Farm Small Farm Smart

Today's episode is actually a rebroadcast of a presentation that Curtis gave in January in San Francisco. The presentation is called Farming in the City. In this presentation, Curtis will take you on a tour of his one third of an acre urban farm, where you will get an inside look at the day to day operations of the farm from vegetable production to sales. Curtis will show how he farms commercially, and profitably, in backyards and on small plots of land in the city, land that he doesn't own. You'll learn about the methods and techniques that Curtis has used over the last six years to grow his sales and profits. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In this episode Curtis and I dissect an article that was published on Alternet on January 1, 2016 by farmer Jaclyn Moyer. An article titled.... What Nobody Told Me About Small Farming: I Can't Make a Living - People say we're "rich in other ways," but that doesn't fix the ugly fact that most farms are unsustainable This one is a good one and we cover a lot of business basics such as... Who is your customer? What is their demographic? And what do they want? What are you selling? Is that the right crop? What are you focusing your time on? Is that the right thing? And are you the right person to be doing this job. We will break down the article to hopefully help a lot of you avoid some of the troubles that Jaclyn talked about in the article. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Scott Hebert started farming in June 2015 when his family business shut down. At that time he didn't have anything to fall back on. But he had always had an interest in farming, and within a few days of getting the income shock warning his wheels had been put in motion and he was putting a plan into place to transition into a career as a farmer. He contacted Curtis to visit his farm, so he could start leveraging Curtis' experience to plan his farm and his future. Because he knew wanted to farm, but didn't want to be broke, therefore, he had to make money at it, and that meant he had to have a plan and a strategic approach. And it's that approach that we will be talking about in today's show. It's currently February 2016 and this episode was recorded with new farmer Scott Hebert a couple of months ago in December 2015. Let's get into it and see what a transition into small scale farming is really like... Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

While Curtis and I were on tour we made a stop at Singing Frogs Farm in Sebastopol to visit with farmers Paul & Elizabeth Kaiser. It's a pretty remarkable farm. The Kaisers are farming just over 2 acres and grossing over $100,000 an acre. They come from an agroforestry background and approach farming systematically as a business. This episode is some of our thoughts from our visit. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

If you want to be better off in December 2016, then the planning for that starts now in December 2015. The biggest leverage point which for the farm season next year is right there in front of you. You just need to tease it out. That's what today's show is about. Doing some End of Season Reflection - Thinking about How Things Went This Year, to Alter Course and Plan for Next Year. I hope that you can use some of the information that we talk about in this episode to reflect on your 2015 farm season, so you can get better in 2016. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In today's episode Curtis and I will take a look back at the season of this show and talk about what's in store for the future for Curtis and this show. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

How much work should you put into something before it gets to the point where it isn't worth it? At what point does the money, the effort, and the headache justify not doing it? With everything in business and farming, there is always a trade off, an opportunity cost. If you are doing one, thing, then it's at the expense of something else. Because you can't do it all, and regardless of the return, sometimes it's just not worth it. In this episode we spend a lot of time looking at how to decide if customers and crops are worth the effort. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

All in Curtis produced about 17,500lbs of product off of his farm this year. That's a lot of food coming from a small space. Remember Curtis is only farming off of 15,000 sq.ft. which is spread out over 5 plots. And this year he made the most of it producing over 17,000lbs of produce on those 5 plots. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In this episode we will be talking about real world issues and troubles with restaurant customers. How Curtis has dealt with customers who haven't paid in the past and how he has changed his procedures to help make sure that it doesn't happen again? Curtis has learned the hard way, when you're in the real world and restaurants don't pay, you can lose a lot of money. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Where do you draw the line between this isn't working, but I can figure it out, and this will never work? Let's just accept the fact that farm start-up is going to involve it's fair share of struggles. How long should those struggles continue? Because there is no sense wasting your time, your life's energy, sacrificing the relationships in your life, as you pile on monumental amounts of stress if you don't have the skill, the will, or the resources to make it work. At some point should you draw the line and just say, maybe this isn't right for me, it's not working? When you find yourself scraping by ask yourself why, and what you can do about it, and just maybe you will realize that your model doesn't work, or you're not very good at it. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It's currently November 2015 and the main farm season for Curtis is pretty much over. And along with, so is this season of the show. For the remainder of the episodes we'll be wrapping up everything that happened on the farm this year with Curtis and tying up a few loose ends. With things very slow on the land, Curtis is taking a few weeks off from the farm. Given that today's episode is Q and A episode. These questions were actually answered last winter on via Curtis on his YouTube channel. If you want to watch him answer these questions you can do so in the show notes at permaculturevoices.com/tuf34. In this show Curtis will be answering questions on time management, farm startup, finding land and securing land, converting land to urban farm land, approaching restaurants, and record keeping. The nice thing about these questions is that they cover a wide variety of topics which will help to help tie together the season as we look to wrap it up. There's a lot here, enjoy it. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

