Online Courses for Brand New to More Advanced Beginning Farmers

 

Course Titles

Please visit the FAQ's link in the righthand column of this page to learn more about what to expect from our online courses.

 

Cost and Registration

Courses are $150 each unless otherwise indicated. We accept payment by credit card or check. Click here to register and pay by credit card. To pay by check, contact Erica Frenay for details.

 

Course Descriptions and Outlines

BF 101: Taking Stock: Evaluating Your Land and Resources and Choosing an Enterprise

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Evaluating what you want to do and what you have to work with are key elements to a successful new farm enterprise. This course will help you take the first steps toward setting goals, assessing the resources you have available for farming (physical, financial, and personal), and deciding what enterprises are the best fit for you and your land.

NOTE: You will get the most out of this course if you already have access to land. Each participant will be gathering information about their own enterprise and will begin to create a Farm Plan.

Course Objectives: This course will steer participants through

  • Farm goal-setting
  • Evaluating physical resources of your farm
  • Choosing an enterprise
  • Starting to develop a farm plan

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in MOODLE, our virtual classroom. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the online interface of the course to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from outside presenters, ask questions, and collaborate with other participants and the instructor to address your farm issues in real time. Webinars are at 7pm on a weekday evening unless otherwise noted. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

FSA borrower training credit is available upon request.

Instructors: Laura Biasillo, Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator in Broome County, NY and Dianne Olsen, Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator in Putnam County, NY.

Dates: Oct 14 - Nov 24, 2010

Schedule:

First Webinar: Introductions and Orientation to Course Interface in Moodle (Thurs. Oct 14, 7pm)

All Other Webinars: Wed. evenings, 7pm, each week of the course. All will be recorded for later viewing in case you miss them.

Week 1: Welcome and Introduction
Topics covered: introduction to Moodle (our on-line “classroom”), introductions to each other, begin work on goals and mission

Week 2: Goals, Skills and Resources
Topics covered: farm mission and vision, and identifying skills and resources.

Week 3: Site Evaluation
Topics covered: site evaluation, including soil type, climate, water, location

Week 4: Enterprise Evaluation
Topics covered: exploring suitable crops based on goals, skills, and land characteristics

Week 5: Wrap-Up and Evaluation
Topics covered: wrap-up goals, site evaluation, and enterprises and compile everything into the start of a Farm Plan.

 

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BF 102: Markets and Profits: Making Money Selling What You Grow

Have an idea for a farm enterprise but not sure if it's feasible? Join our veteran instructors to examine your potential markets and assess the potential profitability of your plans. This course is suitable for aspiring or new farmers as well as more experienced farmers seeking to diversify their operations.

Prerequisites: None, though you will have an advantage if you have already completed "Taking Stock: Evaluating Your Resources and Choosing a Farm Enterprise."

Course Objectives: This course will help you

  • Identify farm goals and timelines for an enterprise
  • Understand the potential for profitability with selected agricultural products
  • Explore marketing outlets and concepts important for successfully branding and selling your product
  • Understand that everything in farming is interconnected- holistic point of view.

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in MOODLE, our virtual classroom. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the online interface of the course to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from outside presenters, ask questions, and collaborate with other participants and the instructor to address your farm issues in real time. Webinars are at 7pm on a weekday evening unless otherwise noted. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

FSA borrower training credit is available upon request.

Instructors: Steve Hadcock, Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator from Columbia County, NY and Dan Welch, Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator from Cayuga County, NY

Schedule:

Week 1 – Introduction and Orientation to Moodle
This is a chance for those in the class to get to know each other and get some tips on using the course content software, Moodle. (For students carrying on from the first course, this week is a chance to keep researching questions about your site and what you want to produce)

Week 2 – Farm Goals
This week will be spent helping participants identify what goals they may initially have for their farm business. For example, is the farm going to be the only source of family income or just supplement it? If students have already developed their farm goals, we will move directly into the next week's material.

