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