Kevin Longnecker pulling a hay wagon ride.
Photo courtesy of Long Neck Pumpkin Farm
by Gail March Yerke
It’s early November and the Schuett family has gathered around the kitchen table to review the past season at their pumpkin farm in southeastern Wisconsin. (more…)
High school sweethearts Teresa and Terry Lorensen stand in front of a selection of Bloom Pumpkin Patch’s pre-picked pumpkin products.
by Enrico Villamaino
Farmers are slaves to their seasons. They have to fit an entire year’s worth of work into a time period that is, more often than not, considerably less than a calendar year. If you ask a farmer about her season, you’ll likely get a very wordy and thoughtful answer. (more…)
Lowell, Dawson and Delvin Yoder represent three generations of the Yoder family that work their farm. “We try not to put all of our eggs in one basket and serve several different high value, niche markets,” Lowell said.
Photos by Rebecca Jackson
by Rebecca Jackson
A farm founded on faith and hard work five generations ago by a family near the central Virginia community of Rustburg stays competitive in the agriculture market today by wedding tradition with contemporary marketing strategies and products for today’s consumers hungry for the back-to-the-land experience. (more…)
Russ and Sarah Lunstrum saw their opportunity to grow in Boise as “farming kismet.”
by Courtney Llewellyn
BOISE, IDAHO – Cityscapes often bring up visions of tall buildings, cement sidewalks and lots of cars. Rarely does that first imagining include green oases dotted with a rainbow-hued assortment of flowers. But that’s what Dream Farm Flowers brings to Boise. (more…)
Todd and Rebecca Ulizio have owned and operated Two Bear Farm in northern Montana for 12 years.
Photos courtesy of Two Bear Farm
by Enrico Villamaino
Since 2007, Two Bear Farm, located in Whitefish, MT, has been providing high quality, healthy, nutritious vegetables to its community while also focusing on improving soil health, wildlife habitat and serving as good land stewards in general. (more…)
Performer Gypsy Geoff performs at the Bay View South Shore Farmers Market.
Photo courtesy of BVSS Farmers Market
by Gail March Yerke
Competition. Even farm markets are feeling the pinch as more consumers want to know where their food comes from and communities across the country add their own markets. The USDA’s most recent National Count of Farmers Market Directory reports an increase of over 4,000 such markets nationwide in the past 10 years. (more…)
Color theory – specifically the color wheel – can be used to display fruits and vegetables in different ways.
by Courtney Llewellyn
If you sell anything, you may intuitively know the basics of marketing: branding your product, articulating why people should buy from you, having appropriate pricing, knowing your target customer and figuring out how they will find out about your farm. (more…)
by Tamara Scully
Surveys suggest that an increasing percentage of greenhouse growers are utilizing biocontrols to combat pest issues. An informal survey of New York state growers found that 40% were using insecticides alone to control fungus gnat. (more…)
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Ever-changing tax codes challenge business owners, including growers. That’s why AmericanHort recently presented “Cracking the Code on Taxes that Affect Your Green Industry Business.” (more…)
Daemon Coughlin strives to offer the appropriate stock for the nursery’s Zone 4 location, and said some of the popular trees people successfully grow include hardy redbuds, maples and oaks.
Photos by Sally Colby
by Sally Colby
Although Daemon Coughlin grew up in the nursery business his parents started 40 years ago, he didn’t necessarily see that as his future. But after earning a degree in landscape design from South Dakota State University, he’s back. (more…)
Market Manager Caitlyn White works with one of the market’s longest-running vendors, Cindy Chapman. The market is open three days a week to allow vendors to bring fresh-from-the-field product harvested that morning.
Photo by Gail March Yerke
by Gail March Yerke
Whether it’s a birthday or an anniversary, the 100-year mark is a special reason to celebrate. That’s the case for the West Allis Farmers Market, the metropolitan Milwaukee area’s largest open-air farm market in continuous operation since 1919. (more…)
by Karen Van Wyk
Rick and Michelle Grosek, the owners of Bear Butte Gardens in Sturgis, SD, sprouted the business from scratch. Simple family living has grown into a certified organic vegetable and meat farm. (more…)
