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Reducing Tillage in Vegetables Using Cover Crops
When Thomas Ruggieri first planted cover crops on his vegetable farm in rural Missouri in 2004, he noticed improvements in soil fertility and plant health. Ruggieri and Rebecca Graff run Fair Share Farm, a diversified vegetable farm with a 140-member CSA in Kearney, Missouri. Vegetable growers can use cover crops to help reduce erosion, improve soil […]
Expanding Local Charcuterie in Northwest Missouri
Watching feed prices go up and pork prices go down can make value-added product lines attractive for a hog producer. Jim Pierce is working on value-added charcuterie products on his farm in Missouri.
Kansas City Food Hub Strengthens Brand and Marketing
In 2015, a small farm cooperative in the Kansas City area had a dilemma. Fresh Farm HQ (FFHQ) Cooperative Association was helping small and medium-sized farmers access wholesale markets in the Kansas City area, but with more than 18 produce distribution companies already operating in the area, they needed to differentiate themselves; they needed to […]
Mechanization Options for Root Crops on Small Farms
On five acres of land in central Michigan, Dru and Adam Montri grow vegetables with seasonal field production and six hoophouses. They sell their Ten Hens Farms produce at the farmers market, to local grocers, area restaurants, and a regional food distributor. They had a problem with root crops, and two other nearby vegetable growers did […]
Urban Farmers Connect with Youth Garden
Integrating agriculture into urban settings is not a new concept, but more and more, the benefits are being realized by communities, policymakers, and food-system entrepreneurs (NCAT-ATTRA 2018). One such entrepreneur is Brent Lubbert, whose nonprofit organization is growing vegetables and future farmers on six plots of land in the Gifford Park Neighborhood of Omaha, Nebraska. […]
Native Plants Attract Beneficial Insects
Whether building boxes for mason bees or planting habitat for predatory beetles, farmers seeking sustainability can encourage populations of pollinators and beneficial insects on the farm. Researcher Doug Landis knows that many native plant species are highly attractive to both pollinators and natural enemies, and with help from a $199,887 NCR-SARE Research and Education grant, […]
Sprinkler Deterrent System Helps Farmer Control Wildlife
Enhancing biodiversity on a farm can result in cleaner air and water and increased wildlife. But what happens when the wildlife gets a little too close to your crop? That’s the problem sweet corn grower, Scott Kelly, was facing on his farm near Kearney, Missouri. “The demands of growing produce sometimes seems never-ending,” said Kelly. […]
An Open-Source, Automated Irrigation System for Small Farms
Christian and Katie Flickinger were experienced urban farmers in Michigan who were farming eight plots in various locations. When they decided to consolidate their operation and buy a 7-acre farm in Howell, Michigan, they faced the challenge of converting a long-standing, non-rotated cornfield into the organic, heirloom farm of their dreams. Among the other items […]
Soil Remediation Techniques in Urban Agriculture
Dirty Boots Farm in Illinois received SARE support to work with a neighboring farm, Chicago Patchwork Farms, on urban soil remediation.
Controlling Pigweed with Minimal Tillage in Fall Vegetable Crops
Managing and controlling weeds is an ongoing challenge and frustration for many farmers, but it can be especially cumbersome for organic producers, whose options for herbicides are limited. For these organic producers, no-till and conservation tillage systems can help conserve soil and can be used for weed control. Tom Buller, a vegetable grower and extension […]
Farm Towers: Urban Agriculture Goes Vertical
In southeast Nebraska where corn and livestock fields dominate the agricultural landscape, Auburn High School agriculture teacher, Ashton Bohling, offers a variety of agricultural education opportunities for curious youth. Students have access to an aquaponics system (an aquaculture system with tilapia) and a 24x48’ greenhouse. With support from a $1,999 NCR-SARE Youth Educator grant, Bohling […]
Spring-Grazing Cover Crops with Nebraska’s Knuth Farms
When a fourth-generation farm in Mead, Nebraska began to diversify their primarily cash crop operation in 2012, they gave some thought to cover crops and livestock. Knuth Farms didn’t want to buy cattle or become beef producers, but they did want to diversify their income stream, capture some of the soil benefits of cover crops, […]
Developing a Woman and Farmer-Led Meat Processing Cooperative
Wisconsin needs more butchers. That’s what April Prusia, Betty Anderson, and Bethany Emond Storms determined during their farmer-led research project in 2017. The three livestock producers raise beef, pork, poultry, and goats in south central Wisconsin. While they all have big dreams of charcuterie plates made with their meat, they lack processing options in the […]
Paving the Way for Shared-Use Kitchens
New cottage food laws are making it easier for producers to can, freeze, bake, and pickle their raw agricultural products at home and sell them directly to their customers. While they might fit under regulations, home kitchens might not be a good fit for everyone, and some producers want to expand without investing in their […]
Illinois Farmer Builds Precision Seeder to Maximize Cover Crop Advantage
Ralph “Junior” Upton is no novice when it comes to no-till and cover crops. His grain farm in the northeast corner of Hamilton county Illinois is 100% no-till with 1,800 acres of corn, beans, and wheat, and approximately 1,200 acres in cover crops. Upton has been farming more than 50 years, and the farm has […]
Traditional Fertilizer, Modern Applications for Iroquois White Corn
Farmers have long relied on liquid fish fertilizers because they are a source burn-free nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Traditional Native American growers were well aware of the benefits that decaying fish could bring to their soil; they buried fish under mounded soil and planted the 3 Sisters (corn, beans, and squash) directly on top of […]
Immigrant and Minority Farmers Inspire Soil Health Collaboration
When Julie Grossman was an undergraduate, she had no idea that a single economic development course was going to change the trajectory of her life’s work. In that course, and during her international PhD research in Latin America, she learned how biology, and specifically agroecology, could be used to help grow food in regions of […]
Building Resilience and Flexibility into Midwest Organic Potato Production
When Maria Carter’s parents emigrated to America from the Netherlands in 1956, they brought along a knowledge of growing seed potatoes. Shortly after they put down roots in North Dakota, they put down tubers to start their new seed potato farm. They knew potato growers needed healthy seed potatoes, and they knew how to grow […]
Ohio Farmer Develops Mobile Hops Dryer
In a state that boasts 300 craft breweries, David Volkman is among many craft beer enthusiasts in Ohio. But Volkman, with 12 acres of land in Warren County, is not only supporting Ohio’s craft brewing industry through consumption; he’s also contributing to its production. In 2012, he and his wife, Nina, started transitioning some of […]
The American Kestrel: an IPM Friend for Michigan’s Fruit Growers
Cherry producers across the region are all too familiar with starlings, finches, voles, pocket gophers, and other animals that can wreak havoc on a cherry orchard by feeding on ripening fruit and developing roots or shoots. These little pests can be a big problem for Michigan’s cherry growers, who grow 75 percent of all tart cherries and 20 percent of sweet cherries in […]