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Sheep into wool. Wheat into flour. Poop into “peat pots”! Interested in turning crops or livestock into a profitable product for sale? Farmers and ranchers across the country are transforming what they grow and raise into marketable items. But it’s not as easy as it looks. Learn from three who have first-hand experience with success and bumps in the road.

From dude ranching to bed and breakfasts, agritourism is one of the fastest growing tourism sectors and has helped revitalize rural communities all over the U.S. and Europe. It’s also an opportunity to educate a public increasingly interested in how and where their food is produced. Learn the do’s and don’ts from one expert who helped put her county on the tourist map, and from researchers about how best to position rural communities for tourism.

Two experts share state-of-the-art strategies and latest research in biological controls for managing wine grape and apple pests. Hear about the “positive point system” that a group of California wine growers has adopted to measure continuous improvement.

We’ve heard about the decline of honey bees. Mites and other hive pests might be contributing to the problem. New research and on-the-ground strategies are controlling pests using natural, sustainable methods.

Curious about how to make your own fuel to cut costs and save energy? Farmer and researcher pioneers talk about best blends, production strategies, financial considerations and do’s and don’ts of producing biofuel for on- and off-farm use.

How do we grow communities with our natural, local assets? These experts talk about rural development that begins with community-based organizations, local entrepreneurship and farm and ranch businesses that build communities.

Sometimes we just talk to ourselves. How do we talk to others in agriculture about sustainable practices and innovations? Compelling and creative communication is a top priority if we are to advance sustainability to all corners of the country. Cutting-edge researchers are uncovering new ways to reach out.

Cover cropping and reduced tillage are core tenets of sustainable farming. Learn from one of No-Till Farmer magazine’s “No-Till” Innovator award winners—plus latest research about creative strategies for these important sustainable ag techniques.

What’s the latest in non-chemical weed management strategies? This session talks about cropping systems, tillage practices and other, new “eco-weed” and IPM techniques that control nuisance plants naturally.

As energy prices rise, fuel-related costs claim an ever-bigger portion of farm budgets. Learn how farm energy experts, producers and NGOs can work together to manage and improve energy efficiency.

So often we labor alone in our fields. How do we connect with other farmers to share knowledge and experiences? How can we keep our local networks vibrant? Two local leaders share how to get networks started and keep them going by getting the word out.

With honey bees threatened, researchers are looking for long-term solutions. Hear the latest research and learn how to encourage a diverse array of pollinators by planting native species, reducing pesticide use, arranging crops and borders, and other “farmscaping” techniques.

A farm-to-school expert describes how to get off on the right foot when marketing to schools, while a staff member of the New North Florida Cooperative talks about how the cooperative marketed to a larger institution, the Department of Defense’s Food Service Program.

Effectively control disease through soil amendments and new biofumigation techniques using natural materials such as mustard and other brassicas. Hear the latest research and firsthand experience.

Many American cultures are losing their traditions of healthy foods. Hear about an initiative that connects good food with urban communities and high-risk youth, and another that bring nutritious, traditional foods, like “kneel-down bread”, back to Navajo communities.

New, diverse product marketing cooperatives are proving to be profitable venues for farmers with a bounty to sell. Hear the successes and cautionary tales about how best to band together for better marketing of sustainably produced products.

Hear about sustainable small ruminant sustainable production techniques, such as the FAMACHA, which “scores” eyelid color for anemia and parasite control and is an important indicator of herd health. One producer shares her experience with selecting sheep for parasite resistance.

Learn how two states have built support for exemplary research and extension programs, and make your voice heard in this strategizing session. Help SARE steer a course in building vibrant state research, education and extension programs across the country.

Where do we go from here? Share your opinions during this strategizing session, and help SARE steer its most effective course in a growing portfolio of grant-making programs advancing organic agriculture.

Many farmers are thinking about starting a farm- or ranch-based venture, but need more entrepreneurial skills. Come hear about a range of tools that ag educators can use to help would-be entrepreneurs develop successful agriculture-based businesses.

Learn how to combine renewable energy and innovative greenhouse design and siting to grow new, lucrative crops and extend your growing season. Two hands-on experts share their experiences and strategies.

One of the best ways to protect farmland is ensuring it stays a farm. That means bringing in new farmers, and helping pass farmland on to future generations. Three experts share their experience in training and helping new and old farmers and ranchers keep the farm in the family.

Cows have legs. MIG lets them use them – in a way that protects the land and water and cuts feeding costs. Controlled grazing is catching on, putting the fun back in dairy farming and bringing back the next generation of dairy farmers.

A local Kansas expert shares how to beef up your beef business with her work developing and trademarking an all natural-branded meat product line called “Good Natured Family Farms” (It’s featured on the Local Chefs tour!). A researcher shares how to tap niche meat markets.

No longer are no-till and organic at odds. New research efforts are developing no-till organic vegetable and field crops systems that are saving farmers tons of soil and reducing weed control costs.

Feed the soil, not the plants. Although elementary, implementing this first tenet of organic ag takes creative strategies and training. Learn soil-building field techniques and training tactics from trainers, farmers and biologists.