Week 3 and 4 – Marketing Discussion and Plans
Week three will be spent exploring the topic of marketing in regards to a farm business. Week four will be spent helping participants to start preparing a marketing plan for their farm.

Week 5 and 6 – What Will it Take to be Profitable?
Week five is spent discussing ways to measure profitability for a farm business and other related issues. Week six is the last week of the course and will help participants learn if an agricultural crop they are interested in can be produced profitably.

Dates: Jan. 6 - Feb 16, 2011

Registration will open in early November 2010.

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BF 103:  What Do I Need to Do to Start a Farm Business?

New farmers often ask “How does my enterprise officially become recognized as a farm?”  This question has many answers, all of which you’ll learn as a participant in this course. The course is for aspiring or beginning farmers seeking to learn about the commercial, legal and tax implications of farming.

Course Objectives:  At the completion of this course, you will know how to

  • Describe how a farm is characterized by federal income tax, state income tax and sales tax law
  • Differentiate between local zoning laws and NYS agricultural district law
  • Apply using NYS forms for agricultural property tax exemptions for land and buildings used in your operation (if your farm meets certain criteria)
  • Evaluate various forms of business ownership and determine which will be best for you at this time
  • Identify rules and regulations (for marketing, food safety, facilities, etc) that are pertinent to the type of agricultural enterprise you plan to operate

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in MOODLE, our virtual classroom. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the online interface of the course to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from outside presenters, ask questions, and collaborate with other participants and the instructor to address your farm issues in real time. Webinars are at 7pm on a weekday evening unless otherwise noted. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

FSA borrower training credit is available upon request.

Instructors: Stephen Hadcock, Extension Educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Columbia County, NY and Lynn Bliven, Extension Educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Allegany-Cattaraugus Counties, NY.  

Schedule:

Webinars are typically held at 7pm EST on a weekday evening, and are general once per week. Specific dates will be listed once course is open for registration.

Week 1: Introduction to Moodle (our virtual classroom)
Topics covered: Navigating in Moodle, course expectations, student introductions

Week 2: How Should I Organize the Business?
Topics covered: Common business structures, alternative options, mission & vision  

Week 3: Income and Sales Tax 
Topics covered: Relevant IRS law, Farmers Tax Guide, NY Tax Law

Week 4: What is the NYS Agricultural District Law?
Topics covered: Zoning, ag districts, property tax exemptions for farmers  

Week 5: Permits and Regulations 
Topics covered: Online permit assistance, sales tax, Dept. of Ag & Markets

Week 6: Record Keeping and Wrap Up 
Topics covered: which records to keep, options and resources, final Q&A

NOTE: This course in particular contains several lessons that relate specifically to NYS laws, so out-of-state participants may need to do additional research to determine the details of their state's equivalent laws.

Dates: Spring 2011; registration will open in Jan 2011

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BF 104: Financial Record-keeping: A Cornerstone of Farm Profitability

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To succeed in business, you need to understand financial management. The foundation of a sound financial management program for a farm is a good record keeping system. It does not matter what you produce, the service you provide, or how effective you are in marketing; the revenue you earn will disappear if you do not understand how to collect, monitor, save, spend, or invest that revenue. Current financial records from a good record keeping system are critical for making business decisions. This 6-week course will provide you with insight, understanding and the technological know-how to produce financial records and a beginning knowledge of analyzing financial statements.

Course Objectives: This course will help you:

  • Understand the key elements of financial record-keeping systems
  • Identify and apply different forms of financial record-keeping systems
  • Develop a financial record-keeping system
  • Apply the principals of profitability to your farm, using financial records

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in MOODLE, our virtual classroom. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the online interface of the course to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from outside presenters, ask questions, and collaborate with other participants and the instructor to address your farm issues in real time. Webinars are at 7pm on a weekday evening unless otherwise noted. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

You will also have access to one-on-one time with the instructors to help you with the logistics of setting up your record-keeping system. FSA borrower training credit is available upon request.

