The Urban Farm Podcast Private feed for Members

Renewing Our Relationships with Bugs. In This Podcast: Wait…Don’t step on that bug!  Vicki Hird introduces us to the fascinating world of bugs, showing us a whole new way to think about our insect and invertebrate friends.  She invites us to look a little closer so we can begin to appreciate bugs not only for the many essential services they perform, but also for the amazing diversity th...

A chat with Jenny Beasley.   In This Garden Chat: Jenny Beasley talks about her 12 years working with Heart for the City Community Garden in Arizona.  Grown from nothing more than a plot of dirt and a desire to help others, the garden is now a safe space where people exchange food and knowledge with neighbors from other cultures.  Jenny recalls the work it took to get the garden off...

655: Culinary & Aromatic Herbs. A Chat with an Expert on Seeds. In This Podcast: This is the October 2021 Seed Saving Class with Bill McDorman discussing herbs. A garden without herbs is like ice cream without hot fudge. Herbs enhance any meal, and drinking teas made from herbs is healing and medicinal.  They can be perennial and annual allowing for many different planting opportunities,...

Building a Network of Neighborhood Compost Hubs. Do good and earn a profit? Sign us up!  Alyssa Brodsky explains Food2Soil, a program in San Diego that creates soil farmers, people who get paid for turning food scraps from homes and restaurants into rich compost.  She passionately describes how the program works, how she got involved, and the many ways the program has positively impacted...

A Farmer Friday Reflection by Greg Peterson. In This Farmer Friday Podcast on Starting Fresh in 2022: Greg takes a few minutes at the beginning of this new year to acknowledge the challenges of the last couple of years and to highlight the importance of growing our own food.  He expresses gratitude for you, the Urban Farm community, and talks about ways we can support each other.  Then h...

Working to increase awareness about healthy food and personal health. In This Podcast: Shannon Owen shares the joys and struggles of starting a new farm business with her husband, Chris.  They saw a need in their community and decided to help by growing microgreens in their basement.  Shannon reveals the magic that happens when they take their greens out into the community, and she descr...

A chat with Raymond Jess.   In This Garden Chat: Farmer Greg talks with Raymond Jess and Janis Norton, from the Urban Farm, about a multitude of variations on the traditional garden box.  They share their own experiences and discuss the unique advantages of each type of bed, covering topics such as how they work, how to set them up, and how to care for them.  Raymond gives us a peek...

Working Toward Bee Conservation and Biodiversity in Urban Areas. In This Podcast: Jennifer Foltz-Sweat opens our eyes to the wide world of bees.  By now many of us have heard that bees are a crucial element of the environment, but what should we do with that knowledge?  Jennifer explains easy things we can do to attract bees to our garden and warns us what not to do.  She gives upli...

Growing Compact and Bountiful Gardens in the Smallest of Spaces In This Podcast: Jennifer McGuinness’ contagious enthusiasm for gardening will have you pining to grow something.  No space? No problem!  Jen has found creative ways to grow food in small spaces.  She gives us a taste of the small space gardening projects we’ll find in her new book and she shares the joy she found in wr...

Returning to Living As We Were Designed. In This Podcast: Listen as Tony Horn shows us where to look and what to do to rediscover peace in our lives.  Tony shares his key definition of peace and his vision of a beautiful world where humans are once again living as nature intended.   He explains that the biggest human struggles we face today have surfaced recently and are of our own...

Exploring Solutions to Current Water Challenges for Farming. In This Podcast: Seth Siegel is passionate about tackling the world’s water problems before they get to crisis level.   He explains the practical steps necessary to put into practice the solutions he has gathered from around the world.  Agriculture is one of the largest consumers of water, but most crops are watered using...

646: Loving Those Legumes. A Chat with an Expert on Seeds. In This Podcast: This is the October 2021 Seed Saving Class with Bill McDorman discussing legumes.  Beans and peas are great to eat and also great for your soil. Incorporating them into your garden rotation is smart and delicious. Pollinators also love legumes so it's a win-win all around. Plant them along a wall or fence for a beauti...

A Farmer Friday Interview with Alyssa Brodsky. In This Farmer Friday Podcast on Composting for Your Neighbors: Have you tried composting food scraps, only to give up because you did not generate enough waste to be successful?  Alyssa Brodsky shares details about a composting program that solves this problem.  Residential participants learn how to collect local neighborhood waste and turn...

