Is there anything new or compelling about pesticide safety, or is it always the same information repeated in a different manner? What could someone say about pesticide safety to capture your attention? Dr. Mark Matocha, associate professor and Extension specialist with the Ag and Environmental Safet...

Giving experiences as gifts is a big thing these days. As cut flower growers, we can use classes and events to make new customers fall in love with our flowers and grow our business in different geographic locations. Joining with existing groups or businesses expands the appeal. I have done classes wit...

Plant disease has always been an ongoing concern for farmers. Avoiding, preventing, treating and eliminating plant pathogens takes time, money and knowledge. Synthetic chemical controls have become a primary means of battling plant disease, but their efficacy, environmental safety and cost are leadi...

The TikTok train doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon, and that’s good news for farmers who want to reach out to younger generations, either to get them interested in agriculture in general or as potential customers. (Reminder: The youngest Millennials are now in their late twenties. That m...

Copper is an effective tool for managing bacterial spot and bacterial canker on stone fruits. These diseases, caused by Xanthomonas arboricola and Pseudomonas syringae organisms, overwinter in trees and can build up quickly in orchards. Applying the proper rate of copper at the right time can preven...

Thinking of greenhouses takes me back to my early childhood and my Grandfather Lamont’s small wood frame and glass greenhouse where he grew a mixture of ornamental plants and vegetables. I can still recall the earthy smell inside. My next encounter was working part-time for my friend Art Abbott Jr. ...

Perhaps you’re developing a new marketing plan to meet the needs of the current challenging environment. If so, consider several factors which may affect your strategies. Review and Revise : Commit to the time and effort this task requires. Review each section of your plan with an eye toward current...

Lori Baker is an engineer by trade but wanted a career change. When she and her husband Bob were ready to pursue their dream of farming, they started with a somewhat unusual crop. When the Bakers, both tea lovers, were in North Carolina, Bob came up with the idea of growing tea. They purchased 10 te...

Strawberries, flowers, crop mazes and Christmas trees: expansion is the word at Strawberry Fields and Florist, a farm turned tourist destination in Auburn, NY. Proprietor Linda Eldred and a friend promised each other as girls that they would never marry farmers. Of course, they grew up and did just ...

Many farmers have begun to diversify their operations and use their resources in different ways to bring in more revenue. Offering lodging via Airbnb represents one additional income stream, as explained in “How to Create and Operate a Successful On-Farm Airbnb” by Matt Baumgartner of June Farms in ...

John LaSalle is in charge of making spring occur all year long inside 14,000 square feet of greenhouses at his 12-acre farm, LaSalle Florists and Greenhouses in Whately, MA, where he lives with his wife Debi LaSalle. In late March, one of the greenhouses was full of fragrant calla lilies, the result...

Self-employment and choosing an advisor Paula Ledney uses this Stephen Covey quote to emphasize the importance of setting goals when farm business owners work through retirement planning. Ledney, who serves as the education program associate and financial analyst in business, energy and community vi...

A group of Northeast growers shared tips on tomato grafting in a webinar presented by the New Hampshire Vegetable & Berry Growers Association (NHVBGA) and UNH Extension. Grafting tomatoes requires three steps: Growing healthy rootstock and scions in the pre-graft stage, grafting and post-graft plant...

Maybe you think you’re doing okay. Maybe you’re struggling to make ends meet. Maybe you’re planning for retirement. There are many different money goals, but the key to achieving them lies in the ability to accurately assess your financial health. Alex White, Ph.D., instructor in the Department of D...

Only when I transitioned from vegetable farming to flowers did I realize the challenges involved. It was a mystery how to grow the long, straight stems common in Instagram feeds. Once I learned the definition of a good cut flower, the rules were simple. The plants must thrive in your growing conditi...