Farm Hack: A Community for Farm Innovation

by Kristen Loria Started in 2011 by a team of farmers and engineers from the Northeast, Farm Hack is a project of the National Young Farmers’ Coalition in partnership with the Greenhorns. The start of Farm Hack came with an offer from MIT to host a teaching event that could connect ‘do-gooder’ engineers with farmer’s … Read More

Vegetable Equipment Considerations for New Farmers

by Sara Runkel and Tianna DuPont Equipment is expensive. But often it can pay for itself quickly if you get the right tool for your farm. We would like to share a few considerations and tips we have learned through a recent equipment demonstration at the Seed Farm New Farmer Training and Incubator Program in … Read More

Water Saving Strategies for Your Farm & Garden

by Patricia Brhel It’s been a long, hot summer. July was the hottest month in over a century, and a lot of farmers, from tiny one acre plots to hundreds-of- acre century farms, have been worried about their water supply. It turns out that those who farm using old fashioned or organic principals are faring … Read More

The Right Tool for the Job

By Brad Halm Tools are now and have always been vital to farming: They’re how we interact with the land to get things done. Whether it’s a stirrup hoe or a cultivating tractor, our favorite tools become extensions of our bodies, as we use them again and again. We farmers have a very interesting relationship … Read More

Using Online Surveys and Polls to Connect with Your Clients

by Michelle Podolec Surveys help you gauge what your customers think of your business, and give you the chance to learn more about what they want from you. Online polls can help you gather feedback quickly and easily from your customers. While not appropriate for every business or situation (sometimes paper surveys can get a … Read More

Winter Homework? Take an Online Class!

By Betsy Lamb Winter has arrived!  What can you do with those long evenings?  Learn something new with distance learning! ‘Distance learning’ is the delivery of instruction through electronic means where the instructor and learner are geographically separate.  There are a wide variety of types of distance learning but this article will focus on some … Read More

ZEA2™: Changing the Way We Grow Food

By Michael McDonough I’m an architect working with a team of scientists and engineers to develop a type of Controlled Environment Agriculture that we are calling ZEA2™.  The name might look like an algebra formula to you, but what it stands for could revolutionize the sustainable farming movement. “Zero Energy Agriculture Squared” refers to a … Read More

Do-it-Yourself Farm Fixes

By Michelle Podolec Springtime is just around the corner, with the hustle-bustle of warm weather activity and a chance to hop-to on your long list of outdoor tasks. These last few weeks of winter have us all peeking anxiously out windows, looking for the first break in the weather, and tapping our toes with impatience. However, … Read More

Top Ten iPhone Applications for Small Farmers

By Michelle Striney Welcome to the new ‘Technology on the Farm’ column! We at the Cornell Small Farms Program thought it was about time that we start sharing the latest technology farmers are using, be it newest innovations in farm equipment, record keeping software, or social networking and communication tools such as facebook and twitter. … Read More