Resources and Information for New Growers

These are some online resources that can be helpful for new farmers or for farmers considering new crops or enterprises:

Crop Selection Tools 

• A Market-Driven Enterprise Screening Guide This guide provides a structured format based on a series of questions to help farmers assess the potential of new enterprises.

• A guide to screening market driven enterprises  (Presentation slides)

• Profitseeker: Crop/Enterprise Screening Guide (Presentation slides)

• UC Davis Cost and Return Studies 

• UC Urban Agriculture

• The California Backyard Orchard 

• UC Vegetable Research and Information Center

• UC Fruit and Nut Research and Information

New Farmer Education Programs/Internships 

• UC Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems (CASFC) 

• UCCE Foothill Farming 

• Archi’s Acres 

• San Diego City College’s Seed@City Urban Farm 

• Victory Gardens San Diego

• Coastal Roots Farm 

Other Relevant Sites 

• San Diego Food Systems Alliance

• San Diego County Farm Bureau

• California Rare Fruit Growers

• Community Alliance with Family Farms (CAFF)

• National Center for Appropriate Technology/Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (NCAT/ATTRA)

• Young Farmer Coalition 

• Rodale Institute