Farm Stories
Farmers
and ranchers across the South are redefining agriculture. Below are
examples of Southern producers running successful sustainable farming
operations. Click on the names to read their stories.
Do you have an article about a model farm that we can share with others?
Email
it to: info@ssawg.org.
Farmer |
State |
Crop/Product/Livestock |
Carol
and Baxter Adams
|
Texas |
Fruit,
Vegetables and Catfish |
Ben Anthony |
Arkansas |
Meat Goats, vegetables and watermelon |
Mark
and Shelly Babcock |
Mississippi |
Vegetables |
Ann
Bell and Mac Stone |
Kentucky |
Vegetables,
Eggs, Chickens, Turkeys, Beef and Lamb |
Leonard,
Elsa and Floyd Bergey and Mike Morris |
Virginia |
Dairy |
Alyce
Birchenough and Doug Wolbert |
Alabama |
Dairy |
Earnie
and Martha Bohner |
Missouri |
Fruit |
Mark
Cain |
Arkansas |
Vegetables,
Blueberries and Cut Flowers |
Max
Carter |
Georgia |
Row
Crops |
Aaron
and Michael Chappell |
Arkansas |
Row
Crops |
Ken
Dawson
Emile
deFelice
|
North
Carolina
South
Carolina
|
Vegetables
and Cut Flowers
Pastured
Pork
|
Nicolas
Donck |
Georgia |
Vegetables |
Jenny
and Darrin Drake |
Tennessee |
Multi-Species
Livestock |
Laura
Freeman |
Kentucky |
Beef |
Donnie
and M. R. Fulks 1 |
Virginia |
Strawberries,
Pumpkins and Row Crops |
Donnie
and M. R. Fulks 2 |
Virginia |
Strawberries,
Pumpkins and Row Crops |
Luke
Green |
Alabama |
Peanuts
and Beef |
Kenny
Haines |
North
Carolina |
Vegetables |
Alvin
and Shirley Harris 1 |
Tennessee |
Vegetables
and Blueberries |
Alvin
and Shirley Harris 2 |
Tennessee |
Vegetables
and Blueberries |
Betsy
and Alex Hitt |
North
Carolina |
Vegetables,
Blueberries and Cut Flowers |
Neil Hoffman |
Kentucky |
Goats |
Dennis
Holbrook |
Texas |
Citrus,
Vegetables |
Danny
and Nancy Johnson |
Virginia |
Apples |
Cathy
Jones |
North
Carolina |
Vegetables
and Cut Flowers |
Jackie,
Rochelle, Clint, Chad and Brandy Judice |
Louisiana |
Sugar
Cane |
|
Florida |
Vegetables
and Cut Flowers |
|
Tennessee |
Meat Goats |
|
Arkansas |
Rice |
Steve
McKaskle |
Missouri |
Row
Crops |
|
Oklahoma |
Pork,
Chickens and Vegetables |
Joe,
Peggy, Dalton, Gretchen Maddox |
Texas |
Cattle
and Sheep |
Charlie
Maloney |
Virginia |
Vegetables |
Jamie
& Kenny Mauthe |
Louisiana |
Dairy |
Tim
Miller |
Texas |
Vegetables |
Roger
Nutter and Muffin Brosig |
North
Carolina |
Dairy |
Betty
and Jim O’Toole |
Florida |
Herbs |
LaRhea
and Terry Pepper |
Texas |
Cotton |
Fleming
and Britt Pfann |
North
Carolina |
Dairy |
Bill
and Pam Pischer |
Florida |
Vegetables |
Ellen
Polishuk |
Virginia |
Vegetables |
Frank
and Pat Randle |
Alabama |
Lamb,
Vegetables, Blueberries |
Aubrey
and Linda Raper |
North
Carolina |
Vegetables |
Richard
and Peggy Sechrist |
Texas |
Beef
and Chickens |
Beth
and David Seely |
Florida |
Rabbits |
Rosa
and Abdul-Hakim Shareef, Judith and Abdul Mahmoud |
Mississippi |
Poultry,
Goats and Sheep |
Chuck
and Mary Smith |
Kentucky |
Alfalfa,
Tobacco, Vegetables, Grapes, Beef and Poultry |
Steve
Smith |
Kentucky |
Vegetables,
Tobacco, Hay |
|
Florida |
Citrus
and Vegetables |
Vicki Stamback |
Oklahoma |
Cut flowers and Ornamentals |
|
Kentucky |
Pastured Poultry |
|
South
Carolina |
Dairy |
Tony and LeVonna Uekman |
Arkansas |
Beef Cattle |
Mike
Walters |
Oklahoma |
Turkeys |
Al
& Desiree Wehner |
Georgia |
Dairy |
Paul
and Alison Wiediger |
Kentucky |
Vegetables
and Cut Flowers |
Here
are publications or links to websites that describe more farmer
experiences:
An Agriculture That Makes Sense: Making Money on Hogs,
1996, by Jodi Dansingburg of the Land Stewardship Project (LSP)
and Doug Gunnick of the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. LSP's
latest case study shows that sustainable hog production on a diversified
operation can be profitable and good for the environment. The 50-sow
hog enterprise on a Minnesota farm minimizes expenses through such
production practices as outdoor farrowing and low cost housing.
And instead of focusing on increasing productivity no matter what
the environmental, social and economic cost, the farm family emphases
profitability. 8 pp. $4.00. LSP, 2200 4th St., White Bear Lake,
MN 55110; 612-653-0618.
Farming More Sustainably in the South: Farmers' Stories, Vol. I
Farmers
and ranchers throughout the South are developing agricultural systems
for ecological, economic and social sustainability. This booklet
published by Southern SAWG in 1994 discusses the innovative production
techniques, resource management, and marketing strategies of 9
sustainable agriculture pioneers. Included are Tom Trantham (dairy),
Lorna McMahon (organic cotton), Carol Eichelberger and Jean Mills
(vegetable CSA), Bob Birkenfield (organic row crops), Joe Judice
(sugarcane), Mark Cain (organic flowers and vegetables), Jim Whitfield
(row crops, cattle, pigs), Bob Constien (pumpkins and vegetables) and
Mark Wilkes (organic cotton). A few of the practices discussed include
rotations, cover crops, composting, soil balancing, diversification,
holistic resource management, natural husbandry, the use of beneficial
insects, value-added processing and direct marketing. Readers will find
these stories both practical and inspirational. 30pp. $10.00. Click here to order.
Farming More Sustainably in the South: Farmers' Stories, Vol. II
Farmers
and ranchers throughout the South are developing agricultural systems
for ecological, economic and social sustainability. This booklet
published by Southern SAWG in 1996 discusses the innovative production
techniques, resource management, and marketing strategies of 12
sustainable agriculture pioneers. Included ar Jackie Judice (sugarcane),
Kenny Haines (organic vegetables), Alyce Birchenough and Doug Wolbert
(dairy), Lynn and Vicki Steward (organic citrus), Abraham Carpenter
(vegetables), Donna Lisenby and Nita O'Brien (grassfed beef and
vegetables), M.R. Fulks (organic row crops and vegetables), Steve
Smith (vegetables, beef, tobacco), Joe and Peggy Maddox (beef and
lamb), Steve McKaskle (row crops), Andrew and Bernadette Goldstein
(organic vegetables and flowers), and Bay and JoAnn Laxson (organic
vegetables and citrus). A few of the practices discussed include
rotations, cover crops, composting, soil balancing, diversification,
holistic resource management, natural husbandry, the use of beneficial
insects, value-added processing and direct marketing. Readers will
find these stories both practical and inspirational. 40pp. $10.00.
Click here to order.
The New American Farmer: Profiles of Agricultural Innovation, 2001,
edited by Valerie Berton. Profiles 49 sustainable farms and details the
effects of farming practices on profitability, quality of life, rural
communities and the environment. Demonstrates that sustainable
agriculture is viable throughout American agriculture. 160 pp. $10.00
for book, $5.00 for CD-ROM, or free on the web. Sustainable Agriculture
Publications, 210 Hills Bldg, Univ. of VT, Burlington, VT 05405-0082;
802-656-0484; www.sare.org/newfarmer.
Twelve Aprils Dairy,
by the Southern SARE project. An online manual about Tom Trantham's
grazing dairy with lots of information about his forages, paddocks,
waste management and other systems. On the internet at: www.griffin.peachnet.edu/sare/twelve/trantham.html
Profitable Poultry: Raising Birds on Pasture, 2002,
by USDA's Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN). Features farmer
experiences on raising and marketing poultry using pens, movable
fencing and pastures, plus a page of resources on production,
processing, and marketing. 16 pp. Free. Contact SAN at 301-504-6422; www.sare.org/bulletin/poultry
Pastured Poultry: A Heifer Project International Case Study Booklet,
1999, compiled by Anne Fanatico. A report describing the experiences of
35 Southern farm families who participated in a SARE-funded project to
produce and market pastured poultry. Includes data on pen-building,
brooding, feeding, processing, marketing, legal matters, economics, and
more. 40 pp. Free. ATTRA, 800-346-9140; http://www.attra.org/livestock.html#Poultry
Whole
Farm Planning at Work: Success Stories of Ten Farms, 1999,
by Jill MacKenzie and Loni Kemp. These stories from the Great Lakes
Basin states show the diversity of forms that whole farm planning
can take and the different results that can come of it. 40 pp. $8.00.
The Minnesota Project, 1885 University Ave West, Suite 315, St.
Paul, MN 55104; 651-645-6159; mnproject@gte.net.
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