The Urban Farm Podcast with Greg Peterson

229: Barbara Pleasant on Gardening to fill your PantryTaking home-grown foods into food storage.In this podcast: We meet Barbara Pleasant who helps expand our ideas for food storage beyond the simple basics.  She also has tips for the new gardener and the ‘old hands’ that might give you some impetus to move a little dirt. Barbara is an Award-winning writer having been covering organic gardening and self-sufficient living for more than 30 years. As contributing editor to Mother Earth News, her work has garnered multiple awards from the Garden Writers Association and the American Nursery and Landscape Association.She has written books on topics ranging from compost to weeds, including Homegrown Pantry published by Storey Publishing, Starter Vegetable Gardens, The Complete Compost Gardening Guide, and The Complete Houseplant Survival Manual. Her columns and articles appear regularly in Mother Earth Living magazine, at GrowVeg.com and on other gardening websites. Barbara lives in Virginia, where she grows vegetables, herbs and fruits along with a few chickens, who all have names.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/05/02/barbara-pleasant/ for more information and great links.

228: Sheri McLane on Soil and Plant Testing.Improving plant yields through expert analysis of growing mediums.In this podcast: Soil scientist Sheri explains how she found her calling in an agronomy and is driven to help farmers and gardeners with their soil questions.  There is a great deal of science in determining the chemical make-up of soil samples and figuring out what is needed for different crops, and she knows how to help explain it for the rest of us.  Sheri also helps by sharing a few tips for some basic soil remediation in this interview.Sheri was interested in science and how things worked from a young age. She was fascinated with paleontology in middle school and even participated in archeology digs with the local museum. In high school, she loved geology and marine biology which led her to the University of San Diego where she obtained a major in marine science with an emphasis in biology and a minor in environmental science. Upon graduation, she worked for environmental labs learning new analytical techniques and her thirst for science knowledge grew.She was planning on pursuing a career in marine mammal rescue and habitation, however, her undergrad studies caused a change in her career path. She decided to learn more about soil and plant science, a topic of interest from her undergrad course work. She went to work for IAS Laboratories and studied under Dr. Paul Eberhart for many years.Sheri has been working in the agriculture field for the last fifteen years and is now the president of IAS Laboratories. Her focus on soil and plants has held firm and she’s earned her masters in agronomy through Iowa State and is in the process obtaining her soil scientist and CPAg certification.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/29/sheri-mclane/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

227: Jan Dohner on Predators on the Urban FarmAdjusting to a new normal with predators near our farms.In This Podcast:  We learn quite a bit from Jan who has spent four decades researching livestock guardians and the predators they guard against.  She helps explain why there has been a resurgence in these wild predators and what steps can be taken to guard our precious farm resources for both urban and rural farms. Jan is a researcher and writer concerned with historic livestock breeds and husbandry, as well as issues surrounding predator control and the use of livestock guardians. She makes presentations on these topics at various conferences, including Mother Earth Fairs and The Common Fair in Maine. She has written several books and maintains a blog you can find on her website. She is also a longtime member of the American Livestock Conservancy.Jan lives on her family farm in Michigan and has more than 35 years of hands-on experience with the use of livestock guard dogs for predator control.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/27/jan-dohner/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

226: Kevin Van Eekeren on Store Bought vs Home Raised Eggs Recognizing eggs from lovingly raised hens and factory raised, regardless of labeling.In this podcast: We get to know the personal motivations behind Kevin Van Eekeren, a tactical advisor and egg farmer with a focus on clear visioning 10 years into the future.  He tells us how his experience developing tactical training has helped him with his farm. He also explains about some of the labeling misperceptions of eggs, and why there is such a marked difference in eggs depending on how the hens are raised.Kevin is not your typical farmer.  He was a SWAT team logistics officer; started Fulcrum Tactical- a charity that specialized in training SWAT teams nationwide; and couple years ago he started Fulcrum Investing- a venture capital fund investing in startups.  He most recently started hosting a podcast called State of Logic which has a planned release date of mid 2017 with a duel focus on both the startup world and topics that affect our world, and not just in business.In the middle of it all Kevin started Fulcrum Farms with just 28 chickens raised for personal use which gave him 20 eggs a day. So, of course he started giving eggs away and that is when restaurants and families started offering to buy them.  To meet demand, he grew the operation to what it is today, 30 pigs, a few hundred quail, 100 ducks, 100 chickens, a few cows and two goats named Thelma and Louise.  They quickly learned the best practice was to follow Joel Salatin's example and use the nitrogen cycle for their own benefit.Now they keep most of their animals rotating constantly to give them new pasture to graze and allow the land they just grazed to rest.  Their biggest seller are his eggs and the reason is clear, there is a visual and taste difference between their eggs and those bought at the store.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/25/kevin-van-eekeren/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

225: Edward Griffin on Indoor Smart Gardens Solving some space and time issues around growing fresh food.In This Podcast:  We meet Edward, a millennial concerned about sustainability and food equity issues, who also wanted to have an active lifestyle and still grow his own food.  Not having a backyard did not stop Edward as he took agricultural and sustainability concepts he learned in college and created his own solution.Edward graduated from Arizona State University in 2013 double majoring in Sustainability and Political Science. During this time, he studied some of the hardest questions relating to sustainability at a social, economic, and environmental level. The area of global sustainability that always spoke to him was the complex issue of agriculture, specifically food deserts because it was something he dealt with his entire life.Faced with environmental and time constraints he began experimenting and developing new ways to integrate technology and grow food inside his apartment. This quickly became a new-found passion of his, and with this new obsession he founded the company Lyfbox, which has just released the first fully intelligent indoor smart garden to automatically grow fresh organic food inside your home year-round and is controlled using the Lyfbox app on your phone.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/22/edward-griffin/ for more information and links to our other guests!

224: Lisa Steele on Gardening with Chickens Incorporating chickens into the gardening process as willing workers. In This Podcast:  We connect again with Lisa Steele to get some great suggestions on how to bring the chickens out of the coop and into the garden.  She explains how these feathered friends can do even more to earn their keep and become true gardening partners.Lisa is a 5th-generation chicken keeper, nationally recognized author and the creative mind behind the Better Homes & Gardens award-winning blog - Fresh Eggs Daily.  Lisa inspires both the newcomer as well as the seasoned chicken keeper and engages almost a million fans worldwide on her Facebook page of the same name with her easy, fun, and accessible approach to raising backyard flocks naturally.The author of three top-selling books, Lisa’s writing can also been found in such publications as Chickens, Backyard Poultry, the Farmers Almanac, and Hobby Farm as well as at HGTVGardens.com. She’s been featured in American Farmhouse Style, Down East and Cottage Journal magazines plus has appeared on numerous national radio and television programs and most recently is hosting her own 30-minute “chicken lifestyle” television show called Fresh Eggs Daily with Lisa Steele which airs on the local CW affiliate in Portland Maine.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/20/lisa-steele-2/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

