandhill farm & community

Sandhill Farm is a 35 year old intentional community located in rural, northeast Missouri. Our current population is 6 adults, a 15-year old, and a 2 year old child. We grow 90% of our own food including vegetables, herbs, fruit, grains, beans and shiitakes. Our farm is certified organic and we actively blend in the […]

Posted: March 17 2011
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UVM apprentice program

University of Vermont's Farmer Apprentice Program The University of Vermont, in partnership with the Intervale Center, has created a five-month intensive program for aspiring farmers that provides a hands-on, entrepreneurial approach to sustainable farming. What is it? This program offers participants the unique opportunity to manage their own growing site, take classes from professors and […]

Posted: March 7 2011
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students taking initiative

"The Greenhorns" will be showing at this student-organized conference in Wisconsin. We like what Sophie is doing as a student farmer-organizer in the midwest. Her campus garden wasn't big enough, so they made a deal to grow more on local farmland. That's thinking laterally and enterprising beyond the campus container. College student farmers: you are […]

Posted: February 23 2011
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european young farmer stats

a good model. from the  The European Council of Young Farmers

Posted: February 23 2011
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fallen fruit

Using fruit as our lens, Fallen Fruit investigates urban space, ideas of neighborhood and new forms of located citizenship and community. From protests to proposals for new urban green spaces, we aim to reconfigure the relation between those who have resources and those who do not, to examine the nature of & in the city, […]

Posted: February 22 2011
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the fleet

Zaac is one of these guys who ends of helping out on farms because he is always biking through them. What if we always stopped to acknowledge these new day wanderers and welcomed them into our routines? They certainly have the muscle and the stamina. If you are one of these Finnegans - join the […]

Posted: February 16 2011
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farmhack at MIT

Mechanical Innovation in Agriculture:  Farmers + Engineers brainstorming together We hope you will join the National Young Farmers’ Coalition, the Greenhorns and MIT as we bring together farmers and engineers to brainstorm and invent farm tools together, all day on March 5, 2011. If you can’t join us for the full day of roll-up-your-sleeves workshopping, […]

Posted: February 15 2011
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the berkeley kids, in the lead

check 'em out! http://berkeleystudentfoodcollective.org/ Berkeley co-op aims to educate about food choices by Debra Levi Holtz, The San Francisco Chronicle The brightly colored mural of farmers loading fresh fruits and vegetables onto a train illustrates the mission of the city's newest food co-op: to provide healthful alternatives to junk food while educating the UC Berkeley […]

Posted: February 9 2011
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free farm stand

The Free Farm Stand, an all-volunteer run project of the No Penny Opera  (a tax exempt organization) is about sharing the wealth of urban farms and gardens. We strive to attain the following goals: •help make locally grown, fresh and nutritious organic produce accessible to all, especially those families and individuals on low-incomes and tight […]

Posted: February 8 2011
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barter for education!

What a terrific twist on "trade schools". Starting today! Trade School classes begin on Wednesday, February 2nd at 32 Prince Street, NYC. At Trade School, students barter with teachers. Here’s a sample of upcoming classes and a sample of barter items you'll need to bring: - Learn about Coptic Sewing if you bring grant editing, […]

Posted: February 2 2011
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pick a chicken

more farm tech! Heritage Chickens Go High-Tech In response to the chicken movement sweeping the United States, Mother Earth News and Funny Farm Industries recently launched the Pickin’ Chicken app, a downloadable iPhone application that will help everyone from full-time farmers to backyard chicken enthusiasts research breeds from their iPhones, iPads, or iPods. Keeping chickens […]

Posted: January 18 2011
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100 beef cows

check out this program from the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture.  Read an article about the program, published in the High Plains Journal, HERE NCTA's new 100 Beef Cow Ownership Advantage program has been created to provide a forum where students, parents, employers, and agencies can come together to create successful business plans and ranch […]

Posted: January 11 2011
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community supported greenhouses

The Farmer Fund offers members of the local community in Ann Arbor, MI an opportunity to support local farmers by partnering with us on each of our projects.  By working with others in our community that seek to lend money directed to farm infrastructure, we will be able to triple the impact breakfast funds currently […]

Posted: January 7 2011
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community supported seed shares

A new program from High Mowing Seeds.  It's too late to join for 2011, but what a super model! Join our Community Supported Seeds program and receive 10% off seeds for next season! Put your seed dollars towards supporting a family-owned company committed to meeting your farming needs with high-quality organic seeds! The CSA model […]

Posted: January 5 2011