The successful endpoint of a marketing plan is to achieve an elevated level of the market share for your product or service. The marketing plan serves as a pathway to this end. Three main components represent the keys to realizing this goal: Demographics, geography and data. Demographics help to out...

When orchards sold fruit in the late 1800s, many of them took freshly picked fresh crops to city markets by horse and buggy. That’s what Steve Lewis’s great-grandfather did when he grew fruit on 12 acres and sold it in Hagerstown, MD. While Lewis Orchard in Smithsburg, MD, is currently operated by f...

When it comes to facts about Christmas trees, you definitely don’t want to listen to Charlie Brown’s friend, Lucy. In the children’s classic “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” Lucy “teaches” her little brother Linus all about trees. She points to an evergreen and tells him it’s a “fur tree.” She ex...

To be a farmer you have to be tough to weather the storms of changing prices – and the weather doled out by Mother Nature. You also, deep down, have to love the land. It helps if you have someone to teach you how to look at the land and see its promise of growing living things that will sustain gene...

Boxwood blight has been confirmed in at least half the states in the U.S., and it’s spreading. The Horticultural Research Institute (HRI) and the Boxwood Blight Insight Group (BBIG) hosted an informational webinar on the disease, featuring Dr. James LaMondia, Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Stat...

Michelle Pace Davis took time on her day off recently to give a tour of their operation to members of the Carolinas/Virginia Chapter of the National Agri-Marketing Association. She provided a history of the farm and showed attendees where there used to be tobacco barns for curing the tobacco once gr...

Farmers and farm businesses are installing solar panels on buildings to cut energy costs. Although investing in solar or other green energy can be quite costly, a REAP grant can help. REAP (Rural Energy for America Program) grants award money to ag producers and rural small businesses for renewable ...

Dr. Nikki Springer recently headlined a webinar titled “Garden-to-Grave: Sustainable Strategies for Landscape Material Disposal.” The presentation was in partnership with America in Bloom, a nonprofit focusing on educational efforts and community involvement in horticulture. Springer holds a Ph.D. i...

Fire blight can decimate an orchard, starting in early spring as soon as blossoms develop; it spreads blossom-to-blossom via rain, wind and pollinators. When average temperatures reach 60º F or more, and the relative humidity is 60% or more (or rain occurs), these bacteria can enter a new host and c...

Flowers are fleeting, especially once they have been cut. As a grower, our goal is for our customers to enjoy them for at least five to seven days. The exception is events such as weddings or funerals. Even then, we are cutting those flowers and holding them until the event in our cooler. So, longev...

Agriculture has both been a cause of climate change and has been impacted by climate change. Fossil fuel use, release of carbon from intensively farmed soils, greenhouse gas emissions from concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), poisoning of water and soil due to use of toxic chemicals, depl...

As we move into my favorite season, with the first hint of cooler temperatures and no humidity, there’s a faint whiff of woodsmoke in the evening air and the beautiful tapestry of autumn colors displayed on the mountains. Out in the vegetable industry growers are making the final push toward the end...

Each part of your marketing plan should stand on its own, as well as relate to a comprehensive overview. As you develop these strategies, you will see the natural progression the plan takes toward becoming a successful marketing platform. Think of a spiral where the plan begins and ends. Between the...

“Shh, the apples are sleeping…” is an iconic sign for those that pass by Bolton Orchards in Bolton, MA. It is painted on the front of the storage barn that houses the apples through the dormant season. In early August, the storage barn is less than 10% full. They are getting ready for the new apples...

Anyone who has travelled in New Jersey is familiar with numerous roadside stands overflowing with fresh produce. Although visitors might see Alstede Farms among the choices, the home base of this Chester, NJ, farm is an attraction in itself. The farm was founded by first generation farmer Kurt Alste...