Tool Archives - Pasa Sustainable Agriculture

Thu, 06 Jun 2024 14:35:04 +0000

Each year at our annual Sustainable Agriculture Conference we showcase Farm Innovations—tools and techniques to help increase efficiency, reduce waste, steward the land, and make it a little easier to run your farm. Often featuring unique re-uses of existing on-farm resources, these innovations can encompass anything from DIY machinery to simple time-saving strategies.

From biogas systems to bike-powered equipments, our 2024 Farm Innovations show featured a lot of impressive builds as well as many elegant solutions to farming challenges.

Download the PDF to see them all!

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2023 Farm Innovations

Tue, 02 May 2023 14:57:28 +0000

From a chicken palace to a mobile herb dryer, our 2023 Farm Innovations show featured a lot of impressive builds as well as many elegant solutions to farming challenges.

Download the PDF to see them all!

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2022 Farm Innovations

Fri, 13 May 2022 14:54:10 +0000

Farm Innovations from 2022 featured innovative planting techniques, on-farm alternative energy systems, and some time-saving DIY field tools!

Download the PDF to see them all.

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2021 Farm Innovations

Thu, 09 Sep 2021 15:51:58 +0000

Every year at our winter conference we showcase Farm Innovations—tools and techniques to help increase efficiency, reduce waste, steward the land, and make it a little easier to run your farm. Often featuring unique re-uses of existing on-farm resources, these innovations can encompass anything from impressive DIY machinery to simple time-saving strategies.

Farm Innovations from 2021 featured planting techniques including a living fence; harvest equipment to save time, trips, and back aches; and a great team management strategy.

Click here to see them all.

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2020 Farm Innovations

Wed, 09 Sep 2020 15:06:45 +0000

Farm Innovations from 2020 featured special tunnels that prevent downy mildew and tomato late blight; processing devices to dehull, destem, thresh, sift, and wash; and planting strategies for improved irrigation, pest prevention, and novel forage.

Download the PDF to see them all.

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Pastured Livestock Efficiency Benchmark Worksheet

Fri, 19 Jun 2020 16:53:25 +0000

If you are interested in benchmarking your pastured livestock farm’s land and feed efficiency, Pasa can work with you to calculate benchmarks for your farm using the methods outlined in our report, Scaling Up Pastured Livestock Production: Benchmarks for Getting the Most Out of Feed & Land. As more farmers contribute data using these tools, we can improve the accuracy of our benchmarks and help highlight more innovative practices that improve efficiency.

Click the “download” button to access this worksheet. Contact research@pasafarming.org for assistance & more information.

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COVID-19 Checklist for Farmers Markets

Fri, 17 Apr 2020 20:31:55 +0000

This is an open-source resource created by Penn State Extension in collaboration with Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, to be used for developing guidelines that can be shared and modified as needed to ensure safe operation of farmers markets that protect both vendors and customers while providing essential food for the communities they serve.

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COVID-19 Readiness Assessment for Continuity of Farm Business

Wed, 25 Mar 2020 21:20:00 +0000

This is an open-source checklist created by Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, in collaboration with Penn State Extension, for developing a continuity of business plan during the coronavirus pandemic. Farmers, market managers, and related businesses are permitted to use, modify, and distribute this resource as needed.

We encourage farmers in Pennsylvania to review our blog post and webinar on COVID-19 Guidelines for Farms & Markets issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture before completing this assessment. If you are located outside of Pennsylvania your state’s official guidelines may vary, however the health and safety information contained in these resources is broadly applicable.

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2019 Farm Innovations

Mon, 09 Sep 2019 14:45:19 +0000

Farm Innovations from 2019 featured field tools that harness alternative sources of energy like Climate Battery, the Culticycle, and the Pigtiller; digital record-keeping and business management software; and efficient workplace organization strategies.

Download the PDF to view them all.

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Farmland leasing & purchasing arrangements

Wed, 05 Jun 2019 18:53:43 +0000

Are you planning to lease or purchase farmland? Or are you preparing to transition your farm property to new owners?

In either case, it’s important to understand and consider the full range of lease and purchase arrangements. The type of agreement, and the language contained within it, can have an array of implications on your farm business and whether or not the land you are stewarding is preserved as farmland for the long term.

This resource provides a brief overview of several types of lease and purchase arrangements. The corresponding glossary explains the terms included in the table in more detail. All of the arrangements outlined here can be flexible to suit the needs and interests of the people or groups who enter into them.

For more information about farmland access, leasing, purchasing, and preservation, check out the following resources and organizations.

RESOURCES, TOOLS & PUBLICATIONS

A Landowner’s Guide to Leasing Land for Farming (Land For Good)
Ag Lease 101
Drafting a Lease: Questions For Farmers and Landowners To Ask (Farm Commons)
Exploring the Small Farm Dream (New England Small Farm Institute)
Farmland Assessment Checklist (Penn State Extension)
Financing a Farmland Purchase: Legal basics for traditional and non-traditional farmland purchases (Farm Commons)
Financing Small-Scale and Part-Time Farms (Penn State Extension)
Finding Farmland Calculator (National Young Farmers Coalition)
Finding Farmland Course (National Young Farmers Coalition)
Fixed & Flexible Cash Rental Arrangements For Your Farm (North Central Farm Management Extension Committee)
Farmland Leases Built to Last: Content and Legal Context Part I [Podcast] (Farm Commons)
FAQ: Land Leasing for Your Sustainable Farm Enterprise (Farm Commons)
Lease: Who’s Responsible for What Under a Farmland Lease? [Tip Sheet] (Farm Commons)
Lease Termination Tip Sheet: My landlord wants to end our lease. Can the landlord do that, and can I prevent it? (Farm Commons)
Legal Guide on Land Leasing Options (Penn State Extension)
Model Agricultural Ground Lease (Equity Trust)
Northwest Farm Credit Services: Business Tools
Write it Down! Farmland Leases [Podcast] (Farm Commons)

ORGANIZATIONS

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