Upcoming events
Faith & Food: A Conversation About Stewarding Our Land
This one-day conference will encourage church leaders to consider the role of the land their churches are on, especially in the context of feeding our hungry neighbors. Lunch will be provided by The Nashville Food Project. A $15-$20 donation is suggested. Date & Time:
Saturday, November 23rd, 9:00am until 12:30pm
WORKSHOPS: Wildlife Exclusion
Are wild animals eating your produce before your customers get a chance? Join us to discuss methods of wildlife exclusion and co-management in your produce fields. Each workshop will include hands-on demonstrations of fencing, decoys, and other deterrents. Learn from the experts, including Dr. Annette Wszelaki (vegetable specialist), Dr. Chris Graves (wildlife specialist), Dr. Dave Lockwood (fruit and nut specialist), and Brooke Emery (produce safety assistant). Workshops will last roughly 2 hours and include lunch! We look forward to seeing you soon on a farm near you!
TN Local Food Summit
A weekend of education, community connection, and organizing for a more resilient local food system.
SOWTH 2025
Join us for a three-day gathering of over 1,000 farmers and leaders committed to sowing a strong sustainable agricultural movement across the South! SOWTH 2025 is a revival of the deep-rooted Southern SAWG Conference, which was focused on developing practical tools and solutions for sustaining family farms throughout the South. SOWTH has emerged to continue this tradition, and is being planned by partners across 13 states and territories in the South, including Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands.
What: SOWTH: A Regional Small Farms, Big Community Conference
When: February 4 - 6, 2025
Where: Georgia World Congress Center • Atlanta, GA
Registration: Early bird pricing is now open!
At SOWTH 2025, we will collectively explore solutions and opportunities for the advancement of farmer prosperity, practical production methods and practices, advocacy, and environmental and social justice. Come together with over 1,000 farmers, ranchers, food system professionals, scientists, academics, and advocates who are all working together to build strong regional food systems.
SOWTH 2025 Scholarships are now available to cover registration costs, including a two-day conference pass, add-on farm tour, and/or on-site childcare, as well as travel expenses. Producers in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Virginia are eligible to apply.
We are prioritizing new and beginning producers and ranchers: Black, Indigenous, Latino/a, and persons of color, veterans, women, and agricultural students in this region as our primary recipients for scholarships. As space allows we will consider ag and culinary professionals, educators, nonprofit/community organization employees, and other food systems professionals.
Application deadline is November 13th!
Community Pizza Night at Old School Farm
Come join us for a fun-filled evening at Old School Farm! Bring your friends and family for a night of delicious pizza, good company, and great vibes. Let's gather around the fire, play yard games & enjoy some tasty slices. Pizzas will be topped with ingredients grown on the farm or sourced locally. Our sauce is farm made & we will have some available for you to purchase if you love it!
Women In Agriculture & Human Sciences Conference
Women In Agriculture & Human Sciences (WIAHS) Conference, a gathering of past and present attendees who share a passion for agriculture and a commitment to advancing women (men) in this dynamic field. Details: Date: November 7-8, 2024, Time: 7:00 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. Tennessee State University, Agriculture Pavilion, 1513
WEBINAR: Small Livestock & Poultry Farmers: What to Know about Avian Influenza
This free webinar on avian influenza features Dr. Maurice Pitesky from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. NCAT is a co-sponsor of this online event. This webinar is offered as part of the project titled: "Two Strong Wings, Cover Crops & Veggies: Developing the Next Generation of Integrative Farmers in California, Iowa, and Kentucky" funded under the USDA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program.
2024 Southeast Biodynamic Conference
For 38 years, farmers, gardeners, and homesteaders who are interested in biodynamic methods have been gathering to learn and celebrate the season together. This a family friendly, educational event with a strong spirit of celebration, cooperation, and inclusion. There are educational workshops throughout the weekend as well as delicious home cooked meals, live music, skill sharing, and plenty of time to sit around the fire and enjoy the farm.
Master Farm Manager Program - Montgomery Co.
