Farmcrunch

*Have you ever visited Shelburne Farm? You must! It is stunning and incredible. Come with volunteer Jess Britt and I to check out this tremendous non-profit, educational working farm that is so beautiful it cannot be overstated! ------------ *Do you know where blue cheese comes from? A cow? A goat? A sheep?  Do you know how blue cheese is made?  Meet Kayleigh Boucher, artisan cheesemaker, and lear...

I cannot wait to introduce fellow Farmcrunchers to home and terrace gardening experts with immediate fantastic advice for plant shopping and plant planting.  Get ready to meet Joe Matera of Matera's Nursery in Ridgefield to discuss how to best plant a new tree or hardy shrubs. If you're more of a container gardener, you'll love the advice that Alan Sandberg of Closter's Victori...

Met the engaging and knowledgeable Shay Fisher of Fisher Farm. Learn how to grow carrots, radishes and more with confidence using her expert tips. Additionally: New Chicks alert at Farmcrunch! What it's like to pick them out yourself when confronted with tons of cuteness at JerseyChickens.com here in NJ! Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actua...

Meet Renaissance Man, Don Zwernemann- Fort Lee's community garden designer, town welder, and amazing citrus growing expert!  Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actual farms! Experience it all from a wide range of chicken lovers, veggie enthusiasts and other creative outdoor endeavors.

Master Gardener Karen Rutberg returns to Farmcrunch to share her tips for growing veggies, flowers and pollinators from seed, starting the process indoors.  Then Marc and I discuss how our hens are faring during this insanely cold weather. Spoiler Alert: They are doing just dandy. Then we cover how awesome our new Chickens magazine is and all the awesome stuff we learn/confirm from reading it! Bac...

For over 600,000 people, the arrival of the Baker Creek Heirloom Seed catalog in your mailbox is an event! Nobody can make you drool over seeds more than these guys. With stunning photos of glorious new plants and veg to grow every year, honestly you shouldn't live without it! On this episode we visit with horticulture rock star John Lenz who tells us all the things we want and need to know a...

For over 600,000 people, the arrival of the Baker Creek Heirloom Seed catalog in your mailbox is an event! Nobody can make you drool over seeds more than these guys. With stunning photos of glorious new plants and veg to grow every year, honestly you shouldn't live without it! On this episode we visit with horticulture rock star John Lenz who tells us all the things we want and need to know a...

Is there such a thing as too much Christmas? Not for the people you are going to meet on today's episode who have a ton of ideas about how to go all out- all the way out- for the holidays. Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actual farms! Experience it all from a wide range of chicken lovers, veggie enthusiasts and other creative outdoor endeavo...

Too much to discuss!  Styling the backyard for Fall with gorgeous varieties of cabbage and astors. Leave the leaves for all the good things overwintering in your yard! Seed saving info. Wrapping terrace perennials for the cold. Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actual farms! Experience it all from a wide range of chicken lovers, veggie enthusiasts...

Looking for a family trip where everyone is excited, we booked a Walking Tour through the hills, dales, farmland and woods of the Cotswolds. Sheep, cows, pheasants and taverns abound in this most rustic and beautiful of places. Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actual farms! Experience it all from a wide range of chicken lovers, veggie enthusiasts...

If you're going to be carving your pumpkin for Halloween, TREAT yourself to a yummy snack! Save the seeds from your jack-o-lantern and make a sweet or savory delight with tips from Tamara Bigelow! Looking for a fun Fall outing that's super close to home? Check out the magical Rockland Community Farm where there's always something fun to do! Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really c...

Join me on a visit to the King Barn Dairy Mooseum to learn about dairy farming! Learn about the "hayday" of farming in Montgomery County, MD- where there were over 600 farms back in the 1930's- to today where only 2 farms still remain. Did you know that dogs helped with the dairy farming? Learn about Astronaut, the 2,640 lb bull who changed dairy farming across the country (and made...

Meet Tamara Bigelow, Culinary Consultant for brands like Campbell's Soup and Prego Pasta Sauce. In this episode, Tamara shows us how the simplest of herbs and veg, combined with a couple in-season ingredients and pantry staples, can make fabulous, fresh meals. Today we'll make Kale Salad, Tabouli, Peach Caprese and Tzatziki. Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens...

