The Urban Farm Podcast Private feed for Members

Helping agricultural technology startups. In This Podcast: Working at a startup company through the process of growing and its IPO was informative and provided Megan Vollstedt with invaluable insight for helping other entrepreneurs and startups get off the ground. She shares how having resources and mentors can help new companies find a path to a successful launch. She also explains how the progra...

Keeping critters and pests at bay humanely and safely In This Podcast: Dealing with pests in your garden or farm can be overwhelming unless you can change your perspective.  Having her yard become a wildlife habitat gave Theresa Rooney a chance to reconsider what was bringing the small visitors into her space and why they may or may not be welcome. For those wishing to find more humane ways o...

Emphasizing simplicity with self-discovery. In This Podcast: Growing up between two worlds and two lifestyles, Justin Ehrlich realized working behind a desk was not his calling. The Asian influence in his youth, and the environmental awareness he gained from his father’s business, blended naturally into a calling to be an acupuncturist.  He now seeks to help educate and empower about the conn...

Inspiration through film. In This Podcast: She’s had a “greenie” intuition as a youth but spent part of her adulthood pursuing a publishing career and a side venture as a tango dancer, but Antoinette Wilson found herself living in a permaculture-based community for a year and it changed her life.  She partnered up with another community member to write and make documentaries about the lifesty...

Bonus Episode 15: Seed Saving Class February 2018. A chat with an expert on seeds.  In This Bonus Podcast: There is always a bounty of info available in conversations with Bill McDorman. This is the February 2018 episode of a Seed Saving Class - patents, descriptions, regional adaptation, open sourced seeds, and so much more. Join the class! Register anytime for the next event. Register Here...

Making simplified gardening even easier. In This Podcast:  New at gardening, the lackluster results of their first garden could have turned them off, but Jennifer Pratt and her husband decided there was an easier way.  Using their need for a simpler method of spacing seeds in the garden, they designed a guide to do the measuring for them.  This new tool is so easy to use that even M...

Bonus Episode 14: Seed Saving Class January 2018. A chat with an expert on seeds.  In This Bonus Podcast: There is always a bounty of info available in conversations with Bill McDorman. This is the January 2018 episode of a Seed Saving Class - discussing Grain School, original peanuts of South Carolina, inspiring gardeners, broccoli in Alaska and so much more. Join the class! Register anytime...

Spreading the word about healthy and sustainable eating. In This Podcast:  It is easy to notice the conviction of purpose as we hear an update from Ocean Robbins about the principles behind this year’s Food Revolution Summit. He also shares some news about some dietary trends, how food system and food choice awareness is making a difference in many parts of the world. Visit www.urbanfarm.org/...

Using your doctor as a valuable resource. In This Podcast: Having a background in construction, he was not your typical med student, but Dr. Ken Berry used his real-world experience to become a better doctor. Then when he realized he was becoming physically unfit while following the very advice he had been giving his own patients, he questioned his teachings and sought out better answers. He now h...

Bringing awareness of the beauty of nature. In This Podcast: Connecting with nature is so natural to Mary Reynolds, that when life got  busy and bogged her down to the point that she forgot to make it a priority, she actually felt ‘squished’.  Mary’s story of winning the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show was told in the movie Dare to Be Wild. Here we learn more about her special relationsh...

Telling a story of young environmentalists reaching for their dreams. In This Podcast:  Becoming a scriptwriter had been a goal she set to the side while she worked her way into corporate finance law. However, when Vivienne DeCourcy heard the story of a young award winning garden designer’s journey, she found her way back. She shares how searching for a garden design consult then filled her n...

Optimizing the diet for backyard poultry. In This Podcast: Watching a bakery business fail, spending time in the navy on a destroyer, and then selling macaroni & cheese, might not seem like the background of a person managing part of a large poultry and egg business.  However, this is the path that led Frank Bergin to Eggland’s Best and helping them decide to offer their best proprietary...

