Learn about Mike’s family’s farming heritage, which came to the US from Italy with his great-grandfather and how Mike grew up with a more diverse farm experience than most of us. Mike’s early start in farming served him well as he studied environmental science in college and went on to do agricultural research and vegetable, dairy sheep and livestock farming. Land access and farm business planning are the areas Mike became interested in early on. He talks about his and his wife’s journey through finding their own piece of property and how this affected his drive to help others trying to access land. Hear, too, about how Mike came to work with Land for Good and the University of Vermont Extension Farm Viability Program. You’ll definitely want to listen to the top business mistakes that small-scale farmers are making and Mike’s advice to fix those! Hear about maple syrup experiences that Mike had as a kid that helped to form his fascination with sugaring: one in a sugar house and one at a pancake restaurant. He explains the process of sugaring, which started with Indigenous traditional knowledge. Listen to the sap-harvesting challenges presented from year to year as our weather becomes less predictable. Finally, Mike talks about three pieces of equipment that have made it possible for him to be a “part-time” sugarmaker and some grants that have helped with those purchases. A note from Mike: Even though I am the main person running the operation, my wife and sons have always been a part of sugaring. In particular, they have always helped tap trees. And since the boys were in middle school, Margo and Elijah and Caleb have actually done most of the tapping. Elijah has even come home from college to help. Margo has also often joined me in the sugarhouse to help with boiling and bottling. Links from this episode: Land for Good
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Episode 87: Ron Bittner
Entomologist and farmer Ron Bittner talks pollinators and soil health This conversation with Ron Bittner will help you make the connection between crop pollination, water conservation and soil health in a way you probably haven’t before. Learn about how Ron’s interest in insects—specifically the alfalfa leafcutting bee—has taken him around the US and all the way to Australia. Hear about the beginnings of Ron’s small vineyard, which he operates with his wife, daughter and a small crew and why this location in Caldwell, Idaho, is ideal for growing wine grapes. Ron also talks about his farm’s certifications: Salmon Safe, Bee Friendly Farming and LIVE. Ron’s involvement with the nonprofit Pollinator Partnership and continued research on pollinator populations in his area keep him involved with some of the 4,000 native bees in the US. Let his passion for pollinators get you excited about how to attract and protect these creatures on your own property. Links from this episode: Hobby Farms Presents: Growing Good podcast episode with Sara Wittenburg Pollinator Partnership website iNaturalist citizen science app
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Episode 86: Panha Suon
Cambodian agroecology educator Panha Suon talks with Hobby Farms Presents: Growing Good podcast host Lisa Munniksma about farming in Cambodia, from climate to crops and the challenges that farmers are facing there. Listen to how Panha became involved in agroecology and why he’s dedicated to educating others about the impact human activities have on the environment, particularly in a less-industrialized country like Cambodia. Hear about Dassatek—meaning to awaken in Khmer—the project that Panha is developing to train Cambodian youth in agroecology. He talks about what motivates young people in his country and how he sees Dassatek appealing to them, including through an apprenticeship and a small seed fund to start their own agroecology project. Panha also talks about the social business enterprise model, as opposed to structuring Dassotek as a nonprofit or for-profit entity. Learn about Panha’s 3-year homestead-building plan using natural building methods and how this suits Cambodia’s climate. He offers his advice for building your own earthen structure, focusing on using what you have on hand. Listen to the very end to hear about Panha’s favorite traditional Cambodian farm meal! Links from this episode: Dassatek on Facebook Dassatek on LinkedIn
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Episode 85: Lewis Hughes
Lewis Hughes, land steward and local-food distribution pro Hear about Lewis Hughes’s journey into farming, from conventional pig and corn farms to international agricultural research to organic farming and cooperative farming. His vast experience in the farming world set him up to be able to work with small-scale farmers in distributing their products to wider markets. Learn about the What Chefs Want (formerly called Creation Gardens) food distributor and its local-foods procurement arm, Local Food Connection. Lewis explains how a small-scale grower in Northeast Ohio might typically only be able to distribute their food to a farmers market or local food hub and how What Chefs Want can now help them sell throughout the Midwest and beyond. He talks about the grant funding (USDA Local Food Purchase Assistance, USDA Local Food for Schools and others) that has helped rapidly build capacity and infrastructure in the local food system and positively impact farmers and consumers. Take Lewis’s best advice for how you, as a small-scale farmer, can make the step from selling at a farmers market to selling to a food hub, with the potential to bring your full-time-farming dream into reality. Finally, Lewis talks about his new 13-acre property in Michigan and his plans to develop a “micro-farm” that relies on season extension and a focused crop plan. Links from this episode: Local Food Connection website Hobby Farms Presents: Growing Good episode # 67 with Ben Hartman
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Episode 84: Nasuha Lenuh
Small-scale farmer and entrepreneur Nasuha Lenuh — nicknamed R — talks about the tree crops grown in her region, the southern part of Thailand. Hear about her family’s tree crops, from rubber to durian fruit, and how R has chosen her own path in developing Rganic Farm, including herbs, salad greens and edible flowers. R shares this journey, being honest about her family’s and community’s feelings about her attempt at growing crops that others just aren’t attempting in this area. R talks about her elevated raised beds, which she said go together like Legos so she can move them as the durian tree crops around them grow tall. She also talks about her experience as a woman farmer in Thailand and why this profession is important to her. Based on her experience of growing temperate-climate crops in a tropical climate, R explains a secret of her success: patience in soil building. Hear about the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative, hosted by the US State Department, which awarded R a fellowship that brought her to the US to study food systems (and then allowed the Hobby Farms Presents: Growing Good host Lisa Munniksma to visit Thailand through a reciprocal fellowship). R explains Kotatuera Basar Kita, the YSEALI project she’s working on now, to develop farmers and bring an American-style farmers market to her community in Yala, Thailand. R and Lisa also talk about what it’s been like to work together on this project both in the U.S. and in Thailand. Links from this episode: Rganic Farm on Facebook Rganic Farm on Instagram
Hobby Farms Presents: Growing Good is a podcast with and about hobby farmers, small-scale farmers and sustainable farmers. More than that, it’s about the important work these folks are doing for themselves, their families and their communities on and off the farm. Each episode, host Lisa Munniksma sits down to chat with someone doing the good work to discuss how they started, what they're doing now, and what drives them to keep growing. (A presentation of Hobby Farms® magazine, an EG Media company.)
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