What's your time worth as a farmer? How much should should you be charging yourself to do tasks on the farm? That's an important metric to think about when you are a small operation. Because for a lot of farmers in this space, the labor force is a force of one, you. And you only have so many hours in a day to get everything done. Your time is very valuable. Knowing that, are you spending your valuable time on tasks that actually return a greater value than the time that you put in? Today we talk about the way that Curtis used to do certain tasks and contrast that with how he does tasks now. And why he changed how he did things. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In this episode we talk about post crop harvest processing, including how Curtis has changed some of his techniques over the years. We also talk about some of his farm equipment and infrastructure like his flame weeder and walk in cooler. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Set yourself up for success by having realistic plans and expectations for the first year. Match your lifestyle and your budgeting to those realistic expectations. If you are going to start out farming with a gun to the head survival mentality then it makes things very hard. Long term learning gets displaced for the need to put money into the till today. Work to learn, not to earn. The goal is to farm for a career. Not make a bunch of money this year and then do something else next year. And the only way to do that is day after day for the long run, learning as much as you can in the process. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Big isn't always better. More just for the sake of having more is pointless. Just because you have access to more land doesn't mean you need to take it. If you are getting bigger then you better have a reason why you are getting bigger... If you are thinking about expanding stop and ask why? Does it fit within the overall plan that you have for your business, your farm, and your life? If not, then don't do it. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Think about how much work you do on the farm now. How much of that work is actually being done efficiently and effectively? Are you making the best use of your time by focusing on the 20% of the tasks that generate the most return? Getting rid of crops can actually be a good thing. It allow you to work more efficiently and effectively by focusing on the task at hand instead of always trying to keep you head above water. It's very hard for any one person to do many things well, but each of us can do a few things really well. Crops are no different. And odds are you can grow a few crops a lot better than you can grow a lot of crops. Take a look at your farm and the crops that you grow. Which crops generate 20% of your revenue? And how would your farm and life look if you just focused on those? Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

How can you a lot mistakes and wasting valuable resources by overproducing a crop, and the inverse of that, not producing enough? Good record keeping. Records on the farm are extremely valuable. When you start to get a few years of records and can notice trends, those records become very valuable because the records are what dictates your future action. Action that can save you work down the line and put the right amount of product in your walk in so you can sell it. This type of planning directly translates to maximizing your farm income. And it's not actually that hard to do. Don't over-complicate it. Start by keeping simple records and get into the habit of doing it, then expand and adapt your records as time goes on. If you want to be successful as a farmer, then this is something that you need to do. It's one of the principals that has made Curtis as successful as he is. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Can you accept in the beginning that what you are doing may not work? Because, guess what, it might not. But as long as you keep trying something will.. You just have to be willing to continue on until then. And if you are willing to accept that, then save yourself the time, money, and stress and quit now. This path isn't for everyone and that's fine. Regardless of what decision you make, just be content with you own decision. Do yourself a favor and think about this long and hard, because it is a life changer. 20 years from now, do you want to look back and say you went for it, or regret not going for it. Hopefully this show will lead you down the path of no regrets, and make your journey a little bit easier. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Understand where you want to go, understand why you want to get into it, figure out a smart systematic way to get there, and work hard in the process. And give yourself the forgiveness to make mistakes, but have the wherewithal to analyze those mistakes so you can adapt going forward. That's what this episode is all about. Taking the time to think long term and setting yourself up for long term success in the beginning. Part of setting yourself up for success is knowing some of the common pitfalls, so you can avoid them. In this episode we delve into more common reasons why many farmers struggle. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It's August 25, 2015 which means we are at the tail end of summer and shorter, cooler days are coming as fall nears. We are in one of those unique periods in the year known as the shoulder season, the transition periods at the end of one season and the beginning of another. They can be tricky time periods for farmers to navigate. Day lengths start getting shorter, temperatures start getting cooler, and the weather starts to change. As a farmer this is one of those time periods where it critical to be able to adapt. You need to be able to understand the changes that are taking place in your biome and plan your crop rotations accordingly. With an ever changing climate each situation is different and each climate is different, making these shoulder seasons tough to explain. This episode should shine some light on the topic and give you a general approach that works. It's this approach, and methodology, that lies at the core of every farmers ability to adapt. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

