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Farmer Resources ~ Books

Listed below is a partial listing of some of the best books in profitable, sustainable farming and marketing. Most books are available through Acres-USA or Growing for Markets.
Some books can be borrowed through the Foodshed Alliance's library


TOPIC: MARKETING

A Farmer’s Guide to the Bottom Line
By Charles Walters, Soft cover, 212 pages

Backyard Market Gardening
By Andrew W. Lee, Soft cover, 351 pages

Farmers and their Diversified Horticultural Marketing Strategies: An educational video on innovative marketing [Video]
Produced by Vern Grubinger, Univ. of Vermont Extension

Grassroots Marketing: Getting Noticed in a Noisy World
By Shel Horowitz, Soft cover, 306 pages

The Legal Guide for Direct Farm Marketing
By Neil D. Hamilton, Spiral-bound software, 235 pages

Making Your Small Farm Profitable
By Ron Macher, Soft cover, 273 pages

The New Farmers’ Market
By Vance Corum, Marcie Rosenzweig & Eric Gibson, Soft cover, 257 pages

Sell What You Sow! Grower’s Guide to Successful Marketing
By Eric Gibson, Soft cover, 297 pages

Sharing the Harvest
A Guide to Community-Supported Agriculture
By Elizabeth Henderson with Robyn van En, Soft cover, 254 pages

TOPIC: FRUIT, VEGETABLE AND FLOWERS

The Apple Grower
By Michael Phillips, Soft cover, 242 pages

The Flower Farmer
By Lynn Bycznski, Soft cover, 207 pages

Four-Season Harvest
By Eliot Coleman, Soft cover, 234 pages

The Grape Grower
By Lon Rombough, Soft cover, 289 pages

Growing Great Garlic
By Ron Engeland, Soft cover, 213 pages

The Hoophouse Handbook
By Lynn Byczynski, Soft cover, 60 pages

The New Organic Grower
By Eliot Coleman, Soft cover, 340 pages

The Pumpkin Production Guide
Available through Growing For Market (see entry) Soft cover, 136 pages

The Real Dirt: Organic & Low-Input Practices in the Northeast
By Northeast Organic Farming Association and Cooperative Extension, Soft cover, 264 pages

Root Cellaring – Natural Cold Storage of Fruits & Vegetables
By Mike & Nancy Bubel, Soft cover, 298 pages

Secrets to a Successful Greenhouse & Business
By T.M. Taylor, Soft cover, 280 pages

Specialty Cut Flowers
By Allan Armitage and Judy Laushman, Hardcover, 586 pages

Steel in The Field: A Farmer’s Guide to Weed Management Tools
Greg Bowman, Ed., Soft cover, 128 pages

Sustainable Vegetable Production From Start-up to Market
By Vern Grubinger, Univ. of Vermont Extension
(Available through Growing for Market—see entry) Soft cover, 262 pages

Winter Harvest Manual
By Eliot Coleman, Soft cover, 60 pages

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TOPIC: LIVESTOCK & DAIRY

Basic Butchering of Livestock & Game By John J. Mettler, Jr., D.V.M., Soft cover, 193 pages

Chicken Tractor
By Andy Lee, Soft cover, 230 pages

Day-Range Poultry
By Andy Lee & Patricia Foreman, Soft cover, 308 page

The Fabrication of Farmstead Goat Cheese
By Jean-Clause Le Jaouen, Soft cover, 206 pages

Farmer’s Guide to Processing and Selling Meat or Poultry: What are the rules, Where are the contacts, Who are the regulators?
By John Berry, Lehigh Co. Cooperative Extension, Allentown, PA www.lehigh.extension.psu.edu; (610)-391-9840

Home Cheesemaking
By Ricki Carroll, Soft cover, 130 pages

How to Manage the Blue Orchard Bee as an Orchard Pollinator
By Jordi Bosch & William Kemp, Soft cover, 88 pages

Milk-Based Soaps
By Casey Makela, Soft cover, 107 pages

The Maple Sugar Book
By Helen & Scott Nearing, Soft cover, 305

Natural Cattle Care
By Pat Coleby, Soft cover, 198 pages

Natural Goat Care
By Pat Coleby, Soft cover, 374 pages

Paddock Shift: Changing Views on Grassland Farming
By Allan Nation, Soft cover, 187 pages

Organic Livestock Handbook
Anne Macey, Ed., Canadian Organic Growers, Soft cover, Spiral-bound, 179 pages

Pastured Poultry Profits
By Joel Salatin, Soft cover, 371 pages

Practical Cheese Making
By Kathy Biss

Salad Bar Beef
By Joel Salatin, Soft cover, 368 pages

Small-Scale Livestock Farming: A Grass-Based Approach to Health, Sustainability and Profit
By Carol Ekarius, Soft cover, 218 pages

The Small Dairy Resource Book: Information Sources for Farmstead Producers
By Vicki Dunaway, Soft cover, 56 pages

Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens
By Gail Damerow, Soft cover

Storey's Guide to Raising Dairy Goats
By Jerry Belanger, Soft cover

Storey's Guide to Raising Sheep
By Paula Simmons & Carol Ekarius, Soft cover

Storey's Guide to Raising Pigs
By Kelly Klober

Why Grassfed Is Best!
By Jo Robinson, Soft cover, 127 pages

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TOPIC: SUSTAINABLE FARMING PRACTICES, MISC.

A Biodynamic Farm
By Hugh Lovel, Soft cover, 215 pages

Building Soils for Better Crops
By Fred Magdoff & Harold van Es, Soft cover, 230 pages

Field Guide to On-Farm Composting
By Mark Dougherty, ed., Soft cover, Spiralbound, 118 pages

Hands-On Agronomy
By Neal Kinsey & Charles Walters, Rev., 2nd Edition, Soft cover, 352 pages

Introduction to Permaculture
By Bill Mollison with Reny Mia Slay, Soft cover, 213 pages

Managing Cover Crops Profitably
From USDA, Soft cover, 212 pages

Organic Field Crop Handbook
Canadian Organic Growers

The Secret Life of Compost
By Malcolm Beck, Soft cover, 150 pages

Soil, Grass & Cancer: The Link Between Human & Animal Health & the Mineral Balance of the Soil
By André Voisin, Soft cover, 370 pages

The Soul of the Soil
By Grace Gershuny & Joseph Smillie, Soft cover, 174 pages

Successful Small-Scale Farming
By Karl Schwenke, Soft cover, 134 pages

Weeds and What They Tell
By Ehrenfried E. Pfeiffer, Soft cover booklet, 96 pages

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TOPIC: FARM AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, PROFITABLE, SUSTAINABLE FARMING

Family Friendly Farming
By Joel Salatin, Soft cover, 402 pages

Farms of Tomorrow Revisited
By Trauger Groh and Steve McFadden, Soft cover, 248 pages

Rebirth of the Small Family Farm:
A Handbook for Starting A Successful Organic Farm Based on the Community Supported Agriculture Concept
By Bob and Bonnie Gregson, Soft cover, 65 pages

Holistic Management
By Allan Savory, Soft cover, 616 pages

You Can Farm
By Joel Salatin, Soft cover, 480 pages

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