The Rookie Farmer Podcast

In this episode of the Rookie Farmer Podcast, Alec and Richard get real about the highs and lows of peak summer farming: from hitting a $3,000 sales milestone at the farmers market to a van breakdown that forced a last-minute scramble to getting better with farming techniques enough to squeeze in a yearly beach trip. Click here to learn more about farmer Richard and Sun and Soil Farm.   Click here...

In this episode, host Alec sits down with James Clarke of Clarke's Greens in San Antonio, Texas for the longest conversation in Rookie Farmer Podcast history...and it's packed with gold. James breaks down his journey from restaurant manager to full-time urban market farmer, sharing the real numbers, hard-won strategies, and honest advice that most courses won't tell you. Click here to learn more a...

Alec Smith sits down with Wesley Palmer, former seed rep at Johnny's Selected Seeds turned farm manager at Quercus, a stunning 3,800-acre ranch resort in Gay, Georgia. Wesley and Alec talk about a "root-to-petal" approach to farming and eating and how it can unlock surprising new revenue streams, and why building deeper relationships with chefs, customers, and your farming community might be the m...

Join Alec and Richard for another blog episode as the season shifts into full summer mode and a major new chapter begins. Alec breaks down the real numbers and unexpected chaos of launching a second farmers market, from doubling his harvest load to scrambling for containers, tables, and even a delivery van. Richard shares how the Jang seeder transformed his carrot game, why growing potatoes alongs...

In this episode, host Alec reconnects with previous guest Gabby Fultz of Dusty Dog Gardens in Durango, Colorado, for a raw, honest look at what her year 2 of farming actually looked like. Click here to learn more about farmer Gabby and Dusty Dog Gardens. Click here to check out farmer Alec and Crop Culture Farm. Click here to shop on Modern Grower with Alec's affiliate link.  Subscribe for more co...

This episode, the tables are turned as Alec sits in the hot seat as guest Chett Clayton of Hillside Harvest Farm takes over the interview ahead of his upcoming agricultural conference talk on bootstrapping a farm from the ground up. Together, they pull back the curtain on the raw realities of small-scale market gardening: from leasing land with existing infrastructure and managing startup expenses...

In this episode, Alec and Richard from Sun and Soil Farm catch you up on everything happening at their small-scale market gardens this spring: from navigating one of the driest seasons in recent memory, to discovering they're now growing way more food than one farmers market can handle. They dole out some real talk about pricing produce confidently, building financial resilience as a small farm bu...

In this episode, we sit down with Jared Sapach of Ruben's Roots in Northwest Saskatchewan, where the frost-free growing window is just 100 days and large-scale grain farms stretch for thousands of acres. Jared breaks down the real numbers behind his operation, including how his quarter-acre market garden can realistically target $50,000+ per acre in gross revenue — dwarfing the returns of conventi...

In this lookback episode of the Rookie Farmer Podcast, host Alec welcomes a returning guest, Colton Simpson of Simpson's Market Garden in White Plains, Maryland. Colton shares the contrast between his optimism and the harsh challenges of running a farm business while breaking new ground and starting a new farm location. He also shares his strategies on how he approaches retailers and how he nudges...

In this farm blog episode, Alec of Crop Culture Farm and Richard of Sun and Soil Farm talk about how they fared growing their crops in spring and how they're preparing for the summer growing season.  Click here to learn more about farmer Richard and Sun and Soil Farm.   Click here to check out farmer Alec and Crop Culture Farm. Click here to shop on Modern Grower with Alec's affiliate link.  Subsc...

In this episode, rookie farmer Alec Smith sits down with chef-turned-farmer Cory Babb of Firelight Farm in Arkansas, who built a thriving market garden business after 15 years in the restaurant industry. Cory shares how he scaled from a handful of caterpillar tunnels to over an acre of no-till production, diversified his income through value-added products like pickled carrots and cowboy candy, an...

Ever feel like land ownership is such a far-fetched goal that most of the time feels a little too impossible? Four Georgia farmers have an answer: running a cooperative farm. In this episode, Alec sits down with Monica Ponce, greenhouse manager and one of four worker-owners at Love Is Love Cooperative Farm in Georgia, to unpack how their worker-owned cooperative went from breaking ground in 2021 t...

