The seed catalogs are coming in. Last night I enjoyed a cup of tea and a good look through the Seed Savers catalog, one of my favorite seed companies. Seed Savers isn’t just my favorite because of all of the amazing seeds that they offer, but also because their non-profit business plan is amazing! To […]

Many times networking can be hard for rural folk. Most of us are trying to get away from the hustle and bustle…away from all the people. We hole up on our property with our gardens and our animals and go into town once a week to get the essentials. But the funny thing is, that […]

Early last winter we had the good fortune to have our mentors and friends Matthias and Andrea Reisen of Healing Spirits Herb Farm and Education Center come to our home and farm for a visit. Matthias and Andrea were pioneers of medicinal herb farming back in the 1980s when very few people in the United […]

Excerpted from Homemade For Sale by Lisa Kivirist and John Ivanko   Hosting Private Product Parties If your state permits it, another option may be to host a private “product party” along the lines of a Pampered Chef or Tupperware gathering. Invite over your friends, neighbors and other community members in your target market for a private […]

When Chris Chmiel leaves his farm in southern Ohio for the weekly drive to the farmers’ market, he brings along blocks of his handmade goat cheese and jars of his pawpaw-spiceberry jam. In Michigan, Vicki Fuller, owner of Maple Island Pies, recruits family members to help sell her flaky treats at four different farmers’ markets. […]

Dos and Don’ts of Presenting to Investors Excerpted from The Farmer’s Office by Julia Shanks • Do explain your business concept clearly in one to three sentences. Don’t run on and on. Readers of your business plan want to be able to quickly capture the essence of your business. The more concise your words, the better. • […]

Raising Rabbits for Profit Marketing and Production Shared From Grit Magazine – Written By: Callene Rapp Producing year-round In order to maintain profitability, it’s important for the rabbitry to produce litters year-round. This necessitates having litters when Mother Nature, and the doe herself, may not think it’s the greatest idea. Rabbits, like many other animals, are […]

The Business of Culinary Herbs Shared From MOTHER EARTH NEWS  Written By: MOTHER EARTH NEWS editors This is one of the most important phases of the herb business and offers good opportunities for the beginner. The herbs that are dried and packaged are numerous, but for the beginner we recommend starting with the most popular varieties. […]

Distributing Your CSA Crops Shared From MOTHER EARTH NEWS  Written By: Sarah Milstein Distribution Site and Managers If you’re delivering shares off-farm, you’ll need a reliable site. Members in the delivery community should be able to help find a site and sometimes will offer a garage, porch, or yard. If that is not feasible, churches and […]

Getting to Know the Chef Shared From MOTHER EARTH NEWS  Written by: Mort Mather Chefs in northern climates love to talk to farmers in the winter. They are dying for good produce. So I drove to a natural food restaurant thirty-five miles away in Portland, Maine to talk with the chef. She told me they used […]