Join our community of profitable small farmers & homesteaders!
Get access to ALL of our courses - as well as summit recordings and monthly Q&As - through our Small Farm University.
Includes the opportunity to join monthly laser coaching sessions with Michael. New content added regularly.
Newest Courses
We add new courses on a regular basis!
Every year we film new content from the Farm on Central to expand our course library.
Strawberry Success Blueprint
Our exact blueprint for growing strawberries, bringing us more income than any other crop. Includes training on how to set up your u-pick operation!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Module 1: preparation, planting, harvesting
- Module 2: u-pick, marketing, sales
- Q&A sessions
- Strawberry success workbook
- Strawberry quickstart guide
- Exclusive Facebook group
- Bonus videos: marking beds, laying plastic, laying out plants & more
- Tip propagation guide
- Strawberry picking guide
- Strawberry farm profit calculator
- And more!
2024 Vegetable Farming Summit
Recordings from 27+ speakers on the best methods to plan, grow, and sell vegetables. Learn from the best in the industry on how to build a thriving, profitable vegetable operation!
CLICK HERE FOR HIGHLIGHT TOPICS
- Mechanical weed control with Sam Tilton
- Winter farming systems with JM Fortier
- Garden design with Laura Fernandez
- Greenhouse automation with Orisha
- Seed saving with Dan Brisebois
- Permaculture with Rob Avis
- Running a u-pick farm with Megan Neubauer
- 15+ more topics
Elderberry Masterclass
Learn step-by-step how to grow, process, and market elderberries for your home use or as part of a sustainable business.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Introduction to black elderberry varieties
- Irrigation: tubing & drip tape
- Rooting & planting elderberry cuttings
- Overwinter care for elderberries
- Pest problems & disease management
- Harvesting & processing elderberries
- Elderberry products you can make & sell
- And more!
Most Popular Courses
Favorites picked by our Small Farm University members.
Start Your Farm Intensive
Craft a business plan to set yourself up for success, with tutorials on choosing revenue streams, managing financials, doing sales projections, and more. You can approach this course as a 30 day challenge or work it at your own pace.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: introduction
- Module 2: creating your farm business plan
- Module 3: business model canvas
- Module 4: financials & startup expenses
- Module 5: farm funding options
- Module 6: plan of action
- Module 7: bonus sessions
- Module 8: Q&As with Michael
Farmers Market Success System
Learn how to attract and convert customers by building an unstoppable marketing and business system for your farmers markets!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: marketing strategies & brand assets to attract customers
- Module 2: converting buyers through displays, signage, samples, and more
- Module 3: building your systems & market team
- Module 4: scaling to partnerships & referral programs
- Module 5: Q&A sessions
- Bonus: intro to online marketing
- Bonus: pricing your market produce
- Bonus: creating the best stall at the market
Start Your CSA
Discover if CSA is for you, and learn how to pick a share type and size, best practices to keep high retention, and a boatload of resources to get you started fast!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- CSA pros & cons
- Types of CSA share models
- How to build your CSA
- Downloadable resources
- CSA crop planning tutorial
- Crop profitability calculator
- Bonus Q&A sessions
Find Your Perfect Farm Property
Know exactly what to look for when searching for farm property, so you can choose the property that fits your needs and farm vision best.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Choosing your farm climate
- Property accessibility
- Water needs
- Soil type
- Renting/leasing property
- Flood mapping
- Sunlight mapping
- Other factors
Build Your Own Microgreen Kits
How to build kits to sell to your customers, so they can grow their own microgreens! This mini course covers everything - including free marketing and label templates
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Kit components
- Supply breakdown
- Labels
- Kit assembly
- Marketing your kits
- Bonus downloads & templates
The Lettuce Masterclass
Ray Tyler's comprehensive course on growing lettuce, from the planning to the soil prep to the planting and beyond.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: introduction & season extension
- Module 2: planning & varieties
- Module 3: seeding & propagation
- Module 4: soil prep & fertility
- Module 5: no-till beds
- Module 6: paperpots, landscape fabric & planting
- Module 7: drip irrigation & tunnel irrigation
- Module 8: weed, pest & disease control
- Module 9: baby lead production & packaging
- Module 10: harvest, wash, package, label
- Module 11: season extension with tunnels and row covers
- Bonus: Q&A sessions
- Bonus: lettuce marketing mini course
- Bonus: lettuce production at Steadfast Farms
Summits
Our Wildly Popular Summit Series
Dozens of no-fluff recordings from industry experts and inspirational growers like Joel Salatin, JM Fortier, Ray Tyler, Stacey Murphy, and many others.