In this episode of the Rookie Farmer Podcast, rookie farmers Alec and Richard pull back the curtain on their real farm financials for 2025: their gross sales, net profit, biggest expenses, and what they plan on doing differently this coming season. Tune in to learn how two small farms are using data, crop planning, and the right tools (including an honest review of the Jang seeder!) to set themsel...

In this episode, host Alec talks to farmer Peter Lee about how he built a thriving market garden in rural Ireland serving just 700 people, proving you don't need a massive market to succeed. Peter shares challenges of Irish growing conditions—from polytunnel potatoes harvested in May to slow-growing winter greens—and how he leveraged farm mentorship to scale from backyard hobby to profitable ventu...

In this episode of The Rookie Farmer Podcast, host Alec Smith welcomes farmer Jill Duncan of Loving Roots Urban Farm as she shares her journey from renting farm land in the city to owning a thriving 1/3-acre market garden: growing on two farms at the same time, keeping her customer base, and the growing pains of moving to a new location. She also talks about how she grows lettuce year-round, build...

While "winter growing" might conjure up images of heated high tunnels, covered beds, and doing wash pack in freezing water, you might just be surprised that that's not all there is to it! In this farm blog episode, host Alec of Crop Culture Farm is joined by farmer Richard from Sun and Soil Farm to talk about the growing-related and non-growing -related realities of winter farming: from timing you...

In this episode, we dive into some insider secrets to farmers market success courtesy of Brian Strickland, Director of the Athens Farmers Market. Brian and host Alec dig into why working at an established farm first can save you thousands of dollars, how to choose the right market for your scale, and the presentation tactics that make or break your booth. Brian shares the hard-won wisdom that help...

In this episode, we talk to Patrick Samuels of Sunnyside Egg Co. as he shares how he scaled from 50 backyard chickens to 7,000 birds across multiple farms in just 6 months—all while staying true to regenerative principles. Not only that, we also uncover the shocking truth about what "pasture raised" really means in the commercial egg industry, why the co-op model crushes the solo farmer approach,...

We're mixing it up in this new farm blog episode as host Alec welcomes a returning guest, Richard from Sun & Soil Farm, for an unfiltered conversation about the challenges and successes they've had this past growing season. They touch on no-till practices, which crops are absolute winners (and losers), how high tunnels changed everything, and the honest truth about scaling production when you're g...

In this episode, farmer Alec welcomes pesticide scientist-turned-citrus farmer Herb Young of Squeeze Citrus to discuss why and how regenerative farming practices produce food that's 3-8 times more nutrient-dense than conventional produce. Herb talks about their citrus products' lab results, practical soil-building techniques, and why feeding soil microbes is more important than fertilizing plants....

In this episode, Rookie Farmer Alec Smith welcomes herb farmer Emily Erickson Mills as she shares how she transformed her passion for herbalism into a thriving farm business specializing in medicinal herbs and value-added goods like hydrosols, teas, and beauty products. She breaks down the realistic challenges and opportunities of adding herbal products to your farm operation, from processing infr...

Coming in with a new farm blog episode with Alec Smith as he shares their experience transitioning into their first full-time winter season! He talks about the real challenges of scaling up production and their favorite fall crops (including some surprising off-season winners). Things also get real as Alec talks about the real-life impacts of government funding cuts on food access programs, both t...

In this episode, farmer Alec sits down with Krisztian Varsa, Director of Farms Fund at the Conservation Fund and Marc Bernard of Rustic Road Farm in Illinois to shed light on how the Conservation Fund is revolutionizing farmland access for next-generation farmers through their innovative lease-to-own program. Chef-turned-farmer Marc Bernard shares how they scaled their farm from 5 acres to 30 acre...

In this episode of the Rookie Farmer Podcast, we're talking to farmer Steven Beltram of TendWell Farm and Roland McReynolds, Executive Director of Carolina Farm Stewards Association to walk us through the harsh reality facing Western North Carolina farmers one year after Hurricane Helene devastated their communities. Steven and Roland shed light on the untold story of agricultural disaster, failed...

In this episode, farmer Alec shares the reality of transitioning to full-time farming, including the mental health challenges and day-to-day grind that farmers rarely talk about. He gives us an update of how his summer went: what sold well, what new crop he tried, and the pricey mistakes he made with tomatoes, peppers, and summer squash. Click here to check out farmer Alec and Crop Culture Farm. S...