223: Paten Hughes on Heirloom: Tomatoes and a Web Series. Growing tomatoes when life gives you lemonsIn This Podcast:  We get the inside scoop from actress Paten Hughes on the inspiration for her new web-series which is based on her transition of actor-to-tomato-farmer. She did not just plant a few, she planted more tomato plants than most people can even conceive and now she has several restaurants that order from her. Paten is the star and co-creator of the hit digital series HEIRLOOM on Vimeo, written by Bekah Brunstetter (NBC's This Is Us) and co-starring Margaret Colin, Tom Wopat, Pascale Armand, Ryan Cooper, and John Lavelle.  This semi-autobiographical web series follows the character Emily who gives up her struggling acting career in New York to move to California and farm heirloom tomatoes on a property she inherits.  Paten, who really moved to Northern California and become a first-time farmer, sells her juicy organic tomatoes to several local restaurants in Sonoma.  She is very committed to preserving nature, supporting local and organic farming.  The show’s flavor carries her pro-environment, sustainability, and organic preferences. Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/18/paten-hughes/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

222: Heather Szymura on Hydroponic Container Farming. Growing limited-season crops year-round regardless of climate extremes.In This Podcast:  We meet Heather who decided to change directions away from a professional one towards one more in tune with nature and healing and to her surprise ended up becoming a farmer! She is selling lettuce and kale she is growing year-round in the suburbs near Phoenix and tells Greg how she is doing that in a shipping container in her backyard.After 15 years in the corporate business world and a degree in Global Business Marketing, Heather decided it was time for a shift. She resigned from her position at UPS, went back to school to pursue a degree in Naturopathic Medicine and at the same time delved more into her hobby of urban farming. It was in here that she found her life’s passion unearthing the amazing benefits growing herbs and veggies.Her business, Twisted Infusions, became a reality in 2016 when the container farm arrived on their doorstep! They sell non-GMO, pesticide free, hydroponically grown lettuce, kale and herbs! Now, being a farmer and business owner is Heather’s full time job. She and Brian, her husband and best friend, live in Glendale, Arizona with their two children, Killian and Mary. Throw in two snakes, a pink tarantula, a bearded dragon, and a leopard gecko and that’s the Szymura family.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/15/heather-szymura/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to our other great guests.

221: Ocean Robbins on the Food Revolution Summit.Finding a path of health, hope, and possibility through better food choices.In This Podcast: This is a special podcast interview with food activist Ocean Robbins about his Food Revolution Summit happening April 29 to May 7.At 15, Ocean was a co-founder of the Creating Our Future environmental speaking tour, on which he and three other participants spoke in person to more than 30,000 students, presented for 2,000 people at the United Nations, and opened for the Jerry Garcia band in San Francisco.In 1990 at age 16, Ocean founded YES!, an organization he directed for the next 20 years with the goal of connecting, inspiring and mobilizing visionary young leaders worldwide.  He has since spoken to hundreds of thousands of people, led hundreds of retreats, workshops and Jams for leaders in over 65 nations, written books, mentored (and learned from) changemakers, and been a creative partner and lead editor for several bestsellers.In 2012 Ocean founded the Food Revolution Network, which now has more than 350,000 members working for healthy, sustainable, humane and delicious food.  He currently serves as adjunct professor in the Peace Studies department at Chapman University.  Ocean has personally spoken and facilitated leadership gatherings in Jordan, Israel/Palestine, Singapore, Costa Rica, Russia, Finland, Canada, the Netherlands, India, Peru, and across the USA.All this and he is also an active and proud father of special needs twins, a lover of life, and a human being who is trying to live in a good way on this earth.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/13/ocean-robbins-2/ for show notes

220: Ben Raskin on Practical Advice for Community GardensIn This Podcast: For those envisioning a perfect community garden, Ben Raskin has put together a fabulous resource to guide, inspire, and empower the designers and leaders of future neighborhood plots. He tells Greg about the purpose he had for writing his latest book and some of the lessons he’s learned during his years of farming.Organizing a community garden from scratch with smart planning and long-term goals. Ben has been working in horticulture for more than 20 years and has been with the Soil Association in the United Kingdom, since 2006. His own experience includes; running a walled garden in Sussex which supplied a Michelin starred restaurant, and working for Garden Organic at their gardens in Kent. He also set up and ran the 10-acre horticultural production at Daylesford Organic Farm before moving to the Welsh College of Horticulture as commercial manager.Ben also works on a range of other projects and over the years these have included working as Horticultural Advisor and founder Board Member of The Community Farm near Bristol, and running a program of biochar trials with organic growers. He is currently managing a new agroforestry planting on Helen Browning’s farm near Swindon.He is also a board member of the Community Supported Agriculture Network UK and committee member for the Organic Growers Alliance.  With all of this experience, he is also an author and has written The Community Gardening Handbook, and two family gardening books titled Grow, and Compost.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/11/ben-raskin/ for show notes

219: Jennifer Osuch on Fundamentals of Self Reliance. Teaching back to basics food preparation and preserving skills.In this podcast: Jennifer tells about the importance of self-reliance skills and why they are becoming needed once again. She explains what led her to this place in her life where she teaches some of these old traditions that traditional homesteaders relied on daily.Jennifer is the author of the Preparedness Planner series, lead teacher at the online Self Reliant School (which is dedicated to teaching preparedness and self-reliance skills), host of the weekly live Self Reliant Living Show (which I was a guest on in Nov 2016), and a homeschooling mom. She is dedicated to teaching back-to-basics food preparation and preserving skills that help people eat healthy, save money, live greener and be prepared for anything.Jennifer and her husband turned to the old-school basics when they found themselves in mountains of debt, two of their three boys suffering from asthma and allergies, and she, herself, struggling for years with her own weight management. She knows from experience that eating real food when you're watching every penny is not easy, and trying to put healthy food into storage is almost impossible.Jennifer, her husband and her three teenaged boys live in Texas. She is on a mission to save the knowledge and wisdom of our grandparents, and to help people apply it to their lives today.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/08/jennifer-osuch/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

218: Nafsika Antypas on Living a Plant-Based Life.Understanding the reasons and options for choosing a vegan lifestyle. Nafsika is the Host and Creator of the world’s first plant based lifestyle TV series that focuses on a plant-based diet living.  She has studied about olive oil and the Mediterranean diet in Greece through her father’s business, Pilaros Inc, a Mediterranean food importer, where she has been involved for over twenty years.  She created the TV show, Plant-Based by Nafsika which aired nationally in 2016, to change the world through food. This has not only sparked the interest of viewers around the globe but has planted some seeds helping veganism become more “mainstream,”In 2015, she founded, The Struggling Vegan, which helps people transition to a plant-based/vegan lifestyle while strengthening the community in a public forum called, Veg Room. The organization offers daily menu plans, recipes, health tips and direct messaging to plant-based doctors and coaches.Nafsika spends her spare time with her family, which includes her two young boys. She and her husband both cook plant-based meals at home and she’ll educate just about anyone who would listen about why it’s healthier to switch to a plant-based diet and why veganism is not just a diet but a way of life.In this podcast: Greg talks to television host Nafsika Antypas about living a plant-based life and how she was inspired to start her own television show all about living a vegan lifestyle.  She helps explain some of the core beliefs behind veganism as well as some of the basics of living a cruelty-free way of life.  Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/06/nafsika-antypas/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