How do you get the most out of cattle grazing? Don’t just turn cattle loose, but manage them using practices that help protect waterways or control noxious weeds. Learn from ranchers and on-the-ground collaborative research by the California Cattle Association, U.S. Forest Service, California Farm Bureau and others.

Solar power distills orchard waste fruit into clean-burning, high-octane fuel to power farm equipment. Recycled solar panels heat a new greenhouse, extending a short growing season and cutting fossil fuel bills. Two innovative farmers share their experiences with affordable renewable energy systems.

In Texas, researchers used systems thinking to find ways to boost productivity, reduce fuel costs and protect declining water supplies in the arid panhandle. In California, researchers have compared the complex ecological and economic consequences of conventional and non-conventional farming systems.

What are the best ways to get started with CSAs and make them work? CSA pioneer Elizabeth Henderson, author of Sharing the Harvest, will share her bounty of knowledge, experience and advice.

By some estimates, retail sales of organic foods are expected to exceed more than $32 billion by 2009. As this market explodes, what are local options for farmers? Navigating the world of organic sales isn’t always easy for farmers and ranchers. Learn the latest market analysis, and how to think globally while marketing locally.

Forests provide many benefits for agriculture: windbreaks, wildlife, extra income from forest products, stream protection and more. Learn about different agroforestry techniques and how an experienced shitake mushroom/medicinal herb producer is farming profitably in forests and integrating trees into farmscapes.

Thought of looking at your farm from an insect’s point of view? Find out how to control insect pests by arranging fields, forests and borders into an insect-managing “farmscape” that helps grow healthier, more productive crops.

A Biocontrol Fungus that Colonizes Roots Better: From Concept to Organic Production, presented by Thomas Bjorkman (New York).

Assessing the Viability of Inland Shrimp Farming in South Central Alabama, presented by Anthoney Deanes (Alabama).

Creating an Agricultural Commission in Your Hometown, presented by Lynda Brushett (New Hampshire).

Diversity & Intensity of Cover Crop Systems: Managing Weed Seed Bank & Soil Health, presented by Ellen Mallory (Maine).

Economic Analysis and Policy Development to Support Multiple Benefits, presented by George Boody (Minnesota).

Economic, Agronomic and Ecological Costs/Benefits of Field Border Management Practices in Agricultural Systems of Mississippi, presented by Wes Burger (Mississippi).

Enhancing Feasibility for Range Poultry Expansion, presented by Anne Fanatico (Arkansas).

Expanding the Value of SARE Project Publications Through Electronic Distribution, presented by Craig Elevitch (Hawaii).

Farm-to-School Lessons from the Wisconsin Homegrown Lunch Project, presented by Doug Wubben (Wisconsin).

Farmer-Led Learning Groups to Mentor Beginning Farmers, presented by Billie Best (Massachusetts).

Ganado Farm Board Agricultural Marketing Study, presented by Teresa Showa (Arizona).

Grafting Rootstocks onto Heirloom and Locally Adapted Tomato Selections to Confer Resistance to Soil Borne Diseases and Increase Nutrient Uptake for Market Gardeners, presented by Mary Peet (North Carolina).

Grazing Management to Improve Riparian Health, presented by Ken Tate (California).

Greenhouse Water Barrier, presented by Ernest Wusstig (Guam).

Harvest Frequency, Yield and Economics of Summer Squash, presented by Karen Strickler (Idaho).

Helping to Institutionalize Organics as a Conservation Practice in the NRCS, presented by Rex Dufour (California).

Hillsdale Winter Harvest Farmers Market, presented by Eamon Molloy (Oregon).

Imperial Stock Ranch Heritage Lamb/Fiber Marketing, presented by Jeanne Carver (Oregon).

Increasing Production in Native Stands of PawPaws; Using Animals to Manage PawPaw Patches, presented by Chris Chmiel (Ohio).

Integrating Conservation Biological Control on Farms: Banking on Beetles in Oregon, presented by Gwendolyn Ellen (Oregon).

Intensive Grazing: A Threat to Water Quality?, presented by Ray Weil (Maryland).

Management Practices for Organic Orchard Nutrition, presented by Curt R. Rom (Arkansas).

Mustard Green Manures for Potato Production, presented by Andy McGuire (Washington).

Novel Methods for Sustainable Control of Gastrointestinal Nematodes in Llamas and Alpacas, presented by Ann Gillespie (Georgia).

Organic Sweet Corn IPM: A 15-Year Project, presented by Ruth Hazzard (Massachusetts).

Partnership for Monitoring Rangeland and Riparian Health in Red Rock Canyon Watershed, presented by John Hays (Arizona).

Partnerships for Sustainable Communities, presented by Bob Zabawa (Alabama).

Reduced Tillage/Living Mulch System Manages Insect Pests, presented by Helen Atthowe (Montana).

Solar Energy for Winter Food Production, presented by Don Bustos (New Mexico).

Strengthening and Sustaining Agriculture on American Indian Lands, presented by Staci Emm (Nevada).

Sustainable Ag Practices and Outreach with Native Populations, presented by Jennifer Miller (Idaho).

Sustainable Year-Round Forage System for Goat Production, presented by Sandra Solaiman (Alabama).

The Small-Scale, Integrated, Self-Sufficient and Sustainable Farm Organism, presented by Henning Sehmsdorf.