Listing Information

Check all experience and education that apply to you and your farming partners

Agriculture-related college degree, Farm/Crop management (3 years or less), General farming (over 3 years)

Briefly describe your current occupation(s) and responsibilities and list previous agricultural employment and experiences. If you are currently farming or ranching, please state the size, type(s), and location of the operation.

The past two summers I worked at Lifeline Produce cultivating a variety of vegetable crops. The farm has approximately 12 acres of vegetables in production. They also utilize the remainder of their 80 acres to grow alfalfa/grass hay in conjunction with raising cattle and sheep. My responsibilities included irrigation, harvest, post harvest handling, transplanting, weed management, occasional crew management, and various odd tasks around the farm. This season I am working as a Landscaper with a friend and growing about 20 seed crops for a seed coop in Boise, the local organic seed coop (Triple Divide Seeds), and a Fedco a "larger" seed company on a less desirable corner of a friend's land.

Additional agricultural experience includes:
Fresh Roots Farm: Organic seed production intern
Montana State Research Station: Research assistant
PEAS Farm: Teaching assistant coordinating sustainable agriculture education
Lifeline Produce (Victor, MT), Riverbank Farm (Roxbury, CT), and Claudia’s Organic Herbs (Orleans, CA): 3 years of organic vegetable production as field hand/intern.

Counties of interest

Missoula, Ravalli

Acreage

1-5, 6-10

Planned Operation

Small Animal (pigs, rabbits, poultry), Vegetable, Fruit/Orchard, Other

Farming Practices

Organic

Please elaborate on the type(s) of agricultural operation you plan on running.

My goal is to create a small-scale organic vegetable and flower seed farm. With organic certification I could sell to the local seed coop, Triple Divide, and more established organic seed companies. Inevitably vegetable crops will be added in addition to a distribution method for extraneous vegetables resulting from the seed production process. Eventually I’d like to incorporate perennial crops and animals to further diversify the farm and incorporate practices more aligned with my ecological ideology.
My background is primarily in organic vegetable production and whenever possible I utilize the development of healthy soil as the principle method for cultivating productive crops. Ideally the farm would involve out-of production fields as pastures for animals, cover crops, and compost from manures for nutrients and the development of organic matter in soil.

Land Tenure

Cropshare, Lease

Please elaborate on the kind of additional training/information that would help you:

Since most of my experience is related to the cultivation of vegetables in the field, I haven’t had ample opportunities to interact with most non-field elements of operating a farm. Any assistance with construction, infrastructure development, vehicle/tractor maintenance and operation, business planning, record keeping, financing, and tax management would help