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Finding long-term, stable access to land is often the biggest hurdle that urban producers face. Because cities generally have higher property values than rural areas, traditional land ownership is cost prohibitive for most urban producers. In cities, land access is further complicated by high input and administrative costs (e.g., water, electricity, permit costs, etc.), land […]

Note: This article in our Managing Stress series was contributed by Violet Stone, a project coordinator at the Cornell University Small Farms Program and the Northeast SARE professional development coordinator for New York. “One of the hardest things we must do sometimes is to be present to another person's pain without trying to "fix" it, […]

NOTE: The URLs for images found on Flickr are truncated for length. Complete URLs begin with www.flickr.com/photos… . A. Zaitsev / Flickr […/25258027@N02]—Fig. 228.Alton N. Sparks Jr., University of Georgia / Bugwood.org—Fig. 206.Álvaro Reguly / Flickr […/alvaroreguly]—Fig. 3 (groundhog).Andy Murray / Flickr […/andybadger]—Figs. 67, 70.Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren / Flickr […/wildreturn]—Figs. 128, 150.Anita Gould […]

Books & Publications Bentrup, G. 2008. Conservation Buffers: Design Guidelines for Buffers, Corridors, and Greenways. Asheville, NC: United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service Southern Research Station. Available at: www.fs.usda.gov/nac/buffers/index.html Borror, D. J., and R. E. White. 1970. A Field Guide to Insects: America North of Mexico. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Masters, N. 2019. For the […]

Keeping an eye out for new technologies or business opportunities is one way farmers can make their operation more sustainable and adaptable to change. Precision agriculture is a prime example, and others include alternative energy systems, roller crimpers, interseeders and the countless low-cost tools small-scale farmers build to improve efficiency. On the business side, many […]

Sustainable farms strive to maintain a high level of biological diversity across the landscape. This can take many forms, such as agroforestry, cover crop mixes, crop rotation, riparian buffers, pollinator plantings, wildlife habitat, mixed species grazing and integrated crop/livestock systems. There are many possible benefits too, including improvements to water quality and conservation, nutrient cycling […]

Our food system is only sustainable when the health and wellbeing of all those involved in agriculture are taken into account. This means ensuring safe and reasonable workplace conditions for farmworkers, as well as fair compensation and benefits. Many farmers need things like better access to mental and physical health support, childcare and networking opportunities […]

Whether it’s through urban agriculture, food sovereignty work, local marketing or peer networks, farmers can enrich communities and at the same time be strengthened by the connections they maintain with both the general public and with their fellow farmers. Social Sustainability The fourth episode in SARE’s “What is Sustainable Agriculture?” series introduces key components of […]

Promoting animal health and welfare can not only improve animal productivity and lower costs, but there’s also increasing consumer demand for animal products raised in this manner. Some ways to do this include adequate access to both shelter and high-quality pasture, a low-stress environment, good sanitation practices, managed grazing, balanced nutrition that includes vitamins and […]