{"product_id":"the-lean-micro-farm-how-to-get-small-embrace-local-live-better-and-work-less-9781645022046","title":"The Lean Micro Farm: How to Get Small, Embrace Local, Live Better, and Work Less","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Ben Hartman is a true innovator for the small farm.\"--Curtis Stone, author of \u003cem\u003eThe Urban Farmer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIt's time to think big about small farms. Award-winning author and \"green leader\" (\u003cem\u003eGrist\u003c\/em\u003e) Ben Hartman shares practical how-to tips, personal stories, and surprising examples of cutting-edge farmers and innovators around the world to show us how.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn the early 1970s, US Agriculture Secretary Earl Butz infamously commanded farmers to \"get big or get out.\" In \u003cem\u003eThe Lean Micro Farm\u003c\/em\u003e, author Ben Hartman rejects that disastrous suggestion and instead takes up the charge of the late agrarian thinker Gene Logsdon: \"Get small and stay in.\"\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTaking inspiration from the groundbreaking ideas of E. F. Schumacher and Mahatma Gandhi, \u003cem\u003eThe Lean Micro Farm\u003c\/em\u003e shows how small, hyperlocal farms can be both ecologically and economically superior to industrial-scale operations geared toward export and commodity markets.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Lean Micro Farm\u003c\/em\u003e details the author's remarkable journey to downsize his farm from one acre to a third of an acre in an effort to prioritize family and community over work, all without taking a pay cut. In addition, Hartman profiles six innovative farmers from across the globe who embody this \"get small\" mindset. These pioneering farmers show all of us a path toward resilience in the face of supply chain disruption, globalization, and climate change. They model a gentler, more ecological approach to farming that produces less waste \u003cem\u003eand\u003c\/em\u003e uses less plastic, petroleum, and fertilizer.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eLike his previous two books, \u003cem\u003eThe Lean Farm\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Lean Farm Guide to Growing Vegetables\u003c\/em\u003e, Hartman's \u003cem\u003eThe Lean Micro Farm\u003c\/em\u003e doesn't just explain why smaller is better, it shows readers exactly how it can be done with step-by-step guides on how to turn a profit from a tiny, but productive, parcel of farmland. Readers will find not just philosophical justifications for a minimalist approach to agriculture but also actionable information for starting your own profitable micro farm, including: \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cul\u003e \u003cli\u003eA description of the \"deep mulch\" method for building fertility\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eInstructions on two-step bed flipping to increase production on a small footprint\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eA guide for choosing essential tools and technologies \"with a human face\"\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eAn easy-to-follow process for making your micro farm lean and efficient\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eA detailed plan for selling $20,000 worth of produce from your backyard\u003c\/li\u003e \u003c\/ul\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIt's time, Hartman makes clear, to pivot to a new kind of farming--one that builds upon ancestral knowledge, nourishes communities, and puts human joy, not technology, at its center.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Hartman has revolutionized his methods, cut down his work hours dramatically, and shrunk the size of his farm, all while making a better income.\"--\u003cem\u003eCivil Eats\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBen Hartman\u003c\/strong\u003e grew up on a corn and soybean farm in Indiana and graduated from college with degrees in English and philosophy. Together with his wife, Rachel Hershberger, he owns and operates Clay Bottom Farm in Goshen, Indiana, where they make their living growing and selling specialty crops on less than one acre. The farm has twice won \u003cem\u003eEdible Michiana\u003c\/em\u003e's Reader's Choice award. Ben's first book, \u003cem\u003eThe Lean Farm\u003c\/em\u003e, won the Shingo Institute's prestigious Publication Award. In 2017, Ben was named one of \u003cem\u003eGrist\u003c\/em\u003e's fifty emerging green leaders in the United States. Clay Bottom Farm has developed an online course in lean farming, which can be found at www.claybottomfarm.com.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Chelsea Green Publishing Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50597111595282,"sku":"9781645022046","price":25.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_dd5791a7-8fda-4bcd-b86d-2d13195d3098.jpg?v=1732172997","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/the-lean-micro-farm-how-to-get-small-embrace-local-live-better-and-work-less-9781645022046","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}