From lflondon@mindspring.com Thu Mar 2 21:11:14 2000 Date: Thu, 02 Mar 2000 21:09:07 -0500 From: "Lawrence F. London, Jr." To: lflondon@mindspring.com, london@metalab.unc.edu Subject: (fwd) Farming book recommendations [ The following text is in the "ISO-8859-1" character set. ] [ Your display is set for the "US-ASCII" character set. ] [ Some characters may be displayed incorrectly. ] On Thu, 2 Mar 2000 16:20:21 -0800, in market-farming Marcie Rosenzweig wrote: Here's the compendium of the recommendations I received in response to my requests for your most valued farming books. There is also a section on periodicals. I'll have the "list experts" faq in a couple of days. I want to personally thank all of you who contributed to this mini-faq. Special thanks to Aaron Silverman, Michaele Blakely, Alex McGregor, and Lee Lawton. Marcie Farm Planning and Management "Backyard Market Gardening, The Entrepreneur's Guide To Selling What You Sow," Andy Lee, Good Earth Publications, 320 pages, 1993, 5th printing. email: goodearth@rockbridge.net A complete why-to and how-to of small-scale market farming (AL) "Holistic Resource Management," Allan Savory, In depth modelling of system thought, planning, design. Also available is a workbook version (AS) "Market Farm Forms: Spreadsheet Templates for Planning and Tracking Information on Diversified Market Farms" Marcie A. Rosenzweig, 1999 100pgs plus diskette Developed to help with their planning, planting and income diversification, Market Farm Forms follows the flow of information through the farm from whole farm planning to calculating transplants needed, soil amendments needed, pricing from budget, how much to plant for a CSA, invoicing restaurants, and yield projections. The book explains how to enter your farm's information into the templates, and what the calculated data tells you. Diskette works seamlessly with Excel (tm,) and is available for PC or Mac. Computerless farmers can use the printed forms with a pencil and calculator. Comb bound (MR) Order from Full Circle Organic Farm, 3377 Early Times Lane, Auburn, CA 95603 fullcircle@jps.net $45 plus $5 s&h, CA residents pay $3.26 state tax. spcify PC or Mac "The New Organic Grower A Master's Manual of Tools and Techniques for the Home and Market Gardener" Eliot Coleman, Chelsea Green Great general guide for the principles of intensive crop management. Advice and techniques should be tempered with common sense when used!! (AS) (Mentioned as indispensible by four people who responded. (MR)) "Rebirth of the Small Family Farm," Bob and Bonnie Gregson, is a "handbook for starting a successful organic farm based on the community supported agriculture concept"....about how two middle-aged relatively novice farmers make a decent living from two acres of land. Books are available directly from us for $9.95, including postage. Address: IMF, Box 2542, Vashon Island, WA 98070 (BBG) "The Small Commercial Garden," by Dan Haakenson. Accompanying video available. Successful small market gardener with less than 1/4 acre in production. Detailed information from his own records on designing the garden to grow for sale, marketing, commercial design of necessary structures, planning, growing, harvesting & intensive advice on basic crops that are the mainstay of any good market garden-no unusual crops. Accompanying video is well worth the extra price as he shows how to do his unusual cloches, cold frames, & trellising. Highly recommended for small market growers. (LP) "Small Operator's Handbook," Bernard Kamoroff, common/Barnes&Noble. General about starting & running a small business. Worksheets & resources (AS) "Successful Small-Scale Farming, An Organic Approach," Karl Schwenke, Storey Publishing If you're interested in making a full or part-time living with your land, this book strips the romance & exposes the harsh realities & real potential for succeeding. It goes beyond just growing crops to show everything you need to know, including which direction to begin plowing your fields, machinery you might not need, how to pull up old fence posts, and other info you missed from your farming grandparents! Basic, concise, relevant-a virtual encyclopedia on farming in paperback. (LP) "Sustainable Vegetable Production from Start-up to Market" by Vern Grubingers Vern covers equipment thoroughly, as well farm planning and business management and has a great section on growers profiles of 18 crops, including their enterprise budgets. A great overview for those starting out or those looking for different angles. Soils and Fertility Management "Fertile Soil" by Robert Parnes A wonderful primer on soil fertility. This book has quite a price tag, $40 when purchased 5 years ago, but worth every penny. Discussions on the role of humus, biological activity, and formulating fertility programs. Priceless charts on nutrient contents of loads of fertilizers/manures/etc. (AS) My favorite soil book(MR) "Know Your Soil," Amigo Cantisano, Peaceful Valley Farm Supply This pamphlet accompanies soil test data when samples are sent through Peaceful Valley Farm Supply of Grass Valley, CA (MR) "Feed The Soil," Edwin McLeod, (A