Farm Small Farm Smart
Fresh episodes and conversations from the agricultural community.
Latest episodes ↓
About This Podcast
Insights for vegetable farmers and market gardeners who earn, or want to earn, a living growing vegetables profitably. In each episode, I talk with a beginning or experienced farmer, diving deep into their story to find out what makes their market farm successful. I focus on in-the-field farming. Soil preparation, weed management, post-harvest processing, appropriate technology, farm tools and equipment, and growing crops. Hosted and produced by Diego Footer's Modern Grower Podcast Network.
Recent Episodes
Start Small, Prove the Model, Then Scale (3 of 3)
Episode notes
Two companies started the same way: a side project solving a real problem, a proven model. One raised $22 billion and went bankrupt. The other never raised a dime and sold for $12 billion.
Interested in watching the series? Hop on over to our YouTube Channel!
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights! 
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
The Real Cost of Scaling Your Farm Too Fast (2 of 3)
Episode notes
Last time, Diego made the case for starting small. This is the other side of the coin: the biggest risk in farming isn't starting too small, it's scaling before you've proven the model. Diego breaks down the real cost of scaling too fast and the three signals that tell you you're actually ready.
Interested in watching the series? Hop on over to our YouTube Channel!
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Expectations from Microbial Applications - Gardening Beyond Basics 93
Episode notes
In this episode, Dr. Jane Fife of 3Bar Biologics discusses reasonable expectations borne from microbial additives.
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Start Small, Prove the Farm Model, Then Scale (1 of 3)
Episode notes
Everybody wants to start a farm empire. The smartest move is to start it small. Very, very small. Diego breaks down why "start small, prove the model, then scale" isn't just farming advice, it's a universal business principle.
Interested in watching the series? Hop on over to our YouTube Channel!
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Raising Organic Matter in Soil - Gardening Beyond Basics 92
Episode notes
In this episode, Dr. Gabe Kenne of the University of South Carolina talks about how to raise organic matter in the soil to increase productivity.
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
You're Selling to the Wrong People (2 of 2)
Episode notes
Your customer probably isn't who you think it is. In the finale of the Who to Sell series, Diego names the "mission trap," building a farm around the people you most want to help, who may not want, value, or be able to afford what you grow, and lays out the sequence that actually works: build a profitable business first, then use it to expand your impact.
Interested in watching the series? Hop on over to our YouTube Channel!
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Inoculating Soil with Microbes - Gardening Beyond Basics 91
Episode notes
In this episode, Dr. Paul Zorner of Locus Ag Solutions talks sheds light on how to go about populating soils with healthy microbes.
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to pro
Why Your Farm Will Fail Charging Low Prices (1 of 2)
Episode notes
There's a number most farmers never calculate: the minimum price you need just to break even.
Diego walks through the math that separates small farms that survive from the ones that slowly bleed out: why wholesale is a volume game you were never set up to win, why direct-to-consumer is the only model that works at small scale, and why charging too little costs you in two directions at once.
Interested in watching the series? Hop on over to our YouTube Channel!
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Increasing Carbon Stores in the Soil - Gardening Beyond Basics 90
Episode notes
In this episode, Dr. Johannes Lehmann of Cornell University talks about where the long-term carbon stores in the soil actually come from.
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
The Profit Pie: Why Smart Farmers Choose Their Market Before Their Land (3 of 3)
Episode notes
Margin tells you how much to keep. Volume tells you how much to grow. But none of it matters without the right place to sell it.
In part 3 of the Profit Pie series, we break down the four sales channels: farmers markets, CSAs, restaurants, and wholesale, and how to match the channel to what your farm actually needs, not just the one with the highest margin.
Interested in watching the series? Hop on over to our YouTube Channel!
Subscribe for more content on sustainable farming, market farming tips, and business insights!
Get market farming tools, seeds, and supplies at Modern Grower.
Follow Modern Grower:
Instagram
Instagram
Listen to other podcasts on the Modern Grower Podcast Network:
Carrot Cashflow
Farm Small Farm Smart
Farm Small Farm Smart Daily
The Growing Microgreens Podcast
The Urban Farmer Podcast
The Rookie Farmer Podcast
In Search of Soil Podcast
Check out Diego's books:
Sell Everything You Grow on Amazon
Ready Farmer One on Amazon
**** Modern Grower and Diego Footer participate in the Amazon Services LLC. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.