Showing 1-20 of 33 results

Transitioning to Organic Production
Transitioning to Organic Production lays out many promising conversion strategies, covering typical organic farming production practices, innovative marketing ideas and federal standards for certified organic crop production.

Understanding and Measuring Social Sustainability
This SARE brief defines social sustainability and illustrates how it can be addressed more clearly in SARE projects. Sample projects and quality of life indicators are provided to help grant-seekers and reviewers think broadly about understanding, measuring and describing the social impacts of research and education projects.
Plain Language Guides for New and Under-Served Producers
These plain language guides cover topics such as farm financing, accessing government programs, harvest practices and marketing. The plain language format makes this material accessible to beginning farmers, immigrants and other under-served audiences. They were produced by New Entry Sustainable Farming Project.

Cover Crop Economics
Cover crops can build soil health, control weeds, conserve moisture, provide grazing opportunities and more. But when do they start to pay for themselves? This analysis looks at the economics behind different management scenarios to determine if cover crops are likely to improve profitability in one, three or five years of use in corn and soybean rotations.

New Release: Cultivating Climate Resilience
Texas ranchers Gary and Sue Price began noticing disruptive changes in the weather about 10 years ago, with dry periods getting drier and hot periods getting hotter. So they began making management decisions that would help their ranch adapt. As a result, when the crippling drought of 2011–2012 arrived, they were able to get by. […]

Cultivating Climate Resilience on Farms and Ranches
This bulletin outlines the new challenges that changing weather patterns pose in agriculture throughout the United States, and what you can do to make your farm more resilient.

Farmers' Guide to Business Structures
Farmers’ Guide to Business Structures describes the fundamentals of sole proprietorships, general partnerships, limited liability companies and C, S and B corporations in straightforward language, to help you choose the best entity for your operation. Selecting the right business entity for your farm is like building the foundation of a house.

How to Conduct Research on Your Farm or Ranch
This 32-page bulletin outlines how to conduct research at the farm level, offering practical tips for both crop and livestock producers, as well as a comprehensive list of more in-depth resources.
Ensuring Sustainable Field Crop Agriculture in the Face of a Changing Climate
This curriculum on sustainable agriculture and climate change can be used with clientele, such as farmer groups. The PowerPoint presentation may be adapted to suit your needs and your region of the country. It contains a written script in the notes section. It has general information relative to all types of agriculture and a few specific resources for field crop agriculture. To help you evaluate the effectiveness of this curriculum with your clientele, the authors have included an evaluation form that you can distribute after your presentation.

Organic Transition
The profit potential of transitioning to organic production—along with other rewards—has farmers, ranchers and food business owners across the country considering the switch. But successfully managing your business through the multi-year transition process requires careful planning. Use Organic Transition: A Business Planner for Farmers, Ranchers and Food Entrepreneurs to develop an actionable business transition plan that is suitable for yourself, your management team or a lender.

Building Sustainable Farms, Ranches and Communities
This guide lists funding opportunities offered by federal programs, and is indispensable for anyone seeking government help to foster their innovative enterprise in forestry and agriculture.

FARMDATA
FARMDATA is an online system for tracking and reporting crop production data, particularly for organic vegetable growers. The system can be used for keeping records on seeding, transplanting, harvest, cover crops, compost, fertilization, irrigation, pest scouting and spraying activities, packing, distribution and customer invoicing. FARMDATA uses smart forms that help with calculations and remember key data.

Farm to Hospital Toolkit
Tools farmers and hospitals can use to increase direct hospital purchases from local producers.

Moving Nursery Producers Toward Sustainable Practices Fact Sheets
These fact sheets discuss alternative containers, marketing and crop selection, alternatives to synthetic herbicides and integrated pest management in commercial nursery plant production.

Guide to Financing Community Supported Farms
This guide outlines alternative, local funding sources that farmers can use to finance their farm business,

Edible Avalon Curriculum
This summer program curriculum teaches youth about local food systems and sustainable agriculture.

Case Studies on Setting Up Microloans
Information for lenders financing new and expanding farm businesses with limited access to capital.
Storage Methods for Ethanol Co-Products
This University of Nebraska video series contains information on the storage and utilization of three unique co-product feeds from the ethanol industry.

Constructing a High Tunnel
This Rutgers University website includes a 61-image demonstration of high tunnel construction, with detailed information on site selection, design, cost and crop management.

Constructing a Low-Cost High Tunnel
Specs, diagrams and photos of high tunnel construction, by Utah State University Cooperative Extension.