Instructors: The course is taught by Bonnie Collins, Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator in Oneida County, NY, and Stephen Hadcock, Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator in Columbia County, NY.

Dates: Oct. 14 - Nov 24, 2010

Webinar Dates:

    1. Introductions and Orientation to Course Interface in Moodle - Thurs. Oct 14, 7pm
    2. Farmer Presentation - Thurs. Oct 28, 7pm
    3. Uses for Financial Statements - Thurs. Nov. 18, 7pm

Weekly Syllabus:

Week 1: Welcome and Introduction
Topics covered: introduction to Moodle (our on-line “classroom”), introductions to each other, financial management self-assessment

Week 2: What is the Value of a Record-keeping System? What Does One Look Like?
Topics covered: comparing computer and manual record-keeping systems.

Week 3: Content and Purpose of the 3 Main Financial Statements
Topics covered: income statements, balance sheets, planning with the end in mind

Week 4: Components of the Record-keeping Cycle
Topics covered: Debits & credits, accrual vs cash method, accounting equation

Week 5: Record-keeping Cycle in Action
Topics covered: applying concepts learned to course participant transactions and record-keeping

Week 6: Final Products of a Record-keeping System - Financial Statements
Topics covered: Learning from financial statements - what do they tell us?, review of major concepts

BF 110: Soil Health Basics: Investing in the Vitality of Your Farm

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The health and productivity of our soils are the basis for a farm’s or garden’s success and profitability, as well as its ecological sustainability. Farmers need a holistic approach to preserving and building soil health and fertility. Stewardship of the soil is arguably the most important job of any farmer or gardener.

NOTE: This course will incorporate a face-to-face field day hosted by the Northeast Organic Farming Association at instructor David Belding's Cross Island Farms on Wellesley Island, NY, 4pm-7pm Oct 18th. This will be an amazing opportunity to meet your fellow coursemates and see firsthand how David has improved the soils on his farm over the past 5 years. The field day fee is covered by the course registration cost.

 

Course Objectives: This course will help:

  • Farmers and prospective farmers understand the importance of soil health to the environment and to the productivity and profitability of the farm or garden
  • Provide a framework for thinking about and evaluating the various methods of improving soil health, and
  • Provide some details about different methods of soil protection and improvement and resources for further independent research during and after the class

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in MOODLE, our virtual classroom. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the online interface of the course to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from outside presenters, ask questions, and collaborate with other participants and the instructor to address your farm issues in real time. Webinars are at 7pm on a weekday evening unless otherwise noted. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

FSA borrower training credit is available upon request.

Instructors: David Belding raises pastured pigs, beef, chickens, goats, vegetables, honey and maple syrup with his partner Dani Baker at Cross Island Farms on Wellesley Island, NY. Dan Welch is a Cornell Cooperative Extension Educator in Cayuga County, NY.

Dates: Oct. 14 - Nov 24, 2010

Tentative Webinar and Field Day Schedule (subject to change):

Webinar 1: Thursday Oct 14, 7-8:30pm - Introduction to the Course

Field Day: at Cross Island Farms, Monday, Oct 18, 4-7pm, Wellesley Island, NY.
Topics covered:

    • Garden Mulches: Hay, Leaves, Wood Chips
    • Chicken/Guinea Tractors for Weed and Insect Control and Fertility Improvement
    • Using Pigs for Garden Establishment, Fall Garden Cleanup, Tilling, Fertilizing, and Building
    • Raised Beds
    • Using Goats to Build Raised Beds
    • Collecting Organic Matter: Leaves, Wood Chips, Mulch Hay, Manure
    • Using Management Intensive Rotational Grazing to Improve Soil Organic Matter
    • Buying-In Livestock Feed as a Source of Soil Fertility

Webinar 2: Thurs. Oct 21, 7pm - Cornell Soil Health Dept: Attributes of Healthy Soil and Evaluating Them Using the Cornell Soil Health Test

