Search for “horticulture”

Larry Cleverley (Cleverley Farms) has been a horticulture farmer leader for more than a decade and has had success growing high quality greens. Joining Larry will be beginner Northeast Iowa horticulture farmer Glen Elsbernd (G it’s Fresh).

Glenn Drowns with his wife Linda manage Sand Hill Preservation Center near Calamus, Iowa. They save farm genetic diversity with heirloom seeds, and poultry breeds. Glenn has been perfecting his techniques growing cucurbits organically for decades and is eager to share his knowledge. Ben Saunders has worked at Turtle Farm CSA near Granger, IA, for several years and is working to transition the farm to the next generation. With a university degree in Horticulture, Ben loves working with nature and educating on the farm.

Lee Matteson and Rose Schick are building their business around winter greens and extended season production using four high tunnels near Nevada, Iowa. Though they started with a solid foundation in greenhouse production, there was plenty to learn along the way. During this farminar Lee and Rose will discuss starting their farm, some misconceptions they had and how others might try things differently. They will also discuss greenhouse and site selection, favorite crops, markets, financial decision-making and share photos of their greenhouse operation.

Seed Starting 101: Two ExamplesFebruary 17, 2016 View Farminar Pre-recorded For fruit and vegetable producers, the growing season begins long before the first crops are actually planted in the ground. There are many variations to the process of starting seeds indoors, and each farm has unique methods and schedules according to its goals, markets and [...]

Pest and Disease Management for Organic Apple ProductionMarch 13, 2017 View Farminar Pre-recorded Managing pests and diseases in a Midwest apple orchard can be tricky, and even moreso for organic systems. A range of preventive approaches needs to be included in an orchard management plan in order to minimize damages and maximize harvests. Maury Wills [...]

Variety Selection for Vegetable ProductionMarch 8, 2017 View Farminar Pre-recorded For Rob Faux, winter is the season for what he humorously calls “farmer delusional syndrome.” Fields do not have weeds, projects take half the time and pictures in the seed catalogues tempt farmers to grow every new variety available in the coming growing season. When [...]

Effective Mentor RelationshipsFebruary 1, 2017 View Farminar Pre-recorded Through our work with beginning farmers at Practical Farmers of Iowa, we’ve learned how beneficial having a mentor can be for those getting started. Learning from someone else’s triumphs and failures can save new farmers many seasons of trial and error, giving them a greater chance for [...]

Risk Management for a Diversified FarmJanuary 27, 2017 View Farminar-Part 1- Craig Christianson Pre-recorded View Farminar-Part 2-Andy Dunham Pre-recorded Due to technical difficulties, this farminar was recorded in two separate sections. Environmental and market variables can have a major impact on whether a farm business can be profitable. These variables are often beyond farmers’ control, [...]

Farm-Life Balance for CSA FarmersDecember 21, 2016 View Farminar Pre-recorded Operating a farm under the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model can be physically, mentally and emotionally demanding. Just like in any career, it’s important to find a healthy work-life balance – but for a farmer, that’s easier said than done. Learn from Kate Edwards of [...]

Tax Preparation for Your FarmNovember 30, 2016 View Farminar Pre-recorded Feeling overwhelmed when it comes to filing taxes for your farm? Tax preparation should begin with proper record keeping to ensure you have the necessary information for filing when the time comes. It’s important to know what sort of tax records you need to keep, [...]