As a farmer, how do you communicate what you have to sell each week, how much it costs, and when you need orders placed by, so you can deliver it on time? You use what is called a fresh sheet. At it's simplest a fresh sheet is a list of what you are selling currently on the farm, and for what price. A fresh sheet is more than a current inventory list. It also reminds ever-busy chefs that you have product that they probably want. If you've never made a fresh sheet before, this episode may prompt you to make one. It's a whole bunch of little tips and tricks to help you design, create, and maintain an effective fresh sheet. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

This episode is all about the art of farming. Creating a framework, and understanding the overlying philosophy about why you do what you do, and leaving yourself some room to maneuver within that philosophy. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

This episode is all about being a better provider to your customers... In this episode we dig deep into sourcing products from other farmers, breaking into new markets, working with chefs and soliciting feedback. It's currently August 4, 2015 and the inevitable has happened. Curtis is short product, and he is having to source those products from other farmers to keep his restaurant customers happy. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In this episode Curtis and I are joined by new farmer Rob Kaiser. Rob is a few months into his farming journey. And like Curtis he didn't come from a farming background. He came from the corporate world. A few years ago Rob realized that the path that he was on, wasn't right for him anymore, and he needed to change. One part of that change was an entry into farming. In this episode Rob will talk about his transition into farming and the plan that he has put into place to make the transition. He'll touch on how he has dealt with not knowing everything. And how he has dealt with the good times and the really bad times that are unavoidable when you start any new business venture. One key to Rob's progress has been to surround himself with successful people to make his go a little easier by leveraging their experience. And it's worked because progress is being made and Rob is slowly making the change that he not too long ago dreamed about. The idea, the dream, has become a reality. It's happening. For all the new farmers and aspiring farmers out there, this episode will shed some light on the early parts of the journey, showing that you are aren't alone, even though we all feel like we are at times. There are others out there trying to do what you want to do. Keep at it and and be the change. And as Rob will say in this episode, "You may not be able to change the world, but you can change yours." Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

You need to ask yourself - Are you approaching farming as a hobby or as a livelihood? There's no right or wrong answer. But you need to be clear with your decision and set your expectations accordingly. Because approaching farming as a business is dramatically different than approaching farming as a hobby. To sum this all up be clear in your own head of the distinction between farming as a hobby, and farming as a career. No BS. Know what the answer is and make all, all, of your choices on the farm accordingly. It is week 20 of the urban farm season - July 28, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

This romantic notion of farming - working outside, hands in the soil, sowing seeds, and then nurturing those crops to harvest. While all great, and all true, they are just a piece of the farming pie. And this is where problem's start to arise. The romantic view pulls people into farming, on just that, a romantic view, not a realistic full picture. And one part of reality is sales and moving product. Many people don't think about how they are actually going to sell these crops that they harvest. Maybe just assuming someone will want to buy them, everyone needs to eat, right? A dangerous assumption. And it is no doubt one of the reasons why you hear about so many small scale farmers struggling. They invest a lot of time in the dream, but not how they can actually make that dream a successful and sustainable reality. Today we will take a look at that idea as we discuss how to sell your farm products, so you can keep working on the farm. This episode is detailed dig into CSA's and farmers markets. What's worked for Curtis, and what hasn't. Strategies that can help you succeed.. It is week 19 of the urban farm season - July 21, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

As a farmer and as an employer it is important to have systems in place. To know why and how you do something. This helps you understand what you do and it allows you to communicate what you do to an employee. When you have clear, defined systems in place it takes most of the guesswork out of the equation. This allows you to produce a consistent product quickly and efficiently. And it also allows you to troubleshoot problems when they come up. Because if everyone does things the same way, and something goes wrong then you can quickly tell whether it was operator error or system error, and fix the problem. When you have an employee that understands why you do what you do and how you do what you do, then it comes down to when you do it. Time can be tight on a farm and things can get hectic, so it pays to take a little extra time each day to schedule out the upcoming day. This episode is all about setting up and establishing systems to make the work that is done on your farm more effective. It is week 18 of the urban farm season - July 14, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

