July 2017 Issue PDF

The Acres U.S.A. July 2017 issue; Vol. 47, No. 7; contains the following:

FEATURES

One Contrarian Agrarian
by Tracy Frsich
Derek Christianson is living proof that the tired old adage, “You can’t make a living as a farmer,” is misguided, and he’s doing it his way on 7 acres in Massachusetts.

A Rising Tide
by Katherine Bell
Now is a prime time to consider aquaponic agriculture as more cities are opening up to urban farming as a solution to food insecurity and more consumers clamor for fresh, local produce.

Brewing Up Opportunities
by Jill Henderson
For agricultural producers of any size, capitalizing on the rise of microbreweries presents new avenues to diversify production and take advantage of seasonal income-producing crops.

Open Door Policy
by Karen Fleur Tofti-Tufarelli
The family at Red Barn includes more than 50 farmers who have participated in the farm’s incubator in the last few years; some are now farming full-time.

Holistic Planned Grazing
by Abbey & Spencer Smith
Properly managed livestock help build topsoil and increase the amount of moisture soil can hold, making it droughtresistant. This ultimately increases forage production.

Interview: Richard Oswald: Commonsense Approach
Farmer, writer Richard Oswald discusses Big Ag influence in the Heartland and growing organic opportunities.

DEPARTMENTS

View from the Country

Letters to the Editor

Opinion: Busting Organic Pesticide Myths
Ken Roseboro offers a deeper look into the dubious and oft-touted claims that organic farmers use toxic pesticides akin to conventional agriculture.

The Harvest Table: An Edible Spider
Brought over to Europe hundreds of years ago, spiderwort has been used as a flowering garden plant for centuries. But have you ever tried eating it?

Stock & Flock: Four-Legged Peace of Mind
Raising livestock and poultry comes with many challenges, and predation is high on that list. Losses to predators threaten the existence of livestock and poultry operations around the world. What would you give to know your stock is being protected 24 hours a day 365 days a year?

Small-Scale Success: Market Farming in Suburbia
You can see most of Daniel Garcia’s farm from his kitchen table. Looking out over the backyard of his Lawrence, Indiana, lot, which is sandwiched between two subdivisions, you can see wide rows of greens and row-covered beds that hint of the abundance found in Garcia’s Gardens.

Reviews & Recommendations
From in-depth book reviews to innovative websites and beyond, here are our picks.

Marketplace

Classifieds

Eco-Meetings

Meet an Eco-Farmer