Winning the Cuteness Award of the Year, join us as we visit and snuggle with baby goats at The Bubbly Goat farm. They are absolutely adorable and quite naughty too. They will climb all over you- nibbling on your earrings, clothes and shoelaces if you aren't constantly vigilant! Learn all about what it's like to have a mini goat farm and what it takes to care for these beyond adorable lit...

This is the weekend of all weekends! While Branch Brook Park in Newark is always amazing, this weekend is the Cherry Blossom Festival- all 5300 Japanese Cherry Blossom trees are at their magnificent peak. Pink petal explosions everywhere. DC- don't be jealous. Then we will discuss the hard-hitting question: With the price of eggs these days, should I get my own chickens??? (Answer: Heck yeah!...

Join me on a trip to one of NJ's famous shopping experiences- Patel Brothers. Lucky for you, I have my friend Shilpa Tikekar as our food guide, sharing her favorite fruits and vegetables from her home country of India. We will be trying all kinds of new fresh produce that you would never see in your typical markets. Learn about "roadside snacks", savory masalas, and Indian dishes th...

In this action-packed episode we go into the grow rooms of Fat Caps Gourmet Mushrooms. We learn about a variety of mushrooms from Peter Mahal and what it takes to grow them: hint- no backyard required!  Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actual farms! Experience it all from a wide range of chicken lovers, veggie enthusiasts and other creative outdoo...

Just because cold weather is upon us, doesn't mean we must give up our terrace plants! We can overwinter some of the hardy ones, enjoying them year-round, and have them ready for an early Spring debut. Meet Alex Koslow and Amy Gordon, apartment residents and terrace gardeners, who share their tips and tricks to making seasonal growing into a year-round experience! Backyard Chickens! Urban Far...

Are you suddenly thinking more about mushrooms lately and seeing mushroom products all over the place? Are you curious to know more about fabulous fungi; their health benefits, how people are using them as a meat substitute, and why people are putting them... in their chocolate?! If so, do we have a show for you! Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and a...

Ever been to a garlic festival? This was my first time. Meet really interesting people at the Hudson Valley Garlic Festival including: *Kevin, purveyor of Black Garlic. Learn what black garlic is, how he makes it, and how a robber became Employee #1!   https://www.myonsemiro.com/ *Farmers Lisha & Shawna Lifson of Lifson Garlic Farm.  https://lifsongarlicfarm.square.site/ *Courtney Churchill of...

Met one of my favorite people, Silvio Mazzarese, a mushroom hunting guide, jewelry designer and teacher and hobby farmer. Today we will learn all about caring for sheep, chickens, and guinea fowl. We'll also learn about living in a yurt year-round with your whole family in Northern Vermont. Sooo much to unpack here! Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plo...

Meet Ryan Sugarman of Sugarman Farm! Ryan has an incredible personal story of becoming a 20-acre farm owner here in NJ without a high school degree and an uncertain career path ahead of him back in his teens. Learn from him what it's like to be in charge of 3000 egg laying hens! (Hint: No Thanksgiving Day off for him.) Listen to the challenges of having to pick veg in the dark of night. Backy...

Meet Sue Ferrari, Exec Dir of Rockland Farm Alliance, who shares the magic of the 25-acre Cropsey Farm in New City, NY. Learn about kid's camp, their cut-flower garden, the adorable farm animals (ducks, pig, goats, turkeys, chickens), sip & stem classes and the awesome events taking place here. Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actual farm...

It's a busy day at the Montclair Community Farm in Montclair, NJ! There are chickens who are letting kids hold them! Seedlings for sale for your yard! Bee hives to tend- and a looooong ladder you want to hear about! Join us as we experience the whole thing with Farmer Lana! Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots and actual farms! Experience it all from...

Talk about Urban Farming! One ear hears chickens, the other hears trucks! Closter Farm & Livestock offers a piece of farm heaven in Bergen County, NJ. Located only 15 minutes from NYC, we learn about raising broiler chickens,  a delightful variety of veggies, classes and more that make the heart flutter with joy! Backyard Chickens! Urban Farming! Really cool community gardens, backyard plots a...