Topic include: Developing Your Business Plan, Understanding Farm Taxes, Creating a Budget & Financial Statements, Farm Transition, Planning Insurance - Are You Covered?, Recordkeeping, Tips & Tricks Farm, Funding Opportunities, What About Agritourism?, Farming with Higher Interest Rates. Location: Montgomery Co. Extension Office1030 Cumberland Heights Rd. STE-A Clarksville, TN 37040
Welcoming Week at Nashville Food Project
Nashville Food Project is coming together to celebrate Welcoming Week and the rich community fostered through shared spaces. organizations and communities (across the world) bring together neighbors of all backgrounds to build strong connections and affirm the importance of welcoming and inclusive places in achieving collective prosperity.
WEBINAR SERIES: Unlocking Local Grain Potential
This webinar series is an opportunity for small businesses working in regional grain value chains to learn successful strategies for working with local grains. You’ll get to hear from leading bakers, millers, and industry professionals about topics ranging from how grain testing can support your business, practical insights about gradually incorporating local grains and making good bread accessible to your consumers, and effective storytelling and marketing strategies from successful regional grain businesses.
TSU Small Farm Expo
Mark your calendars! The 2024 Small Farm Expo from TSU College of Agriculture is coming this September 5th, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m! We're talking engaging presentations, fruitful networking opportunities, expert speakers, and vendors showcasing the best of the Tennessee farming scene. Experience the wealth of TSUAg's small farm wisdom in action.
The FUTURE OF FOOD: Just & Regenerative Agriculture, Climate Change & Ecological Healing
We can’t predict exactly what the future will look like, nor can we prepare ourselves perfectly for it. This is true of everything and especially for our future experiences with food. As Forum for the Future notes, “we can shape the future, and the best way to start is by imagining the future we want to see.”
Dinner & Music Under the Stars
Support our work by joining us for an evening of local food & beverages, live music, silent auction, and stargazing at the historic Vanderbilt Dyer Observatory.
Climate Smart Agriculture (CSAF) Field Day
Join us on TSU’s certified organic farm for a demonstration on how to implement climate-smart agricultural practices for organic grain production. The demonstration will include cover crops, organic grain production and climate-smart agricultural practices. Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will be represented alongside TSU for this half day educational event.
WEBINAR: Southern Organic Pest Management Through IPM
Join us for a webinar with NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Audrey Kolde on using integrated pest management to manage pests on organic crops in the South. These science-backed practices empower farmers to cultivate robust, thriving plants while effectively managing pest infestations.
Seeds of Sucess Sessions: explore NRCS Organic Practice 823
Organic Transition Initiative 823 (OTI) is specifically meant to help those transitioning to organic operations, by cost-sharing and providing technical support on practices organic and transitioning farmers want to implement on their farms.
Lunch and Learn - Homesteading 101: Farming in the City
Wacky Wednesday Lunch and Learn-July 17th, 202, Homesteading 101: Farming in the City, 533 Glenstone Springs Drive, Clarksville TN 37043, Free Event-Registration Required.
FARM TOUR: Slow Your Roll - Plan Before Your Plant
At Erin’s Farm, Linda and Gary Hamm will provide an informational tour of their farm where they grow blueberries and Christmas Trees.
You will also be able to view the conservation efforts incorporated into the farm such as the monarch & pollinator fields, and native grasses.
6th Annual Highland Realm Farm Blueberry Bash Celebration
Come celebrate our 14th year with us! Our all natural, chemical free, biodynamic blueberry farm has plenty to celebrate.
Slow Your Roll: Plan Before YOu Plant - Orchard Production 101
This workshop will help growers and homeowners evaluate if orchard production is feasible as the title says, plan before you plant! Join us on June 7th, 2024, from 12:00 – 2:00 pm at Mt. Carmel 5050 Pickering Rd, Clarksville, TN 37043
Coordinated Production Planning Info Session (Virtual)
Farmers market managers, food hub coordinators, local food grocers and wholesale buyers of local food are invited to join us for a virtual workshop on Coordinated Production Planning (CPP). This event is hosted in by Southeast TN Young Farmers, Tennessee Association of Farmers Markets, and Tennessee Local Food.
Reggie’s Urban Ag Day
Join Reggie Marshall and other guest speakers at 10:00am on Saturday, May 11th to learn more about how to get your start in urban agriculture today. Connect with peers, professionals, lenders, and local vendors. Explore all that urban agriculture has to offer.