A chat with Christy Wilhelmi.   You’ll enjoy Christy Wilhelmi’s contagious enthusiasm for the cooler planting seasons as she explains how to increase your chance of success by planting the right crop in the right season.  Christy covers it all, from the basics of what “in season” actually means, to the specifics of which crops do well in cooler temperatures.  Hear why fall is her fa...

643: Nifty Nightshades. This is the September 2021 Seed Saving Class with Bill McDorman discussing nightshades.  We are so glad the deadly nightshades aren’t!  Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and tomatillos.  Easy to save the seeds and so many reasons to.  And the good news is that these plants are self-pollinating so no worries about your plants “getting crossed up.”  Everyon...

Motivating People Into Action to Protect Our Ecosystems. In This Podcast: Jeffrey Smith sounds the alarm about the devastating harm that can be caused by genetic engineering.  He explains how GMO’s have the potential to destroy entire microbiomes, and he describes the serious negative effects on people, pets and the environment.  Discover the first step Jeffrey recommends we all take to...

A Farmer Friday Interview with Christy Wilhelmi. In This Farmer Friday Podcast on Garden Soil Prep for Success: Christy Wilhelmi returns to the Urban Farm, this time to talk about keeping life healthy below the ground as well as above it.  Healthy soil is all about healthy microbes, and Christy shares her special recipes for feeding them.  Hear why worm castings are a gardener’s secret w...

Focusing on Leveraging Micro Landscapes into Ecosystem Changes. In This Podcast: Zach Loeks encourages each of us to transform our human habitat by focusing on one small section of landscape at a time.  He believes that changes are most successful when they are manageable, and he reminds us that positive change will naturally grow and spread.  Zach paints a beautiful picture of “edible b...

A Farmer Friday Interview with Nicole Gennetta. In This Farmer Friday Podcast on Keeping Bees: Nicole Gennetta, a Master Beekeeper, sets us on the path to successful beekeeping by sharing the 5 steps she recommends beginners take before getting any bees.  She tells how to determine if bees are legal on your property, and she recommends beginners learn all they can about beekeeping before maki...

A chat with Kari Spencer.   In This Garden Chat: Great gardeners seem to know all the rules - but the very best gardener is the one who wrote the rules. She is Mother Nature and has no equal. Her systems and regenerative cycles CAN be replicated in our own gardens and food forests to help them be amazingly resilient. Permaculture is the best way to start and it can make your gardening much ea...

A Farmer Friday Interview with Christy Wilhemi. In This Farmer Friday Podcast on Growing Great Berries: Christy Wilhelmi helps us appreciate the potential of berries in our gardens and urban farms. She breaks down the different varieties of berries and why to choose different types for your own climate and harvest goals.  We learn a bit about why some berries are better in containers, and som...

636: How to let your garden go to seed. In This Podcast: This is the August 2021 Seed Saving Class with Bill McDorman discussing brassicas.  Take the best seeds from this year’s garden and save them for the next. When you adapt and save seeds from plants that were hardy, and exhibited characteristics you like (disease and insect resistance for example) those seeds will work better in your gar...

A Farmer Friday Interview with Vicki Hird. In This Farmer Friday Podcast on Rebugging Your Farm and Garden: Vicki Hird reminds us that it is possible to have bugs without having a bug problem.  In fact, when it comes to bugs, the more you have in your garden the better!  Vicki provides information about the beneficial roles that bugs play and she tells how to nurture and protect them.&nb...

Turning Homesteading Skills Into a New Business Venture. In This Podcast: Anyone who has ever had chickens knows that feeding poultry is a messy business.  Erik Diedrichsen found a better way, and in the process, he found his way into a new business venture.  Erik shares his experience of growing a product from idea to market and explains what he believes it takes to be a successful inve...

A Farmer Friday Interview with Mike Biltonen. In This Farmer Friday Podcast on Soil Is Not Dirt: Though the words are often used interchangeably, soil and dirt are not the same thing.  Mike Biltonen explains that we must know the distinction before we can truly appreciate the treasure that is our soil.  Once we realize its true worth, we will want to nurture and protect this most valuabl...