Reducing food waste in the supply chain. In This Podcast: After years of watching unused raw materials go to waste in his industry of nutraceuticals, Tim Intfen decided to do something about it. He figured out a solution that changes potential waste into back into a resource with value. He shares this unique business idea with us and tells why it can save time, money and nutrient resources. This f...

Bonus Episode 13: Seed Saving Class, November 2017 A chat with an expert on seeds, Bill McDorman. In This Bonus Podcast: There is always a bounty of information available in conversations with Bill McDorman. This is the November 2017 episode with a Seed School Chat Class - continuing the conversation with an in depth discourse on grains and corns, an ancient potato, grain trials, growing all your...

Taking school lunches very seriously. In This Podcast:  When you have a passion for food and teaching and helping your community as well as being creative and you find a group that melds all three, then you are going to find great pleasure in sharing about this group. Chef Molly Beverly tells us about Slow Food USA and their concept of changing our mindset about school lunches. We hear about...

Bonus Episode 12: Kerry Audisho on the Tour De Coops A chat about organizing a tour of backyard chicken farms. In This Bonus Podcast: We chat with Kerry Audisho about an upcoming Tour de Coops in Phoenix, and she helps us understand what this event is and why it is something every city should have. She tells us about how she got involved in running the Tour de Coops and how she is ready to he...

Helping the community plant fruit trees successfully. In This Podcast:  We catch up with Returning Guest Susan Poizner as she shares more about fruit tree care and the training that she offers through her podcasts as well as the courses at Niagara College.  She helps explain why pruning is important, especially when strong weather conditions come.  She has a lot of great information...

Supporting local farmers with supplies and resources. In This Podcast:  Having several years of corporate retail in his resume, and working at a books store, Bill Bezuk was intrigued when he noticed an uptick in the interest in books on raising chickens. He took this insight, combined it with his experience, and eventually opened a “boutique urban farming supply store” in Eugene.  Tailor...

Knowing the joy of being a chicken parent. In This Podcast: Technology was the world he was most familiar with, until Kunal Sampat got introduced to the life of raising chickens.  He shares the story of how he started his flock, and how it did not take long for this to become a passion. He also helps break a few myths about backyard chickens. Kunal has regular tours of his farm to help others...

Helping farmers think INSIDE the box! In This Podcast:  Camping with her father in a old VW Van had a much more of an impact on Brandi DeCarli than her father could have realized. Keeping everything you need for your adventure in one van/box is now what she does for new farms. She tells us how Farm From a Box got started as a way to help communities build their own farms with a tailored packa...

Caring about local communities and their vegetable gardens. In This Podcast: Looking for a group to join so she could make a difference in her community, Barbara Masoner found a local group that wanted to start a garden project in the state capital.  Readjusting their focus after getting turned down, they got support from the mayor and started a project that is still making a difference more...

Bonus Episode 11: Seed Chat October 2017.  A chat with an expert on Seeds, Bill McDorman.  In This Bonus Podcast: This is the October 2017 episode with a Seed School Chat Class - continuing the conversation with some motivational quotes, adjusting for new weather norms, coming back from gardening disasters, and so much more. Bill McDorman is Executive Director of Rocky Mountain Seed Alli...

Turning waste into gold with off-the-shelf, readily available items. In This Podcast: Changing lifestyles to be more sustainable was something that Zach Brooks was willing to do with complete commitment, especially when it seemed fairly easy to do. He semi-retired young enough to realize he could make a difference so he bought some property and is creating a sustainability experiment to help other...

Finding efficient processes to help make farming productive. In This Podcast: It takes a dedicated minimalist to try living without adding new items to the property, and Ben Hartman took this simplistic mindset to most areas of his early adult life. Then when he too a look at his 5-acre farm he realized he could do with less unnecessary stuff and he found it improved his productivity. The lessons...

Putting fresh, organic food within reach of the kitchen counter. In This Podcast: When a millennial has too much time on their hands and is not feeling like they are making a difference, AND they happen to be the kind of person who like to design things, what can possibly happen?  We get to hear why Ryan Agrey is a millennial like that, and how he was motivated to take a game-system-designed...