The Ag Day will take place at The Nashville Food Project’s Mill Ridge Farm 12944 Old Hickory Blvd., Antioch 37013
River Friendly Farms Grazing School
The Cumberland River Compact’s latest agricultural education series, the River Friendly Farms Grazing School, sprung from a desire to help local livestock farmers improve their land– and their economic outcomes– while protecting sensitive water resources. The Compact will host one-day Grazing School workshops in the spring and fall starting in May of 2024 to teach farmers how to implement managed grazing systems on their farms.
Southeastern Grain Gathering
Come join us for the Southeastern Grain Gathering, a lively event celebrating the wonderful world of grains! This in-person gathering will take place at Fasig-Tipton, located on Newtown Pike in beautiful Lexington, KY.
Edible Nashville Spring Farm Dinner
Join Edible Nashville at our Spring Farm Dinner on McKinney Farm
Dine on a seasonal five-course meal prepared by Chef Skylar Bush, and the chefs of 1 Kitchen Nashville, Chris Crary, and Tyler Lee. Enjoy cocktails from Corsair Distillery and wine amidst a beautiful setting celebrating all things local. Featuring the soulful sounds of The Gubernaughts. We are Music City after all.
Webinar: Seeds of Success -Crop Insurance for Organic Farmers
Join us during the third session of Seeds of Success where OFA will explore Crop Insurance for Organic Farmers: What’s Working, What’s Not, and How We Can Make it Work for Us on April 16, 2024, at 2PM ET. The Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF), is partnering with the Organic Farmers Association (OFA), and National Organic Coalition (NOC) to host the Seeds of Success series of virtual farmer-to-farmer networking sessions.
Organic for Better Health
Hear from community members about the importance of farming and eating organically.
From Seed to Table: Strategies for a Healthier You
During this workshop, twin brothers, Obiora and Irucka Ajani, will discuss the diverse ways to improve soil health (and therefore plant health), and ultimately your health & drop knowledge on seeds. As engineers by training, they bring technical and scientific knowledge, along with Nature observations & an innate desire to help others re‐think how food is grown.
From Seed to Table: Strategies for a Healthier You
Exploring New Market Opportunities
Wholesale buyers care more and more about where their food comes from and who is producing it. Learn about FreshPoint’s interest in supporting and buying from small farmers, and hear from UT Extension agents about how to navigate GAP (Good Agricultural Practices), a certification required by many wholesalers.
Women Farmers of Middle Tennessee Annual Potluck
Hi everyone!
The Women Farmers of Middle Tennessee group is excited to gather for our annual potluck! Please save the date. We hope you can make it!
Date: Sunday, March 24
Time: 4:00 - 6:30pm
Location: The Nashville Food Project, 5904 California Ave
Please bring a dish to share. We don’t have an agenda beyond just catching up with each other.
Feel free to forward this email to anyone who may be interested. Although we’ve historically called ourselves “Women Farmers of Mid TN,” this group welcomes non-binary farmers as well!
Hope you're all doing well!
Lizzie Wright & Caroline Hutchins
CONFERENCE: Regenerating Appalachia
Join us at Kentucky State University for Regenerating Appalachia, a groundbreaking FREE conference dedicated to addressing the unique needs of underserved producers in the Appalachian region as they navigate the challenges posed by a changing climate. This one-day event will bring together a diverse array of experts. Our speakers will delve into crucial topics including whole-farm planning for conservation, integrating renewable energy on family farms, and empowering small-scale producers through the transformative potential of emerging technologies.
Tennessee New Farmer Academy
Starting on March 18th, The Tennessee New Farmer Academy is a seven-month certificate program designed for those with an interest in becoming agricultural entrepreneurs. Ideal candidates for this program include those who are new to agriculture, those who wish to transition into agriculture from another field such as military service or private sector work, or those who are looking for a post-retirement opportunity.
Elevate Your Farm Brand Workshop
The Elevate your Farm Brand workshop will delve deep into the fundamentals of successful branding. Participants will gain valuable insights into: Developing a compelling brand narrative; Identifying and capturing your niche; Crafting a memorable brand identity; and Creating effective communication and marketing strategies