Synopsis
Welcome to The Urban Farm Podcast, your partner in the Grow Your Own Food revolution! This audio only podcast features special guests like Jason Mraz, Lisa Steele, and Kari Spencer as we discuss the art and value of growing food in urban areas. We'll explore topics such as urban beekeeping and chicken farming, permaculture, successful composting, monetizing your farm, and much more! Each episode will bring you tips and tricks on how to overcome common challenges, opportunities to learn from the experience of people just like you, and plenty of resources to ensure you're informed, equipped, and empowered to participate more mindfully in your local food system... and to have a great time doing it!
Episodes
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111: Tim Amlaw on Tackling Food Deserts
30/07/2016 Duration: 40minAn Urban Hydroponic project of PureHarvest FoodsTim is an urban agrarian from a farm and agriculture education training and background. He has dedicated his life to building farmer based systems and programs to improve agriculture, humane care of animals and now local Urban Agriculture. His current endeavor is PureHarvests Foods and the Project Arizona Urban Organic Veggie, rejuvenating vacant land in the city with scaled vegetable production and training a local workforce to meet all of the community’s fresh vegetable needs.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/30/tim-amlaw/ for show notes and links.
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110: Brad Lancaster on Rainwater Harvesting
28/07/2016 Duration: 54minBrad Lancaster is the author of the award-winning Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands and Beyond and co-founder of DesertHarvesters.org. Since 1993 Brad has run a successful permaculture education, design, and consultation business focused on integrated regenerative approaches to landscape design, planning, and living. In the Sonoran Desert, with just 11 inches of annual rainfall, he and his brother harvest about 100,000 gallons of rainwater a year on an eighth-acre urban lot and adjoining right-of-way. This harvested water is then turned into living air conditioners of food-bearing shade trees, abundant gardens, and a thriving landscape incorporating wildlife habitat, beauty, medicinal plants, and more.The goal of his book series and overall work is to empower his clients and community to make positive change in their own lives and neighborhoods—by harvesting and enhancing free on-site resources such as water, sun, wind, shade, community, and more. It’s catching on, as evidenced by tens of thousands
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109: Michelle Fehler on Biomimicry
26/07/2016 Duration: 34minMichelle’s love for gardening most likely was imprinted during her childhood in Switzerland where she grew up surrounded by green and lush vegetation. She spent most of her childhood in her parents’ garden, connecting on a deep level with nature. In her mid-twenties, she moved to Phoenix for a 6-month adventure. And now, after 19 years, she calls Phoenix her home. Michelle is a trained graphic designer who received her Masters exploring biomimetic and sustainable graphic design. She is full-time faculty at the Design School at ASU. These days, her garden provides her with much needed time for restorative energy while she is working on her second Master’s through the newly established Biomimicry Program at ASU as well as on the Biomimicry Professional certification through Biomimicry 3.8. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/26/michelle-fehler/ for show notes and links.
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108: Darren Chapman on Stimulating Community Development
23/07/2016 Duration: 51minDarren is a community pro-activist who has committed his life to helping people. He is Founder and CEO of TigerMountain Foundation (a.k.a. TMF), which has implemented Empowerment Initiatives to uplift communities and eliminate blight. Tiger Mountain’s initiatives are community garden / landscaping development, audio, visual and performance art, community service and volunteerism. The gardens promote healthy living by growing lush-gardens and feeding the community. TigerMountain Foundation’s Asset Based Community Development model was developed with the thought of urban renewal and restoration of communities. Participants who stay engaged are motivated to keep positive and will develop their individual very important assets. Darren’s motto is to change one mind and attitude at a time, encouraging all who have been touched to pay it forward, which will undoubtedly make the immediate community and the world a better place to live. Darren currently resides and works in the Phoenix Metropolitan area.Vis
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107: Kerry Wekelo on Encouraging Kids to Eat Better
21/07/2016 Duration: 32minKerry is the founder and visionary of Zendoway and hopes to share with you from all her life experiences. Kerry serves as the Director of Human Resources and Operations for Actualize Consulting in which she spearheaded and runs a successful wellness program. In addition to wellness and leadership articles, Kerry has authored “Audrey’s Journey” a children’s book series focused on living with compassion and joy. She also wrote the "Pile of Smile Activity Book" to give away free to children undergoing cancer treatments and If It Does Not Grow Say No” to teach kids about having fun with nutrition.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/21/kerry-wekelo/ for show notes and links.
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106: Jessica Piper on Jarden's Can-It-Forward Day
19/07/2016 Duration: 41minJessica is a home canning expert and has worked for Jarden Home Brands for over 11.5 years. She currently is an Analytics Specialist (or Home Canning Expert) in Consumer Affairs and a certified process engineer through the USDA. Being a life-long resident in Muncie, Indiana, Jessica has a strong affinity toward the Ball brand & its heritage in her community.Now in its 6th year, Can-It-Forward Day has a “Facebook Live! Event” taking place on Friday, July 22nd from 10AM – 3:30PM ET. Jarden Home Brands, will host a series of live, unique recipe demos taking place in kitchens across the country.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/19/jessica-piper/ for show notes and links.