There are all sorts of things that Curtis does to make his efforts more efficient and more effective. Some are complex and involve a lot of time studying spreadsheets, and others are simple like minimizing you transit time. Growing the business while working less hours. That's something that we all want. It isn't always easy or straightforward, but it is possible. it's something that comes with experience if you take the time to analyze all of your processes and see where you can make them more efficient. Interplanting is a good example of this. Interplanting has allowed Curtis to grow more crops in the same amount of space. This maximizes the use of his land by growing more in the same space. Curtis has also figured out how to optimize tasks on the farm that pay. Think sales related tasks like ways to harvest product quicker and more efficiently, and ways to package product in a way that satisfies customers and saves prep time. But, there are a lot of tasks on the farm that simply don't pay. Things like weeding. And as a farmer you don't get paid to weed. Yet it has to be done. Using Landscape fabric to prevent weeds and using tarps for stale seed bedding are two passive systems that Curtis uses to prevent weeds from germinating. There are also more active preventative measures than be done to help mitigate weed pressure. Things like pre-emergent flame weeding and no-till bed preparation. While these activities require work, they work in your advantage by using some time now, in order to save a lot of time later. Those are the types of things that we're talking about today Streamlining Tasks and Being More Efficient. Tips for Maximizing Effort and Time on the Farm. It is week 17 of the urban farm season - July 7, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Farming in the city is something that Curtis has done ever since he started farming 5 years ago. But he hasn't always farmed, just inside the city. At one point in time he actually farmed a two acre plot outside of the city with another farmer. He did this in addition to farming his urban lots. So he had a multi location farm with small plots inside the city and one large plot outside of the city. As a result he saw first hand the differences between farming more land and less land - because there are a lot of differences. In this episode we will dig into those differences and hear what it was like farming two acres and how it was different than farming a third of an acre. We will touch on the various different models for selling products off of a farm - think CSAs versus selling directing to restaurants. We'll talk about the differences between each of the models. As you will find out each market, each farmer, and each farmer will have to experiment to find the best fit for them. What works for one farmer and in one market, might not work for the next. It is week 16 of the urban farm season - June 30, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

This week we will get into how Curtis went about getting his very first piece of urban farm land over 5 years ago. We will talk about what worked and what didn't work when he was just starting out and trying to gain access to land. The unique part here is that this was all happening in the beginning. Before Curtis had built any social capital from being an active urban farmer. There were no demonstration sites or track record to refer to, it was only one person saying this is what I am gonna do, are you interested in helping. As you will hear Curtis eventually found his first piece of land to farm. That got the ball rolling and from there he never looked back. It is week 15 of the urban farm season - June 23, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

To be successful as an urban farmer you need to be able to quickly adapt and solve problems on the fly. In this episode we talk about how Curtis has had to adapt in the past and how his system allows him to change his production quickly. I also talk to Curtis about five mistakes that I see a lot of farmers make when they get into the farm business. Together we discuss these common mistakes and how you can avoid them. We will give you straightforward, honest, actinable advice that you can put into use today and hopefully keep you out of trouble and increase your chances of farming success. It is week 14 of the urban farm season - June 16, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It's June 9th and the farm is in full production. As you heard last week a big part of that production comes from greens. Greens that are being cut and cut and cut. That's resulting in a lot of product that is being sold to restaurants, distributors, and farmers market customers. This week we talk about delivering that product to restaurant customers and how that day looks from harvest to delivery. We also talk a lot about crop planning. How do you know what to plant now so you have it harvest later, and how do you know that you will have a market to sell that product to later. It is week 13 of the urban farm season - June 9, 2015. Listen to past episodes at https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It's June 2nd and the farm is in full production. As you heard last week a big part of that production comes from greens. Greens that are being cut and cut and cut. That's resulting in a lot of product that is being sold to restaurants, distributors, and farmers market customers. This week we get into sales, crop planning, planting density, and the ability to cut greens multiple times. It is week 12 of the urban farm season - June 2, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In this episode Curtis talks about: - How his no till beds are working out and performing. - His strategy for what types of tomatoes to grow. - How he grows his tomatoes. What cultural practices is he doing. - How he interplants other crops between his tomatoes. It is week 11 of the urban farm season - May 26, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In this episode Curtis answers questions on.. -How much land you should start with your first year? -How much you could expect to make your first year of farming? -How he does his harvesting? -How he deals with crop residue in his no till beds. -Raised beds. A fit or not? -Does he thin his seeds? -Are pelleted seeds worth the cost? -How you should start a relationship with chefs when production is inconsistent? -Is he subject to food handling regulations? It is week 10 of the urban farm season - May 19, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