217: Sine Lindholm on an Urban Farming 'Growroom'Creating and sharing an open-sourced growing sphere to create poetic spaces. Sine is from Denmark and has a degree in architecture from Aarhus School of Architecture along with an emphasis on psychology. This shows in her projects where she is combining the two, with her main focus on the theoretical and abstract part of architecture.She grew up on an organic farm with milking cows, however she had never worked with agriculture or urban farming before, until she won an architecture competition together with architect and carpenter Mads-Ulrik Husum. They had designed an Urban Farming pavilion, which received great attention that led to the further development of the project. They teamed up with SPACE10, a future living-lab, where they developed and released an open source design of their pavilion.  Together they started the company Husum & Lindholm, where for the moment they primarily focus on further development of combining architecture with gardening. On the basis of a spatial experimentation with the Urban Farming concept, they strive towards creating architecture where atmosphere and sensuousness - acts as the primary design factors.  Their goal - to generate poetic spaces where a symbiotic relationship with vegetation arises.In This Podcast: Greg sought out this interview with Sine Lindholm after seeing an article about a gorgeous growing sphere design and so today she tells us about the inspiration behind the design.  Sine also explains why they hope an open-sourced design will encourage others to improve on their model.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/04/sine-lindholm/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

216: Emiley Kight on Loving Natural Foods.Making little changes towards more real foods and feeling better.Emiley has always loved food, and wanting to share this passion she dove into a Culinology® degree to explore a role as an R&D chef at SW Minnesota State University. That was until her mom became sick and she put her career on hold to act as her mom’s caretaker throughout her treatment for multiple myeloma cancer.To her surprise, the doctors provided little information on what to eat as a cancer patient, and so Emiley started doing her own research on the effects that food have on chronic disease. Through trial and error in the kitchen, she discovered how whole plants can be used to combat side effects of medication, create pleasure by surprising and challenging your taste buds, and help your body work as efficiently as possible. Completely changing her mother's eating habits (as well as her own) helped her develop a brand-new love affair with foods in their natural state. Now, she is devoted to sharing her story and this information with others to inspire anyone who eats, to fall in love with food again.In This Podcast:  A chance meeting at the Farmers Market connected Greg to Emiley Kight, a Nutrition Consultant who tells about how she helps people to make little changes and enjoy natural foods.  She explains about how her focus on food was taking her towards the kitchens of large food corporations until her mom’s illness and the realization that real food information and options were not included in recovery discussions and she decided to work on changing that.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/04/01/emiley-kight/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

215: Suzanne Bontempo on Gardening without Pesticides Contemplating the best options for: If, when, and what type of insect control to use in the garden.Suzanne has worked in the horticultural industry for over 20 years in a variety of capacities; as a landscape contractor, a fine gardener leading garden maintenance teams, and in retail nursery management.  Currently she is an environmental educator and IPM Advocate, where she mentors & educates people. She does this by providing IPM trainings at hardware stores & garden centers, providing educational programs for garden clubs, businesses & organizations, and presenting lectures for the public through government agencies.Her message is focused around less-toxic pest problem-solving in the home & garden, pesticide reduction, and how to garden sustainably. She helps people see their home or garden as its own ecosystem, and that the real solution to their problem usually doesn’t require a pesticide at all. She enjoys raising the awareness of beneficial insects and how biological control methods in the garden are easy, effective and fun!Suzanne was recognized for her excellence in her field winning the 2013 IPM Innovators Award and in 2016 received the San Francisco Green Business award.IN THIS PODCAST: Insects and pesticides are challenging topics for gardeners and even more so for organic gardeners, so of course Greg loved hearing from Suzanne about how to make the best choice for controlling pests in the garden.  She breaks down the options in ways that make sense and loves to help others find the most beneficial way to manage their pest controls.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/30/suzanne-bontempo/ for show notes

214: Michael Miller on Poverty in the World. Examining the problems of poverty and solutions we need to reconsider.Michael is a Research Fellow at the Acton Institute and the Director and Producer of Poverty, Inc. Previously, Michael was the Director of Media and Director of Programs International at the Acton Institute and has appeared in various videos including Doing the Right Thing. Before coming to Acton, he taught philosophy and political science at Ave Maria College in Nicaragua and was the chair of the philosophy and theology department. Michael holds graduate degrees in philosophy, international development, and international business.He has lived and traveled in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America and speaks extensively on themes of international development, entrepreneurship, political economy, and moral philosophy. He has been featured on FOX Business, CNBC, numerous radio shows, and published in The New York Post, The Washington Times, The LA Daily News, The Detroit News, and Real Clear Politics.IN THIS PODCAST: Greg gets a chance to talk about a serious social sustainability topic when he interviews Michael Matheson Miller, the Director-Producer of Poverty Inc.  Michael has examined this issue at great lengths and tells why some of the things we think are helping are really fostering additional problems and why we should be asking if we are part of the problem.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/28/michael-matheson-miller/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

213: Nikki Golly on Nutrition and Wellness. Recognizing the highly important nutrients that might be missing from our foods.In this Podcast: We get to meet Nikki Golly who’s focus on micro nutrients gives her a detailed perspective on the essentials of good nutrition.  Her chat with Greg is a chance to break down the descriptions of some important food terms in today’s vocabulary and bring to light some very key details on the tiniest, but very powerful ingredients.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/25/nikki-golly/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.Nikki is a micronutrient coach on a mission to help people experience the healthiest and happiest version of themselves. She graduated with highest honors with a degree in nutrition from Arizona State University. She worked for 8 years in a vitamin store in Phoenix where she gained her vast knowledge of supplements.Fuel Your Body is a coaching program, as well as, a series of products to help you reach your health goals. Everything you eat makes a difference in how you feel.  Your immune system starts in your gut and the foods you eat affect your whole body, from the bottoms of your feet to the top of your head. Through her simple tips, recipes and how to videos, she empowers others to reach their goals.

212: Jenny Beasley on Community GardeningBuilding a community revitalization garden project from scratch.Jenny received her certification as a health coach at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City along with her Bachelors of Science in Business Administration from Northern Arizona University. She is currently the Director of Heart for the City Community Garden located in Glendale, AZ.She became involved with Heart for the City seven years ago, a non-profit that helps change lives of inner city at risk youth by walking life with them. She was asked to spearhead a 1/2-acre community revitalization project.... a community garden in which they educate Title 1 school children and their families on gardening and provide families ways of growing their own healthy foods.She decided to become a health coach to fulfill her passion of working with individuals to enhance their own well-being.In this podcast: Starting a community garden from scratch is no easy feat, and Greg talks with Jenny Beasley to hear about her work to bring a bare lot to life with a very thriving and highly appreciated garden resource in her community.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/23/jenny-beasley/ for show notes