definitive reference on cover crops) (MR) "The Soul of Soil A Guide to Ecological Soil Management" by Grace Gershuny & Joseph Smillie Recommended by Michaele Blakely, Lee Lawton, Marcie Rosenzweig "Start with the Soil" by Grace Gershuny The above books were my springboards to successful farming. I don't use them very often now; they have become the references I use to seek out answers I might be needing in a new situation. Michaele Blakely "The Albrecht Papers," William A. Albrecht, Ph.D., Acres USA ^Ö Albrecht spent his life researching soils and plant & animal nutrition. These volumes contain all his writings. Some are repetitious, but overall an education. His method is used by Kinsey and others. "Hands-On Agronomy," Neal Kinsey, Acres USA ^Ö Kinsey is a consultant and this book sums up his knowledge of soil minerals and fertility. "The Nature and Properties of Soils," Nyle C. Brady, MacMillan The classic textbook for undergraduate soil science, packed with information about soils. "Building Soils for Better Crops: Organic Matter Management," Fred Magdoff, University of Nebraska Press ^Ö 2/3 of book written in layman's terms, 1/3 in scientific. Great for understanding organic matter. The University of Nebraska Press, 312 N 14th Street, Box 880484, Lincoln, NE 68588-0484, 800-755-1105, 402-472-6214 Fax The above is an annotated list of some soil books I recommend for my classes and workshops: Alex McGregor Managing Cover Crops Profitably, SARE, $19: 187 S. Winooski Ave Burlington, Vt. 05401. Broad & detailed description of cover crops & uses (AS) "The Rodale Guide to Composting,"Jerry Minnich & Marjorie Hunt, Rodale Press This is IT for composting(MR) "Soil and Health," Sir Albert Howard. Seminal work on the underpinings of organic agricultural thought.(AS) Seeds - Saving and Starting "The New Seed Starters Handbook" Nancy Bubel, Everything you ever needed to know about seed starting, with sections on saving your own seed, seed exchanges plus information on how to grow specific garden vegetables, wildflowers and trees from seed. I lug this book around this time of year as I plan.()Good overview of the topic.(AS) "Saving Seeds," Marc Rogers, Storey Communications, Pownal, VT. 05261 Decent guideline to saving many vegetables & flowers "Seed to Seed Seed Saving Techniques for the Vegetable Gardener,"Suzanne Ashworth, Seed Savers Exchange The quintessential book on seed saving. a must for anyone interested in saving our seed heritage.(MR) Crops - General and Specific Apples "The Apple Grower, A Guide for the Organic Orchardist," Michael Phillips, Chelsea Green Publishing, 1998 (LL) The Apple Gower by Michael Phillips, a great book, which is very well written and covers everything from when to pick, how to make great cider, the Imidan controversy to a wassailing song. "Organic Orcharding," Gene Logsdon --great book!!!! YOu can usually find it used on bookfinder.com Penny "Organic Fruit Tree Management," Linda Edwards, Certified Organic Associations of British Columbia, 1998. (LL) Chickens and Eggs "The Chicken Health Handbook,"Gail Damerow (MB) "Chicken Tractor, The Permaculture Guide to Happy Hens and Healthy Soil," Andy Lee and Patricia Foreman, Good Earth Publications, email: goodearth@rockbridge.net Following on the pioneering work of Bill Mollison, the Chicken Tractor book offers guidance from chick to table and all points in-between for the healthiest and best tasting poultry, and a very useful guide and how-to on soil management.(AL) "Pastured Poultry Profits," Joel Salatin (MB) Flowers "The Edible Garden: Herbs & Flowers" National Home Gardening Club Minneapolis", MN (12301 Whitewater Drive, Minnetonka, MN 55343 to be exact) A great reference book on edible flowers that even features recipes & cooking suggestions, e.g. stuffed tulips. (AL?) "The Flower Farmer:An Organic Grower's Guide to Raising and Selling Cut Flowers ," Lynn Byczynski, Chelsea Green Softcover, 8x10, 224 pages, $24.95. Available from Growing for Market at 800-307-8949. A lovely book as well. It's helped me expand into more flowers for my new CSA.() a comprehensive introductory guide to commercial cut flower production. It includes variety recommendations, cultivation, harvest and post-harvest handling, flower marketing, yield and pricing, woody ornamentals, dried flowers, arranging, profiles of successful growers and an appendix with production and harvest advice on 100 species.