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105: Stacey Murphy on Urban Farming in Brooklyn
16/07/2016 Duration: 39minStacey has taught hundreds of teens and adults how to grow, harvest and prepare fresh foods. She is a recovering engineer and architect turned garden geek and farm nerd. Stacey founded BK Farmyards, a cooperative of urban farmers in Brooklyn dedicated to social justice through urban agriculture, and helped create over an acre of new farmyards in Brooklyn. She's been featured on Martha Stewart Radio, PBS online and once appeared on the David Letterman show with a giant radish. She envisions a world where everyone is nourished by the magic of fresh, affordable and culturally exciting food…extra points if it’s homegrown.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/16/stacey-murphy/ for show notes and links.
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104: Jerome Osentowski on Growing an Indoor Food Forest
14/07/2016 Duration: 42minJerome Osentowski has spent the last 30 years developing indoor and outdoor forest farming technology at his location in Basalt, Colorado. He is the founder and director of the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute dedicated to education, research, and demonstration.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/14/jerome-osentowski/ for show notes and links.
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103: DeBorah Prince on Learning How to Garden from the Internet
12/07/2016 Duration: 23minGardening has been DeBorah Prince’s passion and therapy for over 20 years. She grows a huge range of fruits and veggies from asparagus to zucchini, makes her own compost and vermicompost, and her latest project is building a chicken coop. She lives in New Jersey and has been married for 23 years with a big family of 8 children and 15 grandchildren.Come listen to the delightfully upbeat gardener tell us how she decided to just start gardening and learned how from the internet and books. She explains how the food available today is not real food, and why that matters to her family. You can't help but laugh with her as she tells us why she named her urban farm and why everyone should name theirs.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/12/deborah-prince/ for show notes and links.
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102: Beth Terry on Living and Gardening without Plastic
09/07/2016 Duration: 47minAfter learning about the devastating effects of plastic pollution on the environment and human health, Oakland accountant Beth began an experiment to see if she could live without buying any new plastic. Since then, she has reduced her plastic waste to less than 2% of the national average. That experiment turned into the popular blog MyPlasticFreeLife.com and new book Plastic-Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Too. Her work and life have been profiled in the award-winning film Bag It, as well as Susan Freinkel’s book, Plastic: A Toxic Love Story and Captain Charles Moore’s Plastic Ocean.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/09/beth-terry/ for show notes and links.
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101: Paris Masek on Food Hubs and Small Farms
07/07/2016 Duration: 38minParis Masek is the Managing Director for Green on Purpose and the Director of Agriculture Programs for Quincea Social Enterprises. He is also a PhD candidate at ASU in English Literature working with Indigenous American Literature and Cultures. He is an active member of the Maricopa County Food System Coalition as well as an urban gardener who uses raised beds, edible landscaping, and a flock of chickens in his downtown residence to keep fresh produce and eggs on his family’s dinner table. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/07/paris-masek/ for show notes and links.
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100: Toby Hemenway on A Permaculture Way of Life
05/07/2016 Duration: 42minToby is the author of a new book on urban and suburban permaculture, The Permaculture City, as well as Gaia’s Garden, the best-selling permaculture book in the world, which won the 2011 Nautilus award and was named one of the ten best gardening books of 2010 by The Washington Post. He has been an adjunct professor at Portland State University and Scholar-in-Residence at Pacific University. Toby is a well-known permaculture teacher and has taught over 70 Permaculture Design Courses. He and his wife, Key el, live in Sebastopol, California.Listen in to our 100th episode and hear Greg and Toby chat about one of their favorite topics: Permaculture. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/05/toby-hemenway/ for show notes and links
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99: Dr. George Brooks on Agtech and Aquaponics
02/07/2016 Duration: 50minDr. George Brooks Jr. is the Founder and President of the NxT Horizon Group. Dr. Brooks holds an earned Ph.D., in Wildlife and Fisheries from the School of Renewable Natural Resources at the University of Arizona and is an established social, environmental, economic and political leader and business consultant. With the motto of “AgTech for the Real World” NxT Horizon focuses on bioenergy development in Africa, and the development and application of new urban farming technologies (aquaponics) to solve real world social, environmental and economic problems.Come listen to Dr. Brooks as he helps us understand more about aquaponics and our opportunities with it. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/07/02/george-brooks/ for show notes and links.