211: Colin Austin on Wicking Beds and Healthy Food Examining wicking garden beds and bio-intensive vegetables.In this Podcast: We get to meet a gardening pioneer when Greg talks to Colin Austin who is known world-wide as the man who engineered a simple but highly popular garden bed called a wicking bed.  Greg learns why Colin was motivated to create the beds and how the wicking process works. Then they go further to talk about why healthy food is so important to him and his family.Many years ago, at the birth of the computer revolution Colin learned to write code and set-up a company which grew to become Australia’s leading exporter of technical software.  Then twenty years ago, Colin developed a growing system, which is known today as wicking bed technology and has gone feral worldwide. He runs a website WaterRight.com.au and a newsletter which are leading sources of information on wicking bed growing technology around the globe.Colin’s wife was very healthy and after moving to Australia from China she developed diabetes when she transitioned to a Western style diet.   Consequently, he has spent many years studying the causes and remedies for diabetes.  This complex disease involves many factors such as genetics and life style stress but the dominating one of course is diet.  As a result of this research he is developing a new farming technology for growing in nutrient dense soil which is very biologically.  He says living soils are based on recycling waste and are regenerative.  He believes we have been destroying our soil and that we are now approaching peak soil.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/21/colin-austin/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

210: Don Titmus on a Synopsis of Permculture.Chat with an Permaculture ExpertIn this Chat with an Expert Podcast: Greg chats with Permaculture expert Don Titmus who has been teaching permaculture techniques for for more than a decade and working in landscape design for more than three decades. They talk about what Permaculture is, a synopsis of the key elements of Permaculture Design Course education and how it can change your perspectives on the world around you.Don grew up in London and at age 16 spent 4 years being trained in horticulture through an apprenticeship and a college course. From there he continued landscaping in his hometown until he moved to Arizona in 1981, where he worked in landscaping and then starting his own business in garden maintenance.In 2003 he attended a Permaculture Design Course, which was life-changing for Don. He knew right away that this was the path he’d been waiting for, and later attended two Permaculture Teacher Trainings.He co-founded the Phoenix Permaculture Guild, started a Permaculture design company, redesigned his home site into a permaculture destination, and helped develop a thriving permaculture community in the Phoenix, Arizona area. He has presented in 5 cities, worked in several states, attended classes in 5 states, and pretty much lives and breathes permaculture.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/18/don-titmus-cwe/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests

209: Alastair Monk on The Future of Indoor Ag.Creating technology to help gardeners and farmers control their greenhouse watering systems.Alastair, or Ally, is the CEO and Co-founder of Motorleaf, which created the first wireless, automated, indoor growing system. A native from the UK, Ally has lived and worked in North America since 1999.  He has a history of success within the technology sector, providing his 3 children, wife and Husky Dog (Shadow) a rich life filled with nature and opportunity.Ally loves to keep it simple and he says he wakes up each morning feeling hungry. Hungry for company growth, hungry for new product features, and hungry for new happy customers.In This Podcast:  Greg talks to Ally and finds out what it is like to be a founding partner in a brand-new company that is focusing on making indoor gardening easier.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/16/alastair-monk/ for show notes and links.

208: Chat with an Expert - Catherine Crowley "The Herb Lady"Catherine, The Herb Lady, is a self-taught, hands-in-the-dirt, Urban Farmer who experiments and researches constantly for new and interesting edibles as well as playing with old favorites. She was given the nickname "The Herb Lady" when vendors and customers at farmers markets would say "go ask the herb lady" for questions on herbs.  It stuck. Catherine has taught many cooking and gardening classes at various locations private and public including the notable Boyce Thompson Arboretum which is an Arizona State Park, and Phoenix’s own Desert Botanical Garden. She has been a newspaper columnist for 4 years writing on growing and using edible herbs.  Catherine has a blog online and is a regular vendor at her local Farmers Market.  In this Podcast: Chatting with Herb expert Catherine Crowley about growing herbs and using them in cooking other beneficial ways. She and Greg explore many of the different unique and awesome aspects of a myriad of herbs that can be grown in the home gardens and urban farms, with a special emphasis on garlic.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/14/cwe-catherine-the-herb-lady-crowley/ for show notes and links.

207: Megan Cain on Garden PlanningJoining a Legion of Gardening addicts through sensible preparation and design.Megan grew up an urban girl in a row home in Philadelphia. She never saw a vegetable growing in the ground until well into her 20’s. A few years ago, she quit her job and traveled to Africa for two months to volunteer with a fair trade organization.  Now, she is a garden educator, writer and speaker. She has developed one of the first youth gardening programs in Madison, designed and installed gardens in many homeowners’ yards, managed a quarter-acre youth farm, worked on CSA farms, created a series of gardening class that often have waiting lists, and tends to a large home garden. She knows what works and what doesn’t…and loves to share it.Megan is setting out to create a legion of gardening addicts that successfully and passionately grow their own food. Through her gardening education business, The Creative Vegetable Gardener, she helps people get more from their gardens by first mastering the essentials and then indulging in the colorful details that make gardening not just a favorite pastime, but a lifestyle.In This Podcast:  Acquiring a love of gardening transformed Megan into a fully focused farmer and she tells Greg how she went from being an naive urbanite with no plant growing experience to a gardening educator and resource to kids and adults alike.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/11/megan-cain/ for show notes and links.

206: Allison Duffy on Food Preservation. Canning and other preservation techniques to safely store foods longer.Allison has been growing and preserving food for over fifteen years.  She is a Master Food Preserver, trained through the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, and holds a Master’s Degree in Gastronomy from Boston University.  She has written about food for various publications including the Boston Globe, Backpacker magazine, and Taproot magazine, and is the author of the book Preserving with Pomona's Pectin.She regularly writes and develops recipes for the Pomona Pectin company, and blogs at her own website CanningCraft.com plus she teaches canning and preserving classes. Allison lives on several acres in Mid-coast Maine with her husband Ben and their two young boys, where they tend an apple orchard, look after a way-too-big vegetable garden, take care of chickens, and put up as much food as they can manage.In this podcast: Canning food is a favorite topic of Greg’s so of course he was excited to talk to Allison about her experiences and get some tips from her as well.  As a bonus, they also chatted about her ‘too big’ garden and how this homestead is so rewarding for her family.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/09/allison-duffy/ for show notes and links.

Nancy Bailey on Prolific Vegetables in Small Spaces.Increasing the yield of a small garden through planning and care.Nancy had an idyllic childhood growing up in western New York State, right next door to her grandfather who she adored. He had a small farm where he raised a few head of beef cattle and always had a few dozen chickens. While much of the 10-acres was devoted to raising hay and grain to feed and bed the cattle, her father and grandfather also managed a large vegetable garden and an apple orchard.The garden produced a considerable bounty which her mom canned and froze; and while young, it didn’t occur to Nancy to consider how special it was to be fed on free-range grass-fed beef and farm fresh eggs, and to eat organically grown fruits and vegetables year-round.  Today she looks back and realizes how lucky and loved she was.Although she’s always had a passion for ornamental horticulture, it wasn’t until retirement 2 years ago, that she got serious in raising vegetables and composting. By adding micro-nutrients and her own amendments, each season has yielded a more prolific harvest. Although her vegetable garden is less than 200 square feet, she reaps far more produce than she and her husband can consume. She says she raises vegetables for the joy of watching them grow as well as to consume and share with the neighbors.In this podcast: Greg chats with Nancy, an urban farmer from Southern California who explains how she is maximizing the potential of her very small garden. She has faced off critters of various sizes with some ingenious tricks and she is using soil amendments to make her soil healthy and her plants happy and productive.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/07/nancy-bailey/ for show notes and links.