(LB) Garlic "Growing Great Garlic," Ron Engeland My favorite farming book. Garlic is such satisfying crop. You plant it in the fall instead of during the crazy time in spring, you can practically forget about it. The book is written specifically for organic gardeners and small farmers. It contains history and evolution of garlic, more garlic cultivation info than you ever thought you would need, and how to store, market and process garlic. I still pick up this book to check on things (lots of pages are turned down or marked) even though I've been growing garlic for the last five years. (Suzy Roth) Pasture Management "Greener Pastures On Your Side of the Fence," Bill Murphy, Stockman Grass Farmer (800) 748-9808. Valuable overview of pasture management, being the meeting of animal & grass Veggies "Knott's Handbook for Vegetable Growers," Oscar Lorenz & Donald Maynard: Wiley. Invaluable general reference - charts and lists of just about everything (AS) One of the "bibles" (MR) The Organic Gardener's Home Reference Tanya Denckla (MB) Pest Control "The Encyclopedia of Natural Insect & Disease Control," Yepsen, Rodale Press Excellent and comprehensive reference arranged by crop for ease of use. Good information on pest and disease cycles so avoidance is possible. I think this must be the one Michaele refers to. (MR) I had a wonderful pest and disease book from Rodale's. I lent it to someone a few years back, don't remember who or what the title of the book was.(MB) "Identifying Diseases of Vegetables," MacNab, Penn State Pictures of diseases of a variety of vegetables.(AS) "Organic Plant Protection," Rodale Press Good, general overview of organic pest control. Somewhat dated, a good starting point (AS) "Pests of the Garden and Small Farm - A Grower's Guide to Using Less Pesticide," Mary Louise Flint, UC DANR Publication # 3332 276 pages Excellent photos and drawings, comprehensive. a great resource for identifying the critter du jour. (MR) "Weeds," Walter Muenscher, Cornell University Press. Invaluable Reference for both weed identifying, and control. Management suggestions based primarily on cultural means.(AS) Sales, Marketing and CSAs "Community Supported Agriculture - Making the Connection: A 1995 Handbook for Producers" Blake, Bill UC Cooperative Extension, Placer County 1995 198pgs "Making the Connection" pulls together the experience of many innovative projects. While describing the diversity of CSA, this handbook for producers also addresses common questions and concerns. Three-ring binder format. (MR) $25 plus $5.00 s&h (make check payable to "UC Regents") to: UCCE Placer, Attn: CSA Handbook, 11477 E Avenue, Auburn, CA 95603 "Dynamic Farmers' Marketing: A Guide to Successfully Selling Your Farmers' Market Products," Jeff Ishee, An informal book dedicated to the sole topic of selling at farmers' markets. Save two years of trial and error just by studying and implementing the tips found in this book (Acres) "Marketing Your Produce," Growing For Market publishers. A compilation of the best marketing articles that appeared in Growing For Market, 1992-1995. Chapters include information on specialty produce, selling to restaurants &/or supermarkets, farmers' markets, CSAs, and expanding your market. Ends with a list of recommended books. Lots of info from individual farms-people who have used the advice of which they write. (LP) "Sell What You Sow," Eric Gibson, New World Publishing: e-mail egibson@jps.net Great overview of marketing techniques for a variety of situations. Appendices & Resource List(AS) Aimed at small to medium scale farmers, readable, useful (MR) "Sharing the Harvest," Elizabeth Henderson and the late Robyn van En. I love this book! CSA in context to our whole food system, getting started, labor,legalities, distribution, you name it, it's in here! Season Extension "Winter Gardening in the Maritime Northwest: Cool season crops for the year-round gardener," Binda Colebrook, Sasquatch Books, Seattle. An excellent book for your consideration(MR) "Growing Across the Seasons: A Season and Harvest Extension Guide for the Small-Acreage Farmer," UC Cooperative Extension Placer and Nevada northern California (foothills) While this has some are specific data, there are good sections on Market diversification, Mulches, Row Covers, Cloches, Cold Frames andGreenhouses, and budgetary decision making.(MR) It's available through Placer UCCE for $11.58 which includes taxes and shipping. To order a copy, send a check made payable to UC Regents to UCCE Placer 11477 E Avenue, Auburn, CA 95603. Miscellaneous books "Working with Your Woodland, a Landowner's Guide," Mollie Beattie et.al., Guideline to managing a woodlot, especially a hardwood based forest(AS) "Peaceful Valley Malabar Farm," Louis Bromfield. Elegantly written narratives on the meaning of farming sustainably, and its impact on the wider society (AS) Periodicals "The Community Farm, A Voice for Community Supported Agriculture, " Edited and produced by Jim Sluyter and Jo Meller. Quarterly publication comes out in February, May, August and November. $20 US TCM 3480 Potter Rd. Bear Lake, MI 49614 (616) 889-3216 fsfarm@mufn.org(see FAQ) "Growing for Market, news and ideas for market gardeners" edited and published by Lynn Byczynski. $27yr, monthly, PO Box 3747 Lawrence, Ks. 66046 Producing & Marketing vegetables & flowers (see FAQ) Small Farmer's Journal, $24yr, quarterly, PO Box 1627 Sisters, Or. 97759 Farming with horses, and general info & tales of farming Stockman Grass Farmer, (800)748-9808 Focused on grass-based farming systems around the world Marcie A. Rosenzweig Full Circle Organic Farm Auburn, CA Lawrence F. London, Jr. Venaura Farm intergarden.com InterGarden metalab.unc.edu/intergarden InterGarden metalab.unc.edu/permaculture PermaSphere metalab.unc.edu/intergarden/orgfarm AGINFO lflondon@mindspring.com london@metalab.unc.edu