Thriving Farmer Summit
Our very first Thriving Farmer Summit, with training on how to improve business practices and increase profitability on your farm.
Thriving Mushroom Summit
In this three-day summit, learn about mushroom research, types, and uses, plus how to start your own profitable mushroom business.
Thriving Flower Summit
Fantastic presentations on everything floral! Step into the cut flower industry and discover how you can build a profitable flower farm.
Our Production Mastery Series
For efficient production and high-yield crops.
Perfect Indoor Transplant System
A mini-course showing you exactly how we consistently grow robust indoor transplants while saving money, time, and seed.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Light requirements
- Lighting types & options
- Building a modular transplant system
- Water & temperature
- Germination chamber
- Financials
- Crop varieties & sizes
- Hardening off transplants
- Common propagation problems
Ultimate Germination Chamber
How to build a germination chamber for your farm easily and quickly. We stress putting together a low-work, monitored system that gives you peace of mind.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: overview & choosing the right cooler/freezer box
- Module 2: building the rack system
- Module 3: heat/humidity systems & wiring
- Module 4: remote monitoring, tagging, fridge conversion
Build a Bubbler
Learn the quickest way to size, build, and use a bubble washer to clean your crops for a premium product!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- DIY bubbler quickstart guide
- Parts list
- Bubbler assembly: 40, 100, 150 gallons
- Cleaning & sanitation
- Using the bubbler
Dry Your Greens
We provide a better way to dry greens so you sell more of a premium product. Get the the materials needed, build steps, and safety tips for this washing machine conversion!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: Intro & finding a washing machine that works for conversion
- Module 2: Deconstructing & safety hose installation
- Module 3: Installing basket guides
- Module 4 & 5: Wiring & electrical
- Module 6: Attaching the lid
- Module 7: Wheel installation
- Module 8: Bonus trainings
Harvest, Post-Harvest, and Storage
Training on how to create your flow from harvest to storage, with a behind-the-scenes look at several farms and their harvest wash or pack areas.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Creating a successful harvest system
- Designing the wash & pack area
- Cooling & product storage
- Food safety
- Walk-in cooler build
- Steadfast Farm wash & pack tour
- Pleasant Valley Farm wash & pack tour
Small Farm Irrigation
Explore different irrigation setups, how to design your system based on your farm layout and property, and handy irrigation tools & components.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
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Irrigation suppliers
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Water testing
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Irrigation math & calculations
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Micro irrigation setups
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Drip irrigation & calculations
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Overhead greenhouse irrigation
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Orchard tubing
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Parts & tools
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Automation
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Filtration
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Fertilizer injectors
Direct Seeding Primer
Direct seeding is known for heavy pros and cons - we'll walk you through the entire process to help you succeed with seeding!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Module 1: seeding process & systems
- Module 2: different seeder types & breakdowns
- Module 3: calibration math & multirow seeders
Winter Growing Success
Maintain production through the winter! This course walks you through winter tunnel designs, winter growing systems, winter crops, and heating systems.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: principles of winter production
- Module 2: tunnel & hoop house options
- Module 3: high tunnel design & winter maintenance
- Module 4: winter growing system (soil, seeding, weed control, planting, irrigation, etc.)
- Module 5: winter crop varieties
- Module 6: heating systems
Microgreen Basics
Discover what goes into a microgreen kit, what varieties to plant, and how to put together kits that sell out.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: intro & seeding microgreens
- Module 2: choosing microgreen varieties
- Module 3: harvesting & packaging microgreens
- Bonus: interviews with microgreen growers
Caterpillar Tunnel Success
Ray Tyler of Rose Creek Farms guides us through setup, management, crops, and irrigation on his completely under-cover operation!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Caterpillar vs high tunnels
- Tunnel placement & design
- Field prep & bed setup
- Grading around tunnels
- End design
- Automation
- Full tunnel kit build
- Ventilation
- Crop rotation
- No-till tunnel farming
- Row cover
- Weed control
- Shade cloth
- Soil health & fertility
Setup your First Mushroom Grow
Learn how to get started growing mushrooms for profit, with a walkthrough of how to build your mushroom grow room.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: Introduction
- Module 2: Equipment, costs & setup
- Module 3: Designing your grow room with ventilation & drainage
- Module 4: Mushroom grow walkthrough at Farm on Central
- Module 5: Build materials for different sizes
DIY Tunnel Build For Less
A how-to for building your own tunnel from the ground up! A step-by-step guide through a tunnel build onsite at The Farm on Central, from selecting your site to sourcing your materials.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: Design, strength, sourcing materials
- Module 2: DIY materials (bending bows, sizing plastic, etc.)