204: Vanessa Sardi on Farm over Pharma.Learning how to prevent health issues through achievable diet changes.Vanessa is Certified Health and Nutrition Coach with a unique perspective on health and wellness. She has a Master's degree in Cardiopulmonary Physiology, a bachelor’s in Sports Medicine, clinical work in Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation, and research/sales positions in pharmaceutical and gene expression testing.  Vanessa has a passion for nutrition & helping others to live healthy, fueled by her background and consistent studies. When Vanessa realized that “more pills” wasn’t the answer to better health, she walked away from her cushy salary as an Executive Sales Rep for one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world to start her own business, Nutriception®.  As a Certified Health and Nutrition coach, she is now driven to help people get off their meds, many of which she promoted herself, and improve their health via a whole-foods, plant-based lifestyle. Vanessa’s slogan says it all…FARM over PHARMA.In this podcast: Greg finds another EPIC moment in this interview with Vanessa Sardi who tells why she decided to stop selling pharmaceutical drugs and instead is focusing on preventing issues through teaching about healthy diet choices. Tired of feeling like she was adding to problems, she wanted to be part of the solution and she went out and found a way to do just that.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/04/vanessa-sardi/ for show notes and links.

Anna Swanson and Meg Stratton on School and Community GardensHelping kids and community members understand food origins.Megan is a student at Binghamton University, and was drawn into the world of food and agriculture as a powerful way to address a range of current environmental, social, and ethical issues. After graduating with a self-designed degree focused on sustainable food systems, she moved to Glocester to join the FoodCorps. As a two-term FoodCorps service member, Meghan has been involved in all aspects of the Backyard Growers' school programs.Anna graduated from the College of William and Mary with a BA in Africana Studies and a minor in Environmental Studies.  Looking for a way to integrate her desire to work for social justice and her interest in environmental sustainability, Anna became Backyard Growers’ first FoodCorps service member in the fall of 2013. After her year of service, she moved back to her hometown of Philadelphia, where she taught farm, food, and nutrition classes on the farm and in Philadelphia schools.In this podcast: Greg chats with an inspiring couple of women from Backyard Growers. Anna and Meghan help explain the purpose of this community organization and how satisfying it is to watch kids and community members learn about growing food and cooking the food they grow.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/03/02/anna-swanson-and-meghan-stratton/ for show notes and links.

202: Andrew Mefferd on Hoophouse and Greenhouse growing.Improving crop production through the smart use of protected structures.Andrew spent seven years in the research department at Johnny’s Selected Seeds, traveling around the world to consult with researchers and farmers on the best practices in greenhouse growing. He put what he learned to use on his own farm in Maine. He is now the editor and publisher of Growing for Market magazine.Prior to starting his own farm, he worked on farms in six states across the US. Andrew also works as a consultant on the topics covered in his book The Greenhouse and Hoophouse Grower's Handbook Organic Vegetable Production using protected culture another great book published by Chelsea Green.In this podcast: Getting excited about agriculture in protected structures is the topic of discussion for Greg and his guest Andrew Medferd today.  With a journey that took him across the United States, Andrew learned a lot about different types and sizes of farms.  He explains how he used that experience to improve his skills why he hopes others can learn from it as well.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/28/andrew-mefferd/ for show notes and links. Go to www.urbanfarm.org/onedropfarm for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

201: Jake Mace on Gardening with SeedsChat with an expert on gardeningJake Mace started his garden in 2011 with a peach tree, fig tree, pomegranate tree, and kumquat tree to save money on his food budget. Today, it’s a luscious green food forest. In Episode 001, we interviewed Jake about his urban farm, learned some of his best tips and tricks, how to avoid his failures, and became inspired by his mission to live a life that’s compassionate with a a zero- to positive-sum impact on the earth, particularly through his commitment to a vegan lifestyle.He also teaches Martial Arts, Fitness, Tai Chi, Yoga, Gardening, and Golf to people from around The World via his successful YouTube channel and Online Schools at JakeMace.com. Outside of teaching, Jake’s real passion is as an advocate for the environment, animals, and people. Jake has been a Vegan Vegetarian for nearly 16 years and believes in preserving The Earth, it’s resources, and it’s living inhabitants so that future generations can enjoy them as he has! Jake Studied Mandarin Chinese while attending ASU and Duke Universities. Currently Jake lives with his wife Pamela and their many adopted animals on their edible urban homestead in Tempe.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/25/jake-mace-cwe/ for show notes and links.

200: Josh Trought on Community-Scale Permaculture FarmingAppreciating the wonders of a community farm with a resilient lifestyle.Born to two service-oriented medical professionals, he spent most of his upbringing in the fields and forests of North Carolina which at the time was transitioning from a rural agricultural economy into a service based economy. The sprawl and destruction of the traditional culture lost in the transition process left him with an undeniable distrust of growth and consumerism. So, he graduated from the University of Colorado with a degree in Environmental Conservation, and after college he spent the summer as an intern for the Solar Energy International’s renewable energy and construction school.  He’s spent time abroad in Spain during college, and traveled through South America. And in 1997, he moved full time to what is now known as D Acres where he has specialized in forestry, construction, and farming.Currently he is a member of the Artistic Roots Co-op in Plymouth and serves as Treasurer of the Pemi-Baker Solid Waste District. He also participates in local government as the Dorchester Town Moderator overseeing elections and facilitating the annual Town Meeting.  The fate of humanity preoccupies his thoughts.In This Podcast:  Greg talks with Josh, a member of a permaculture farm community near Plymouth, NH, and learns about living a resilient lifestyle from someone who is living a truly community-oriented and sustainable farming lifestyle.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/23/josh-trought/ for show notes and links.

199: Kanin Routson on Apple Tree DiversityStudying the genetics of an iconic and incredibly wide-ranging fruit.Kanin, has devoted his life to heritage apple tree diversity. In the pursuit of apple knowledge, Kanin has researched apple varieties from historic homesteads across Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Utah.During this research, he documented 34 known apple varieties and 110 unique trees of unknown origin. He has collected and propagated unique varieties of heritage trees from numerous small homestead orchards in Northern Arizona, as well as Capital Reef National Park and the historic Philmont Scout Ranch and Chase Ranch in New Mexico. This research and further research on wild apple genetic diversity led Kanin to complete a Master’s degree at Northern Arizona University and a Ph. D at the University of Arizona.In This Podcast: Greg was super excited to talk to Kanin and talk about the history of Apple Trees and find out why there is so much diversity in this very popular fruit tree. Kanin’s interest in apple orchards started young and prompted him to pursue his PhD to study this fruit tree even further.  Find out why and what he is doing now with all that research!!Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/21/kanin-routson/ for show notes and links.

198: Constantin Bisanz on sourcing healthy food.Maintaining a healthy lifestyle through real food options.Health enthusiast, avid athlete and Austrian entrepreneur Constantin founded ALOHA in January 2014 with a mission to help others live healthier, happier lives. Along with his team, Constantin creates real food products made from simple, pure, sustainably-sourced ingredients, offering accessible solutions for everyone to maintain a healthy lifestyle. His inspiration for founding ALOHA came from studying Ayuryedic medicine in India—a holistic approach to health and wellness centered on the balance of mind, body and spirit—combined with his belief that nutrition is the foundation to overall wellness. This philosophy, fueled by his frustration with weak regulation, conflicting messages and lack of quality products and information in the food and health industries, laid the groundwork for ALOHA.In this podcast: A health enthusiast and entrepreneur Constantin Bisanz shares his story with Greg about getting the inspiration to start a health food company because he was struggling to find healthy food options. His active lifestyle gave him a need for good food, while at the same time challenged him to get access to real food options and with his background, he was ready to make a positive solution viable for other health conscious people.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/18/constantin-bisanz/ for show notes and links.

