I wanted to be a cowgirl – Bootstrap at Willow Springs Farm
By Hannah Becker, Willow Springs Farm One of my earliest memories is sitting on an old Paint gelding outside of Memphis, Tennessee. I couldn’t have been more than three or four, but from that moment on I was obsessed with becoming a “cowgirl”. Despite growing up on quarter-acre lots in suburbia, where the only cows […]
My Grandpa and the New Family Farm – BOOTSTRAP AT FURROW HORSE FARM
By Caitlin Arnold, Furrow Horse Farm On February 13th of this year, I came home from work and played the new messages on our answering machine. My mom’s voice came across the line crying and hysterical, informing me that my grandpa had died that afternoon. My grandpa, Richard Norton, grew up farming cherries and apples […]
The veggie girl marries the meat man: Bootstrap at Old Homeplace Farm
By Maggie Bowling, Old Homeplace Farm Some of my earliest memories involve playing in soybeans in the bed of a grain truck. I thought sliding around in the loose beans was the most fun a kid could have. My parents’ transitioned from raising row crops and running a small confinement hog barn to selling certified […]
"Nature boy" finds his calling – BOOTSTRAP AT EMADI ACRES FARM
By Derek Emadi, Emadi Acres As far back as I can remember, one of the only places I felt peace as a hyperactive kid was on my grandparent’s property. Their land was located in a small town west of San Antonio, Texas. The town was small enough that my cousins, brother, and I could walk […]
Bootstrap at Furrow Horse Farm – Meet Caitlin
Welcome to our 2015 Bootstrap Blog series! We’ve been introducing you to our four Bootstrap Bloggers, who are all in their first or second year of running a farm. Throughout the season, each Bootstrap Blogger will write about the highs and lows, glory moments and curveballs that come with farming. My name is Caitlin Arnold, and […]
Bootstrap at Emadi Acres Farm – Meet Derek
Welcome to our 2015 Bootstrap Blog series! We’ve been introducing you to our four Bootstrap Bloggers, who are all in their first or second year of running a farm. Throughout the season, each Bootstrap Blogger will write about the highs and lows, glory moments and curveballs that come with farming. The seed of my farm started in […]
Bootstrap at Old Homeplace Farm: Meet Maggie
Welcome to our 2015 Bootstrap Blog series! Over the next few weeks, we will be introducing you to our four Bootstrap Bloggers, who are all in their first or second year of running a farm. Throughout the season, each Bootstrap Blogger will write about the highs and lows, glory moments and curveballs that come with farming. […]
Bootstrap at Willow Springs Farm: Meet Hannah
Welcome to our 2015 Bootstrap Blog series! Over the next few weeks, we will be introducing you to our four Bootstrap Bloggers, who are all in their first or second year of running a farm. Throughout the season, each Bootstrap Blogger will write about the highs and lows, glory moments and curveballs that come with farming. […]
New NYFC report finds student loan debt is exacerbating farmer shortage
Today NYFC released a new report, Farming Is Public Service: A Case for Adding Farmers to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which shows that student loan debt is one of the key barriers preventing more would-be farmers and ranchers from entering agriculture. Read the full report here. The report contains data from a new survey of […]
Announcing Our 2015 Bootstrap Bloggers
We are excited to announce the farmers selected for our fourth annual Bootstrap Blog series, which features young farmers and ranchers in their first or second year of running their own farm. Throughout the season, each Bootstrap Blogger will write about the highs and lows, glory moments and curveballs that come with farming. Farming is […]