Farm Small Farm Smart Daily

Did you ever imagine what it would be like if you’d started your PDC in middle school? How would you have lived your life differently? What if everyone had that same experience? What would the world look like? That’s exactly the question Matt Powers wants to answer. He is an English and soon-to-be Permaculture teacher at a school with laptops for each student in Central Valley California. He is de...

In this episode Curtis talks about: - How his no till beds are working out and performing. - His strategy for what types of tomatoes to grow. - How he grows his tomatoes. What cultural practices is he doing. - How he interplants other crops between his tomatoes. It is week 11 of the urban farm season - May 26, 2015. Learn more about The Urban Farmer at permaculturevoices.com/tuf10 Listen to past e...

Today I am talking to Troy Martz of Off Grid Pro about his reality. How he is going from a hobby, something that he loves and is passionate about, and what it's like to transition it into a functioning, profitable business. In this episode we talk about things like.. How do you deal with starting up a business when funds are tight and you have kids? How do you split time between your day job that...

In this episode Curtis answers questions on.. -How much land you should start with your first year? -How much you could expect to make your first year of farming? -How he does his harvesting? -How he deals with crop residue in his no till beds. -Raised beds. A fit or not? -Does he thin his seeds? -Are pelleted seeds worth the cost? -How you should start a relationship with chefs when production is...

Start with water, your most valuable form of capital, and retain as much of it as possible on the property in order to rehydrate the landscape. We can use efficient landscape design to control the flow of water to slow it, spread it, and sink it allowing the water to infiltrate into the soil, giving the plants water to do their work. Then nature will start building soil and creating microclimates...

In this episode we talk about acquiring new farm land. What it takes to get new land, how land deals are structured, and what information you want to know from a land owner before entering a land deal. We also discuss how you convert a conventional lawn over to a production urban farm plot. What are the steps involved? It is week 9 of the urban farm season - May 12, 2015. Show Notes: permaculturev...

Greywater is the most plentiful and abundant source of irrigation water we have. For those of us in dry climates, its the most sustainable option- thought often forgotten. Learn how you can install simple and affordable greywater systems that will efficiently irrigate your bountiful, productive, landscape. This talk was presented at PV2 in March 2015 by Laura Allen of GreyWaterAction.org. Listen t...

Scott Gallant, one of the instructors at Rancho Mastatal joins me to talk about what it takes to run a successful and profitable education center. Talking about topics like volunteer labor and getting what you pay for. We will talk about their apprenticeship program. And how the ranch is really in the hospitality business, not just the education business. Rancho Mastatal is a business, a for profi...

It is week 8 of the urban farm season - May 5, 2015. In this episode we take a deep dive into direct seeding. When is it appropriate, how Curtis does it, and how he optimizes his direct seeding to maximize production for yield and quality. Show Notes: permaculturevoices.com/tuf8 Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and...

Thinking about food, ruling with it and destroying it. The next 25-50 “us” years will be critically important to the future of food. You can be on the wave of an amazing era of domestication by turning to the wilds for inspiration. A whirlwind tour of the history of food then, now and “tomorrow”. This talk was presented at PV2 in March 2015 by Joseph Simcox. Listen to more at permaculturevoices.co...

It is week 7 of the urban farm season - April 28, 2015. The setting for this show is Kelowona, BC, Canada.  This episode focuses on the role of the urban farmer in the community. Problems Curtis has had with people in the city and how he has dealt with them. And what skills it takes to be an urban farmer.  Show Notes: permaculturevoices.com/tuf7 Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/...

Do you feel like you are the only one who cares? The only one who sees the important work that needs to be done? If you find yourself venturing into seldom-explored areas of thought and practice, chance are good you can relate. The truth is, however, that there are others like you, like us, eager to connect with like-minded folks and you may need to be the catalyst to make it happen. There is an a...

Welcome to The Urban Farmer show. It is week 6 of the urban farm season and it is April 22, 2015. The weather is beautiful in Kelowona, BC and urban farmer Curtis Stone is setting the farm up for the forth coming season. In this episode we talk a lot about nursery, transplanting into the field, and the concept of inter-planting. Currently on the farm transplants are going in, irrigation systems ar...