197: Perrine Herve-Gruyer on Miraculous Abundance.Learning self-sufficient farming from scratch on an organic farm in France.Perrine has worked as an international lawyer and head of the legal department of a major company in Asia, and has volunteered with the High Commissioner for Refugees. When she turned thirty, Perrine radically changed lanes, and began taking courses in psychotherapy, specifically in relaxation therapy, publishing a book titled La Relaxation en Famille. Then with her husband, Charles, she created their Bec Hellouin Farm, inspired by permaculture principles. They both wrote "Miraculous Abundance" Published by Chelsea Green and lead experiments on their farm. In 2018, they will publish another book that is a summary of all the technics they use to grow food….IN THIS PODCAST: Greg gets a chance to talk to Perrine, a delightful French organic farmer and permaculture enthusiast and hear how she transformed her life by ditching her career as a lawyer to start a self-sufficient, organic farm without any engines at all. Now she and her husband are examples to others on how to successfully farm the old-fashioned way.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/16/perrine-herve-gruyer/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and our other great guests.

196: Josh Volk on Compact Farms.Making the most from small farms for the best viability. Josh is the author of Compact Farms by Storey Press in February 2017. He is the proprietor of Slow Hand Farm in Portland, Oregon, and has been working on and managing small farms around the country for the last 20 years, studying the systems that make them efficient. He travels in the United States and abroad, consulting with farmers and researchers, teaching farm apprentices and new farmers, presenting workshops at agricultural conferences, and writing articles for publications, including Growing for Market magazine. Josh didn’t come from a farming background. He grew up on the edges of cities and his parents had vegetable gardens that he mostly ignored. When he went away to college and started cooking for himself, he became more interested in where his food came from and how to grow it. That interest grew, inspired by books on small-scale food production. There weren’t many writers on that topic then, and it wasn’t so long ago.In this podcast: Josh talks with Greg to explain his concept of making small farms the most productive and his background really helps give him an edge for understanding and explaining this to our listeners.  Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/14/josh-volk/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to our other great guests.

195: Cricket Aldridge on Suburban Homesteading.Finding personal euphoria in your own backyard.Cricket is natural homesteader. Growing up in rural Idaho with a garden, a horse, and lots of home canned food, she brings those sensibilities to her suburban home in Phoenix. Add a little dose of cottage garden flavor and permaculture tendencies, and you’ll see why her blog, GardenVariety.Life is a reflection of everything she does.  Cricket enjoys sharing skills that promote a meaningful and practical connection to our gardens and environment. Because so many residents of the metro Phoenix area are transplants like her, she finds that the area’s unique desert climate is often misunderstood and underestimated in terms of what is possible. That’s where the fun begins. Arizona is a burgeoning permaculture haven with homesteading written all over it, and there is nothing Cricket enjoys more than encouraging others to jump in and give it a try.In this podcast: Fellow permaculturist and gardener Cricket Aldridge joins Greg in the studio to talk about her urban farm and how much she loves everything about it. She tells about some of her favorite aspects and what she’s able to grow or make from her harvests, from canning to mead making and many other things besides.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/11/cricket-aldridge/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and our other great guests.

194: Kate Miller on Bioregional Herbal Medicine.Sourcing herbs and plants in the local ecosystems for health.Kate is a bioregional community herbalist, medicinal herb grower, & Permaculture Design Teacher.  She is both formally trained and self-taught in the field of Permaculture Design, with focus on Dry-land Herb Farming, Herbal Medicine, Mountain Ecology, & Ethical Wildcrafting Practices.  And she is a Certified Herbalist from the Colorado School of Clinical Herbalism in Boulder. Kate became interested in herbal medicine through years of dealing with chronic illness, including Lyme Disease, food allergies, & autoimmune issues.   Together with her partners Dawne and Stephanie, she runs the bioregional & biodynamic focused herbal product company, Dynamic Roots High Altitude Herbals. Kate is also a co-facilitator for the new Boulder Permaculture Design Course, Across the Divide, running one weekend a month from April through October all around the Front Range of Colorado.  In the next year, Kate is opening Alpine Botanicals, an herbal apothecary, community herbal kitchen, & clinic in downtown Nederland, Colorado.In this podcast: Greg interviews Kate Miller, an herbalist with a focus on healing her community.  She tells how she found her calling in herbalism and becoming a partner in an herbal product company and she explains why ethical harvesting of herbs is so important.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/09/kate-miller/ for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear from our other great guests.

193: Chat With An Expert - Bill McDormanBill McDorman is Executive Director of Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance, Ketchum, Idaho. He got his start in the bio-regional seed movement while in college in 1979 when he helped start Garden City Seeds. In 1984, Bill started Seeds Trust/High Altitude Gardens, a mail-order seed company he ran successfully until it sold in 2013.   He authored the book, Basic Seed Saving, in 1994.  In 2010, he and his wife Belle Starr created Seed School, a nationally recognized week-long training. He served as Executive Director of Native Seeds Search from 2011 to 2014.  Bill is a passionate and knowledgeable presenter who inspires his audiences to learn to save their own seeds.This is the first in a handful of special interviews in our chat with an interview series.  Bill joins us to share what is happening right now in the Southwest region with seed saving, including the upcoming Seed Summit and other seed events in the region.  Bill shares a few insights and a couple interesting stories about some unique and really cool seeds. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/07/chat-with-an-expert-bill-mcdorman/ for links and show notes 

192: Gene Baur on Protecting Farm Animals.Making choices to help defend animals in industrial agriculture.Gene is co‑founder and president of Farm Sanctuary, a national non-profit organization working to end cruelty to farm animals and change the way society views and treats farm animals.  Hailed as “the conscience of the food movement” by TIME magazine and recently selected by Oprah Winfrey to join her Super Soul 100 dream team of “100 awakened leaders who are using their voices and talent to elevate humanity,” he was a pioneer in undercover investigations and instrumental in passing the first U.S. laws to ban inhumane factory farming practices.He has traveled extensively, campaigning to raise awareness about the abuses of animal agriculture and our cheap food system.  Gene is the author of two national bestselling books: Farm Sanctuary: Changing Hearts and Minds about Animals and Food, and Living the Farm Sanctuary Life: The Ultimate Guide to Eating Mindfully, Living Longer, and Feeling Better Every Day.Gene has a master’s degree in agricultural economics from Cornell University, and is a faculty member at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.  Vegan since 1985, he’s recently started competing in marathons and triathlons, including an Ironman, to demonstrate the benefits of plant-based eating.In this podcast:  The co-founder of Farm Sanctuary, Gene Baur, tells Greg about his life as a vegan and triathlete as well as what prompted him to create a safe facility for rescued farm animals.  He has many helpful tips for those who are wanting to try the meatless lifestyle and diet, and he shares some insight on how to work with those you disagree with.Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/04/gene-baur/y for more information, photos and links on this podcast and to hear our other great guests.