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98: Michael Judd on Edible Landscape Design
30/06/2016 Duration: 42minMichael Judd has worked with agro-ecological and whole system designs throughout the Americas for the last 20 years focusing on applying permaculture and ecological design to increase local food security and community health in both tropical and temperate growing regions. The founder of both Ecologia, LLC, Edible & Ecological Landscape Design and Project Bona Fide, an international non-profit supporting agro-ecology research.Come listen and learn about Michael's adventure in rural latin america and what he learned from some Mayan tribes. He tells us how he learned they managed to meet all of their needs without help from the outside. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/06/30/michael-judd/ for show notes and links.
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97: Jodi Torpey on Blue Ribbon Vegetables
28/06/2016 Duration: 34minGrowing vegetables worthy of entering competitions.Jodi is an award-winning vegetable gardener, craftsy gardening instructor, and the founder and editor-in-chief of WesternGardeners.com. In addition to the two books she authored, her garden writing also appears in digital and print media. Since 2010 she’s organized the annual Plant a Row for the Hungry campaign in Denver, Colorado. Jodi has a lot of great advice on how and why to start growing vegetables for competition purposes. Listen in to our "biggest" podcast ever and find out why we say that. Visit http://www.urbanfarm.org/blog/2016/06/28/jodi-torpey/ for show notes and links.
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96: Molly Cole on Starting a Small Farm in Washington
25/06/2016 Duration: 27minMolly comes from a long line of farmers in Washington state. She grew up on a farm with chickens, cows, pigs and the occasional turkey. She has two boys and her own acre in Spokane where they raise chickens, honey bees and of course, fruits and veggies. She’s just getting started and hope to transform her property into a working, thriving, educational farm where she can teach her family and others how to grow their own food.Molly did not want to be a farmer when she went to college so she pursued other interests. Eventually she bought a house with an acre of land and a bee hive. Listen to her story of how she is returning to farming to give her children better food options, and using her education background to help teach others about beekeeping and basic farming.Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/06/25/molly-cole/ for show notes and links.
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95: Larry Santoyo on Permaculture Design
23/06/2016 Duration: 47minLarry has been a teacher and practitioner of Permaculture Design for the last 28 years. After a career in law enforcement, Santoyo went onto land use planning and was mentored by Permaculture’s founding father, Bill Mollison. Santoyo went on to teach Permaculture with Mollison around the US and Australia. He has taught environmental design at colleges and universities nationwide, including UC Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, Evergreen College, CSU Northridge, and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He is also the Senior Designer at Earthflow Designs of Los Angeles, one of the largest Permaculture companies in the world. The firm specializes in planning and design that integrates economic development strategies with ecological systems management in residential, commercial and municipal projects. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/06/23/larry-santoyo/ for show notes and links.
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94: Tristram Stewart on Food Waste, A Global Scandal
21/06/2016 Duration: 46minTristram Stuart, founder of the charity Feedback, is an international award-winning author (The Bloodless Revolution and Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal), speaker, campaigner and expert on the environmental and social impacts of food production. The environmental campaigning organization he founded, Feedback, has spread its work into dozens of countries worldwide, working with governments, international institutions, businesses, non-governmental organizations, grassroots organizations and the public to change society’s attitude toward wasting food. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/06/21/tristram-stuart/ for show notes and links.
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93: Diana Rogers on Homegrown Paleo Cooking
18/06/2016 Duration: 49minDiana is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist living on a working organic farm outside of Boston, Massachusetts. She is the author of The Homegrown Paleo Cookbook: Over 100 Gluten Free, Seasonal Recipes and a Complete Guide to Growing Your Own Healthy Food. Diana speaks internationally about nutrition and sustainability issues in our food system, runs the popular podcast, Sustainable Dish, and works with people one on one to help them recover their health through real food.Come join us as we hear Diana tells us how she and her husband created the sustainable farm and education center they now run. Her passion to help others is obvious as it weaves through her story. Visit https://www.urbanfarm.org/2016/06/18/diana-rodgers/ for show notes and links.
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92: Casey Beck & Austin Blair on 'The Organic Life' a Documentary
16/06/2016 Duration: 49minCasey is a director and producer of independent documentary films, highlighting untold stories. She premiered “The Organic Life” to sold-out crowds at the 36th Mill Valley Film Festival in 2013. The film won Best Documentary Feature at the Santa Cruz Film Festival, and national online and broadcast distribution was rolled out in 2014, including on iTunes, FoodMattersTV, and PivotTV among others. Casey is currently directing a feature documentary “This Just In” as well a digital short documentary series telling immigration stories through food, called “Table." Austin has been farming for seven years. He got his start through the apprentice program at Soil Born Farms in Sacramento, California in 2009. Soon after, he co-founded Lunita Farm in Sonoma Valley, a hand-scale mixed vegetable operation. In 2010, Austin began to work full time at Paul's Produce, a mainstay in the Sonoma farming community for nearly 30 years. At home, he raises chickens and is launching a hot sauce label. Visit https://www.urba