- Module 3: Full DIY tunnel build walkthrough
Business Systems & Marketing Courses
It's not all about growing veggies!
Get training on the business, sales, and marketing skills you need to turn a profit and succeed long-term.
Fund Your Farm
Walk through the different options for funding your farm - whether a startup operation or a thriving farm that needs capital improvements.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Self-funding
- Private funding
- Working with professional lenders
- USDA funding programs
- Grants
Moving Your Farm Online
This course shares several farmers stories of using software to sell their products online as well as how easy it is to use Local Line to set up your first online store.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Shopify setup
- Local Line setup
- Online setup with Pleasant Valley Farm
More Time More Money
Gain time in your business so you can be present for those you love and achieve the difference you want to make in the world.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Setting up your planning system
- Outsourcing & maximizing your team
- Systemizing production & weed control
- Prioritizing profit centers
- Organization
More Customers Training
Grow your customer base at farmers markets and online by reaching the right customers the right way.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Ways to get more customers at markets
- Creating your social calendar
Email Marketing
Learn all the basics of setting up your e-mail marketing, from setting up your account to email etiquette to analytics.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- How to build an email list
- Tagging
- Writing campaigns to get more sales
- Writing a welcome sequence
- Promoting events with email
- CSA email sequences
- Reporting & evaluation
Quickstart Your Shopify Farm Store
Ray and Ashley walk you through setting up your Shopify store for the first time and adding the plugins that allowed it to work for their needs.
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: intro to Shopify
- Module 2: setting up your store (themes, products, shipping, navigation, web design, etc.)
- Module 3: essential plugins & apps
- Module 4: using Shopify for a farm business
SFU RIPEN Formula For Success
The core training content of the Small Farm University, walking you through the systems and processes we use to run a profitable small farm operation. Includes many other resources (masterclasses, mini-sessions, Q&As).
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OUTLINE
- Module 1: the RIPEN formula for a successful farm
- Module 2: building routines
- Module 3: developing a sustainable business model
- Module 4: production mastery
- Module 5: creating systems & building a solid team
- Module 6: developing your customer ICP & marketing to your customers
- Module 7: harvest tutorials
- Module 8: wash tutorials
- Module 9: crop planning & bed layout
- Module 10: greenhouse construction
- Module 11: Q&A sessions
- Module 12: coaching sessions
Behind the Scenes
An in-depth look at operations on featured farms. Take a peek at what other small farmers are doing, and see what's working for them!
CLICK HERE FOR FEATURED FARMS
- Kilpatrick Family Farm
- Farm on Central
- Rose Creek Farms
- Just Farmin'
- Happy Hollow Farm
Build Your CSA Landing Page
This course shows exactly what you need to have a beautiful and effective landing page for your CSA!
CLICK HERE FOR COURSE OVERVIEW
- Elements of CSA landing page
- 3 example landing page breakdowns
And there's more!
SFU also contains courses on soapmaking, setting up a commercial kitchen, and other topics to help you grow your small farm and increase your income.
Get Access to ALL Courses for $47/Month!
When you join Small Farm University, there's no large payment required. Just a subscription of $47/month.
In addition to all of the Growing Farmers courses and summits, you'll also gain access to our exclusive SFU community and group Q&A sessions with Michael.
Get started today with the resources you need to build a high-efficiency, high-profit small farm or market garden.
New to Growing Farmers?
Michael Kilpatrick is a farmer, educator, host of the Thriving Farmer Podcast, and the founder of Growing Farmers.
After 20+ years of farming, he started Growing Farmers to help small farmers get the resources and training they need to succeed on their farm and in their lives.
He currently lives in Carlisle, OH, with his wife and children. Together they run the Farm on Central, an eight-acre farm where they sell through an on-site store, online store, and local CSA program.
Seen us before? As a speaker and farm consultant, Michael has been featured in the following:
