The Cultivator Newsletter

Connecting farmers and food system innovators across Florida

Published Monthly by the UF/IFAS Small Farms and Alternative Enterprises Extension Team

Vertical Integration & Diversification: Building a successful farm operation in Central Florida

The Clermont based Southern Hill Farms originally produced ornamental trees and found themselves in a recession during 2010.... Continue Reading

Localecopia Marketplace:

Driven by the Mission of Promoting Local,

Sustainable Food Businesses- See more

Online registration now Open!!

Farm tour Registration here

Conference registration here

Stay tuned for updates on our third regional conference on April 1-2 in Fort Myers!

Quick Links

- Small Farms Program Website

- UF/IFAS Extension near you

- The Cultivator Newsletter

Archive

- Regional Small Farms

Conferences

Upcoming Webinars

Insurance for the Farm: Policies and Principles to Efficiently Manage Risk
December 22 at 3:00 pm

USDA Whole Farm Revenue Protection
January 11 at 11:00 am

Soil and Water Sensors for Agriculture - Theory and Issues - January 14 at 11:30am

Upcoming Events

Northwest Florida - Panel: Challenges and Opportunities facing Women, Minority and Veteran Farmers With Congresswoman Gwen Graham and USDA Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden. FAMU, Tallahassee; January 19 9:00am-10:30 RSVP at tristin.brown@mail.house.gov or 850-891-8610 - Panhandle Satsuma Meeting January 21, 7:30am-12:30pm (Central Time), Marianna. More information here - Tri-State Cucurbit Meeting January 27, 7:30am-1:45pm (Central Time), Marianna. More information here	Northeast Florida - North Central Florida Producer Focus Group $100 provided for participation Gainesville, January 11 from 2:00-4:00pm Jacksonville, January 25, time TBD More information and registration here - AGRItunity Conference and Farm Tour January 22 & 23, 2016, Citrus County Online Registration now open! Farm tour information and registration here Conference information & registration here - Growing for Profit Series Workshop Five part series, January 27, Feb 10&24 and March 2&23. Duval County. More information and updates here - Small Scale Mushroom Production February 5, 2016 from 8:15am-4:30pm, Live Oak Registration and more info here - Starting a Successful Hydroponic Business March 14&15, 2016, Live Oak Registration and more info here - Starting a Successful Hydroponic Business March 18&19, 2016, Live Oak Registration and more info here
Central Florida - Florida Agricultural Policy Outlook Conference January 28, 10:00am-4:00pm, Apopka More info and registration here - Hydroponic Vegetable Nutrient Management February 2, 8:00am-5:00pm, Apopka More information and registration here	South Central Florida - Regional Small Farms Conference April 1 & 2, Fort Myers. More information forthcoming
South Florida - Annual Farm Day at Bee Heaven Farm December 20 from 11:30-3:00pm More info here - FDA/FSMA Educational Meeting Learn about the newly published Food Safety Modernization Act. January 27, 9:30am-1:00pm, Belle Glade. Registration and more info here --------- Other Events outside Florida - Southeast Regional Fruit & Vegetable Conference January 7-10, Savannah, GA More information here - Southern SAWG Conference January 27-30, Lexington, Kentucky More information and registration here - Business of Farming Conference February 20 from 8:30am-5:00pm Asheville, North Carolina. More info here

News and Announcements

Publications

- NRCS provides financial assistance for wildlife habitat, including gopher tortoise. More here

- New Food Safety Rule. Is my farm affected?

More here

- Report shows SNAP effective in fight against food

insecurity. More here

- Peddling a New Model of Urban Farming.

More here

- Hoover Family Farms - Suwannee Valley BMP

Success Story. More here

- Florida International University supports veterans

and minorities interested in farming. More here

- Integrating Traditional Foods with Aquaponics in

the Desert Southwest. More here

- Small Flock Poultry Nutrition. Open here

- Improving the Precision of Blueberry Frost

Protection Irrigation. Open here

Send us your articles and publications!!

About this Newsletter.

The Cultivator is an online monthly newsletter

published by the UF/IFAS Small Farms and Alternative Enterprises Extension Team.

The objectives of the newsletter are to share practical production and marketing information

and build a strong network among small and medium scale farmers

and other food system stakeholders across Florida.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About us

The UF/IFAS Small Farms and Alternative Enterprises Extension Team

is a collaboration of about 140 University State and County Faculty Extension across Florida.

The team works on supporting small and medium scale farms

and strengthening local and regional food systems.

We hope that you find this online newsletter useful.

Please send us your events, announcements, feedback, suggestions and questions to

smallfarmnews@ifas.ufl.edu

or call us at 352-294-1692