In this episode we talk about acquiring new farm land. What it takes to get new land, how land deals are structured, and what information you want to know from a land owner before entering a land deal. We also discuss how you convert a conventional lawn over to a production urban farm plot. What are the steps involved? It is week 9 of the urban farm season - May 12, 2015. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It is week 8 of the urban farm season - May 5, 2015. In this episode we take a deep dive into direct seeding. When is it appropriate, how Curtis does it, and how he optimizes his direct seeding to maximize production for yield and quality. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It is week 7 of the urban farm season - April 28, 2015. The setting for this show is Kelowona, BC, Canada. This episode focuses on the role of the urban farmer in the community. Problems Curtis has had with people in the city and how he has dealt with them. And what skills it takes to be an urban farmer. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

Welcome to The Urban Farmer show. It is week 6 of the urban farm season and it is April 22, 2015. The weather is beautiful in Kelowona, BC and urban farmer Curtis Stone is setting the farm up for the forth coming season. In this episode we talk a lot about nursery, transplanting into the field, and the concept of inter-planting. Currently on the farm transplants are going in, irrigation systems are being setup, and the end is in sight for the setup phase. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It is week 5 of the urban farm season - April 14, 2015. The setting for this show is Kelowona, BC, Canada. Urban Farmer Curtis Stone is going gangbusters in what he calls the setup phase on his farm - getting all of the major things done on the farm plots before the season gets underway. Things like preparing the soil, starting plants in the nursery, putting down weed control measures, and getting infrastructure in place. Part of that infrastructure involves getting your irrigation systems in order. This we talk about setting up irrigation systems, poly low tunnels, and trying out new crops. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It is now April 8 and we are another week into the Urban Farm season with Curtis. What's happened on the farm so far. At this point in the season Curtis has prepared most of the growing beds on his various plots for the upcoming farm season and that includes switching a lot of his production methods over to more of no-till style. He has been spending a few hours each day on farm related activities. This season is just getting underway and this year he isn't doing it alone. He is doing it with the help of a new full-time employee. A move that Curtis hopes will allow him to work more on the business, not in the business. This week we will be talking about his new employee and how the onboarding and training process is going. We will also talk about the financial impacts of hiring someone - when do the additional costs make sense? In this episode we will talk a lot about pricing and how Curtis prices his products. He has found a pricing system that works and has kept his prices consistent since he started farming a few years ago. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It's Tuesday, March 31st, and the first farmers market is coming up in four days. What's Curtis up to? In this episode we are talking about how Curtis maximizes his efforts on the farm by staying organized. And how he is switching his beds over this year to a no-till strategy. This show is the story of urban farmer Curtis Stone. Curtis is an urban farmer who farms on 15,000 sq.ft. in Canada. He has been farming in an urban setting profitably for 5 years. We are going to follow Curtis on a journey through a full farm season, taking you behind the scenes each week to see what being an urban farmer is really like. It isn't always glorious, but it's real. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It's mid-March and the farm is now in what Curtis calls the setup phase. He has started selling some overwintered crops and he is adding to his restaurant customer base. This show is the story of urban farmer Curtis Stone. Curtis is an urban farmer who farms on 15,000 sq.ft. in Canada. He has been farming in an urban setting profitably for 5 years. We are going to follow Curtis on a journey through a full farm season, taking you behind the scenes each week to see what being an urban farmer is really like. It isn't always glorious, but it's real. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ

It's mid-February and the farm season is just beginning. Most of the work on the farm is preparing for the warmer months ahead. A lot of time is spent planning and preparing for the year ahead. This show is the story of urban farmer Curtis Stone. Curtis is an urban farmer who farms on 15,000 sq.ft. in Canada. He has been farming in an urban setting profitably for 5 years. We are going to follow Curtis on a journey through a full farm season, taking you behind the scenes each week to see what being an urban farmer is really like. It isn't always glorious, but it's real. Stay tuned, and enjoy the journey. Listen to past episodes at: https://www.paperpot.co/podcast Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/ Follow PaperpotCo on Instagram:http://bit.ly/2B45VKQ