Webinar 3: Thurs. Oct 28, 7pm - Roy Smith-Sugar Hill Farm: Improving Pasture Soils with Bale Feeding, Tissue Sampling, and Targeted Foliar Feeding

Webinar 4: Thurs. Nov 4, 7pm - Levi Rudd, Jefferson Co Soil and Water: Planting with No-Till Drills and Underplanting Cash Crops with Cover Crops/Green Manure

Webinar 5: Thurs. Nov 11, 7pm - Maria Pop-The Rodale Institute: Alternatives to Roundup: Planting Cash Crops into Roller/Crimper-Killed Cover Crops

Webinar 6: Thurs. Nov 18, 7pm - Wrap Up and Further Study

Fee: Because this course incorporates a field day sponsored by NOFA-NY, the course fee is $165.

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BF 120: Getting Started in Commercial Vegetable Production

This course will help new or aspiring vegetable producers to answer basic questions about soils, crop rotation, cover cropping, and marketing. Topics including variety selection, pre-plant preparation, cultivation, IPM, irrigation, harvest, and post-harvest handling will be covered.

NOTE: This course will include 2 face-to-face meetings at the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA-NY) Winter Conference in Saratoga Springs, NY. Course participants will get to know each other, discuss their progress with the course, what they've learned at the conference, and any specific questions that come up related to vegetable farming. Meetings will be Jan. 22nd and 23rd, 2011. Attendance is recommended but not mandatory for online course participants. You will need to register and pay NOFA separately for the conference (price varies depending on duration and meals - scholarships are available for beginning farmers). Registration for this online course, regardless of attendance at the NOFA conference, is $150.

Course Objectives: At the end of this course, participants will:

Instructors: Crystal Stewart and Laura McDermott are Cornell Cooperative Extension Educators serving as regional fruit and vegetable specialists for the Capital District Fruit and Vegetable Team in NY.

Dates: Jan. 6 - Feb 25, 2011. Registration will open in early November 2010.

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BF 201: Marketing What You Produce

Most of us go into farming with the thought of making some - or all - of our livelihood through the sale of what we make or grow.  Successful farmers plan each aspect of their operation carefully, and marketing is no exception.  Completion of this online program will enable you to create a marketing plan that will help you maximize your return on your investment. This is an intermediate-level course for those who are already in production and/or have already given some thought to marketing.

Course Objectives:  This training will help you:

  • Link your farm’s mission and vision to your commercial goals and marketing strategy
  • Understand the key elements of a solid marketing plan
  • Analyze the competitive landscape and the opportunities for success
  • Conduct  market research on one or more of your potential products
  • Implement effective marketing strategies, tactics and processes

We will host weekly webinars so participants can discuss their marketing plans share ideas and provide support and feedback to each other.  Course participants are expected to submit weekly marketing plan updates to the course instructor for additional feedback.  Additional collaboration is provided through weekly online forums to post questions for the instructor or other participants. FSA credit is available upon request.

Instructor:  Laura Biasillo, Agricultural Economic Development Specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension-Broome County.  

Schedule:

Dates for real-time webinars will be added at least 6 weeks prior to course start date, one per week. Webinars are typically held at 7pm EST on a weekday evening.

Week 1: Navigating the program site, introductions and welcome to course
Topics Covered:  Introduction to Marketing

Week 2: Introduction to Marketing
Topics Covered:  Competitive Analysis, SWOT Analysis

Week 3: Marketing Strategy
Topics Covered:  Mission Statement, Goals & Market Channels

Week 4: Forecasting & Branding
Topics Covered:  Sales Forecasting, Sales Mechanisms, Branding Strategies

Week 5: Expense Budgets
Topics Covered:  Sales Tactics, Expenses, Promotions (inc. point of purchase), Programs (types, costs, etc…)

Week 6: Wrap Up

This course will be offered again in Spring 2011. If you would like to receive email notification about online course offerings and other resources for small farms in NY, please subscribe to the Cornell Small Farms Program monthly e-newsletter.

 

 

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