In the last regular show episode 107 with Bill Bean I referenced an upcoming webinar. This episode is a replay of that webinar - Building Quick, Convincing Business Plans That Deliver Confidence, Capital, Market Share & More was recorded on April 30, 2015. In the presentation Bill introduced proven tips, tools and techniques to help you quickly organize your thoughts into a succinct storyline that...

Many veggie and fruit growers are quick to write off home delivery as inefficient without considering the value it can add to their farm produce. For small-scale farmers whose customer base is urban, a well-structured CSA with home delivery can be more profitable and efficient than selling at the farmers’ market, and more appealing than drop-off points. In this short talk, veggie grower Jordan Mar...

It is week 5 of the urban farm season - April 14, 2015. The setting for this show is Kelowona, BC, Canada. Urban Farmer Curtis Stone is going gangbusters in what he calls the setup phase on his farm - getting all of the major things done on the farm plots before the season gets underway. Things like preparing the soil, starting plants in the nursery, putting down weed control measures, and getting...

Permaculture is a framework that can be integrated into any interest and passion. It helps us use and value patterns from a sophisticated long-term, systems-thinking approach to solve problems. Through it we can re-invent and re-design what it means to learn, educate, and be educated. Putting in a swale or planting a tree alone is not going to be a long-term solution to our problems. To have a lon...

In business there is no such thing as new business, there is only other people's business. That's the subject of today's show. Strategically planning your business so you can capture a share of the business. Doing that planning ahead of time, so you don't end up spending a lot of money, time and energy going in the wrong direction selling something that people don't want or can't pay for. Most peo...

It is now April 8 and we are another week into the Urban Farm season with Curtis. What's happened on the farm so far. At this point in the season Curtis has prepared most of the growing beds on his various plots for the upcoming farm season and that includes switching a lot of his production methods over to more of no-till style. He has been spending a few hours each day on farm related activities...

The United States Greatest Permaculture Challenge? There are enormous challenges and contrasting opportunities inherent on Indian Reservations today. One one hand you have sovereign nations inside the US which are in a state more depleted than most third world nations but, on the other hand, they have opportunity to lead in a way they never have before. Permaculture abundance in the setting of a t...

This episode is a presentation given by Erik Ohlsen at PV2 in March 2015. Learn real world tools for design and implementation of Permaculture based contracting businesses. Permaculture principles applied to business design. Use the ethics of permaculture as triple bottom line. Create a marketing plan that has a social impact. Imagine being able to make a career out of your passion for Permacultur...

Week 3: It's Tuesday, March 31st, and the first farmers market is coming up in four days. What's Curtis up to? In this episode we are talking about how Curtis maximizes his efforts on the farm by staying organized. And how he is switching his beds over this year to a no-till strategy. This show is the story of urban farmer Curtis Stone. Curtis is an urban farmer who farms on 15,000 sq.ft. in Canad...

Nature’s been using biochar to replenish soil carbon for millennia. Taking our cue from her, we’ll unravel what biochar is and how it works to build long-term soil health. We’ll explore techniques of making your own biochar simply and affordably regardless of where you live. This talk was presented at PV2 in March 2015 by Gloria Flora. Listen to more at permaculturevoices.com/podcast

My guest today is Cherrie Nolden a Masters and Ph. D candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She says "If animals are not managed to maintain vegetation, they are going to destroy the vegetation." Cherrie is an absolute wealth of knowledge when it comes to goats. She combines a lot of academic research with years of practical on the ground experiences with goats. She is going to provide...

Week 2: It's mid-March and the farm is now in what Curtis calls the setup phase. He has started selling some overwintered crops and he is adding to his restaurant customer base. This show is the story of urban farmer Curtis Stone. Curtis is an urban farmer who farms on 15,000 sq.ft. in Canada. He has been farming in an urban setting profitably for 5 years. We are going to follow Curtis on a journe...