442: Emily Heller on Growing Food for Locals and Small Restaurants.

Living the good life while selling from a small farm.

In This Podcast: How does one become a farmer when you haven't gone to school for agriculture? Emily Heller did just that using local education programs and opportunities. Here, she discusses successful selling as a small space producer, parameters for success in gardening, and some of her best practices. She also speaks to the emotional journey of farming and how to handle the imperfections and challenges. Emily also shares how to educate customers at Farmers Markets and build repeat clients.

Tempe, Arizona grower Emily is a student of Mother Nature’s. Since moving to Arizona in 1998, she’s been growing food and studying the low-desert seasons as a backyard gardener. A former journalist, she shifted gears in 2014 and became a master gardener — then completed beginning farmer programs in Maricopa and Pinal counties. 

She went on to sell her produce at farmers markets through the local growers’ co-op, Community Exchange. Now she leases farmland in Queen Creek, has scaled up production and has her own booth at Uptown Farmers Market in Phoenix. The name of her farming adventure is Bene Vivendo. That translates from Latin to “the good life.”

Go to https://www.urbanfarm.org/2019/04/30/442-emily-heller/ for more information and links on this podcast, and to find our other great guests.

442: Emily Heller on Growing Food for Locals and Small Restaurants.