191: Petra Page-Mann on Certified Organic Seeds.Selecting bio-regionally adapted seeds and pursuing seed transparency.Raised in the Finger Lakes of New York, Petra spent over a decade traveling the world studying agriculture before returning to her hometown to start her own farm, Fruition Seeds, in 2012.  She has worked for one of the smallest seed companies in the world & also one of the largest.  She passionately grows, breeds, saves, shares & eats the seeds of certified organic, regionally adapted vegetables, flowers & herbs.  If she’s not farming she is singing, on her bike, hunting mushrooms or sharing a feast with a friend.  IN THIS PODCAST: Organic seed seller Petra Page-Mann chats with Greg about bio-regional adaptations in seeds, genetic purity in seeds, a special heatless habanero, and her seed company which is focused on organic seeds with genetic purity and transparency. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/02/02/petra-page-mann/ for show notes and links.

190: Grace Gershuny on The Organic Revolution.Recollecting early food system activism.Grace is widely known as an author, educator and organic consultant. In the 1990's she served on the staff of the USDA’s National Organic Program, where she helped write the regulations. She learned much of what she knows through her longtime involvement with the grassroots organic movement, where she organized conferences and educational events and developed an early organic certification program for the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA).She currently teaches in the Green Mountain College online Masters in Sustainable Food Systems program and serves on the Board of the Institute for Social Ecology. She has a Masters in Extension Education from the University of Vermont, with a self-designed concentration in Ecological Agriculture.Doing business as GAIA Service she works as an independent organic inspector.  She also does consulting for private and non-profit clients on all aspects of organic certification, developing related standards and certification systems, and training programs.  A reformed market gardener, Grace still grows her own veggies and chicken in Barnet, Vermont.In this podcast: Greg is impressed when he gets a chance to talk with Grace who tells about being part of the early organic food movement and her part in writing the first standards for organic food regulation. Her story is important for anyone who is interested in being active in writing food policy for our legislators.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/30/grace-gershuny/ for show notes and links.

189: Manuel Gonzalez on Innovation in Food and Ag.Pitching food and agriculture related business ideas to potential investors.Manuel is the North America Head of StartUp Innovation at Rabobank, where he leads the growth of their start-up platform build through FoodBytes! and new Accelerator, Terra. At the same time, he focuses on developing plans around how relationships with startup firms can benefit corporate clients. Manuel has been Head of the San Francisco Office of StartUp Innovation since 2012, where he led a process that greatly strengthened relationships with corporate clients in the Western Region of the US.He joined Rabobank in 1996 as a project manager. In 2003, he was named Head of Credit, and a year later became Head of Credit and Legal. Manuel was appointed Deputy General Manager in 2007, and just a year later promoted to General Manager in 2008. Under his leadership, the Mexico franchise significantly strengthened business performance, achieving considerable increases in revenue, cross-sell and net income. Manuel was instrumental in building a strong local investment banking team, and in fostering a high-performance culture focused on enhancing client relationships.In this podcast: Manuel is someone who works to help people with food-and-ag related business ideas connect with investors and start the process towards funding those ideas. He tells Greg about the FoodBytes business pitch event that is focused on food and ag, as well as Terra and Rabobank with their focus on innovation in this business field. His take on how to deal with failure is something every person who runs or hopes to run their own business should hear.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/28/manuel-gonzalez/ for show notes and links.

188: Megan Whatton on The Urban Habitat Network.Mapping the habitats of wildlife around the world a section at a time.Megan is the Urban Habitat Network Manager for The Nature Conservancy. She works with scientists, partners, private landowners, citizen scientists and volunteers to re-imagine their properties as habitat for the benefit of wildlife and people. Most recently she was the volunteer coordinator for the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute on the eMammal project to monitor mammal populations in the mid-Atlantic region. Megan has a M.S. Degree in Environmental Science and Policy from George Mason University and B.S. Degree from Ball State University.In this podcast: Megan introduces Greg and his listeners to the Nature Conservancy and the Habitat Network Project. This project creates citizen scientists around the globe and is working to map the globe with their data to paint a picture of the wildlife in every part of the world. Megan explains how this project got started and how easy, fun and rewarding being a member of the network can be.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/26/megan-whatton/ for show notes and links.

187: Sherrie Pelsma on Macro Photography in the Garden.Looking at garden wildlife from a whole new perspective.Sherrie grew up on the rural Oregon Coast before moving to Portland to finish her degree. She has spent the last 10 years in Community Education, and runs a program where participants learn Do-It-Yourself skills to make homes safer and more energy efficient. As an environmentalist who loves macro photography, she took a special interest in pollinators and other insects which quickly blossomed into the love that drove the founding of the project Pollinator Parkways. In this podcast: Greg gets a chance to talk with Sherrie about her garden photography. Sheri has been developing her skills with macro photography and loves to share the results with her projects and her community. Here she helps explains the basics of garden photography, and tells how looking through the camera lens has given her a whole new perspective on the tiny lifeforms around her.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/24/sherrie-pelsma-2/ for show notes and links.

186: Robin Kelson on Seed Saving-Resiliency.Keeping the strength of genetic traits through community sharing of seeds.Robin is the owner of the Good Seed Company  - “heirloom seeds for common use,”  a small heirloom vegetable, flower and herb seed company based in Whitefish, MT and dedicated to helping re-establish the community practice of selecting, saving and sharing seeds for common use.The Good Seed Company envisions becoming a model for cultivating community-grown resilient seeds, seed savers and gardeners, and offers “workshops from soil to seed” under the trade name: “DIY:GROW”, including a one-year “seed steward” internship. DIY:GROW seeks to reduce the barrier to entry for anyone wanting to take control of their food. A biochemist and attorney by training, Robin has spent over 30 years exploring human vitality, resiliency, and patterns in the natural world. In support of cultivating a sustainability perspective for our common future, she also offers "The Resiliency Dialogues", presentations for all audiences that introduce simple tools from nature for practicing resiliency in any context and to invite dialogue on this subject.In this podcast: Greg talks to a former lawyer Robin Kelson who now runs The Good Seed Company. She shares her story about the unexpected transition in her life leading her to her work around seeds.  One of the big events in her new life is an epic community event focused on seed saving and sharing.  She also explains why the company is using seeds from backyard growers.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/21/robin-kelson/ for show notes and links.

185: Elaine Ingham on Life in the Soil.Examining the biology of healthy soil to improve plant growth.Dr. Elaine Ingham is the Founder, President and Director of Research for Soil Foodweb Inc., a business that grew out of her Oregon State University research program.  Behind her user-friendly approach to soil lies a wealth of knowledge gained from years of research into the organisms which make up the soil food web. Her goal is to translate this knowledge into actions that ensure a healthy food web that promotes plant growth and reduces reliance on inorganic chemicals. Elaine also offers a pioneering vision for sustainable farming, improving our current soils to a healthier state, without damaging any other ecosystem.In her spare time, Elaine publishes scientific papers, writes book chapters and gives talks at symposia around the world. Elaine and her husband Russ (who also has a Doctorate from Colorado State University in Zoology, emphasizing nematology,) live in Corvallis Oregon.In this podcast: Greg talks with one of the foremost experts on soil health Dr. Elaine Ingham and learns a lot about the world of microbiological life in the soil.  Her studies have been amazing and it is easy to see how being a student in one of her classes can be quite informative.  She tells about how she became so focused on the microbiological life in the soil and educates us on the importance of those first few dozen inches of earth our food is grown in.  This is a mini course of science in just one podcast.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/19/elaine-ingham/ for show notes and links.

184: Michael Phillips on Holistic Orcharding.Growing fruit trees by creating a healthy ecosystem.Michael is known across the country for helping people grow healthy apples and understand the healing virtues of plant medicines. The “community orchard movement” he helped institute can be found at GrowOrganicApples.com and provides a full immersion into the holistic approach to orcharding.  His farm, Lost Nation Orchard, is part of a diversified medicinal herb farm in northern New Hampshire. There, two acres of trees supply local families with many varieties of organic apples, and has a cider mill in the planning stages.Michael is the author of The Apple Grower: A Guide for the Organic Orchardist, and The Holistic Orchard and co-author with his wife Nancy for The Herbalist’s Way: The Art and Practice of Healing with Plant Medicines.  His newest book, Mycorrhizal Planet: How Symbiotic Fungi Work with Roots to Support Plant Health and Build Soil Fertility, will be available in March 2017.  Michael was honored by Slow Food USA to receive the first Betsy Lydon Ark Award for his work promoting healthy ways to grow fruit.IN THIS PODCAST: Greg has found an east coast twin when he talks to a fruit tree farmer named Michael Phillips who has been growing apple trees in New Hampshire with a care that works for the health of the trees and the ecosystem in which they live.  Michael grows and sells fruit trees and he focuses a lot of offering tree growing education as well.  He shares his main points of growing healthy fruit trees and explains why some of the steps are so beneficial to trees.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/17/michael-phillips/ for show notes and links.

183: Shawn Jadrnicek on The Bio-Integrated Farm.Maximizing functions from landscape elements to save time, energy and money.Shawn has nourished his interest in sustainability through work as an organic farmer, nursery grower, extension agent, arborist, and landscaper, and now as the manager of Clemson University’s Student Organic Farm. From his earliest permaculture experiments with no-till farming in the Santa Cruz Mountains of California to his highly functional bio-integrated designs in the Southeast, Shawn has learned how to cultivate food in a variety of climates and landscapes. He shares his creative solutions through teaching, consulting, design work and his book The Bio-Integrated Farm:  A Revolutionary Permaculture Based System Using Greenhouses, Ponds, Compost Piles, Aquaponics, Chickens and More - Published by Chelsea Green.IN THIS PODCAST:  Greg meets Shawn who explains a key permaculture concept of having multiple functions from one element. Shawn tells how he has designed many projects focusing on elements that have at least seven functions each. With his experience, he has brought together several examples in his new book and so he shares some ideas in this interview. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/14/shawn-jadrnicek/ for show notes and links.

182: Matthew Shepherd on Planting to Feed Bees.Expanding the habitat of an essential pollinator through our garden choices.Matthew’s career began in England where he established a successful community-based conservation program in Essex and helped to create Samfire Hoe, an award-winning nature park. He has also worked with local communities and government agencies in Kenya to improve the management of the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest, on the coast north of Mombasa. He has created and maintained gardens that provide for insects and other wildlife everywhere he has lived, a passion that began when he learned gardening at his mother’s side.Matthew’s introduction to pollinator conservation actually came two decades ago, on a sunny hillside in southern England, while working on a project to protect disappearing grasslands. He was manually using an artist’s paintbrush to transfer pollen between endangered orchids and realized there was obviously something missing in that ecosystem. Five years later, after marrying an American and moving to Oregon, Matthew was working for the Xerces Society at the vanguard of a new effort to protect pollinators.In the past 15 years, he has collaborated with people from all walks of life to promote awareness about, and protection of, pollinator insects, especially native bees. Matthew is author of numerous articles and other publications, including Attracting Native Pollinators and Gardening for Butterflies. He is now the Society’s Communications Director, reducing the amount of time spent with pollinators, but increasing the time supporting the many other aspects of Xerces conservation work.IN THIS PODCAST:  Greg chats with Matthew Shepherd of the Xerces Society to learn more about their latest book titled 100 Plants to Feed the Bees, as well as some of the projects the Society has been working on.  Matthew’s story of how he got to work for the Xerces Society is a little world tour and then he helps explain more about different bees and what they need.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/12/matthew-shepherd/ for show notes and links.

181: Quita Jackson on Thrifty Self Sufficiency.Taking small steps to being green and making a difference.Quita is one of the founders of GreenDesert.org.   And while some would call her an urban farmer or a gardener, she prefers to consider herself spiritually connected to mother earth and her environment.  She loves everything about nature! GreenDesert.org is all about showing people ways to be more self-sufficient, whether you’re gardening, making your own clothes, recycling, or making your own cleaning products… every little bit counts.Quita is all about living the lifestyle…everything from maintaining a garden rich with herbs, vegetables and fruit, to raising chickens and tilapia, to using a water generator to make water from the humidity in the air, to collecting rainwater and The list goes on. She is quite passionate about this topic because she believes we are all in this together… and must recognize how our actions about the environment affects others.  In addition, saving money is a huge priority for her and of course that’s a huge part of being green.IN THIS PODCAST: Being green is all about having less of a negative impact on the planet and here Greg chats with Quita who has fully adopted a new lifestyle and loves helping others find their way into it as well. Quita tells how she got the courage to start gardening, and how that gave her confidence to try new ways to become self-sufficient even while living in a major city. Her encouraging attitude and caring nature helps as she spreads the word about little steps people can take in their own lives.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/10/quita-jackson/ for show notes and links.

180: Brian Smith on Biochar.Enhancing your soils through an ancient, carbon-sequestering, process.Brian is a systems engineer and project manager living in north Phoenix.  For the past 30 years, he has worked for GE, Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Honeywell on software for flight control systems in commercial and military aircraft.  Recently, he became an entrepreneur and started a small software development company.  To balance his high-tech career, he has enjoyed more simple hobbies like making beer, woodworking, and organic gardening.During the Great Recession, he purchased a foreclosed property that had been neglected and abused for many years and he has spent the last 8 years renovating both the indoors and outdoors.  After removing 5 layers of different landscaping stone that previous owners had covered the yard with, he spread several inches of arborist wood chips over the dirt to reduce water loss and increase soil fertility.  In the backyard he converted a broken-down diving pool into a private aquifer by filling it with rock and gravel, connecting a pump to the drain pipe and covering it with topsoil.  He now has several fruit trees and a vegie garden growing on top of 3000 or 4000 gallons of secure rainwater. IN THIS PODCAST: Greg talks to Brian, a transplant to Arizona who needed to improve his gardening results and found out about biochar. Brian explains the process that was used over 2000 years ago, to transform burned wood into a long lasting organic super buffet with nutrients galore. He tells how he was so interested in the results that he took his research to the point that he can now make his own biochar in his backyard.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2017/01/07/brian-smith/ for show notes and links.