I have been working in Cooperative Extension now for a few economic downturns, and a common response to national financial calamity is a desire to become more self-sufficient. This is a completely rational response. Along with that sentiment comes an increasing interest in starting small farm businesses.
My job is to advise people and answer agricultural questions. The best part of the job is helping people be more successful, but sometimes my job is to try to talk a person out of jumping into farming prematurely, especially in our fickle climate in the Eastern Sierra.
Possibly because we all eat and have access to fruits and vegetables year-round, we underestimate the difficulty and infrastructure needed to accomplish that feat. Numerous books, websites, and social media accounts encourage people to become farmers. They do a great job making it look easy.
Farming, however, is not easy, which is why the average age of U.S. farmers is 57 and getting higher.
There are two essential components to agriculture, and a successful market gardener has to navigate both:
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The horticultural part (growing, pest management, irrigation...)
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The business end (financing, labor, harvest, equipment, laws, marketing, insurance…)
Just to keep it interesting, weather, economic policies, and disasters can all lay waste even to the best of plans in agriculture.
I'm not sure anyone would consider opening an art gallery to sell their paintings and attempt to learn how to paint after opening their shop, but this is the usual approach that beginning farmers on the Eastside try to take. They would need to learn to grow in our climate, get their site's soil and weed issues under control, and learn how to run a farm business all at once. That's a difficult challenge!
If your primary question is “What all can I grow here?” then you are likely not ready. A person who instead asks: “I can grow _____ well. Can I sell that profitably?” will be more likely to succeed. USDA has a good web resource dedicated to new farmers that handles the business planning part of agricultural enterprises.
It would be great to see more small market gardens in our area. If you are committed to beginning down that path, here are some tips to help you out:
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Begin first by learning how to grow things in our climate for a few years. If you are new here, you will see our climate is not like other parts of California.
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Start small and keep your off-farm employment while you learn.
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Check out our Master Gardeners' website.
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Find out when crops are ready for harvest in your garden.
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Learn how your soil works and begin to improve yours. This website (SoilWeb) has infomation about most soils in California and is a good place to start. Get a soil test done if you have questions about your soil data.
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Figure out how/when freezes occur in your location. This can be a deal-breaker in our climate. Some locations can freeze all year. Frost charts are helpful, but no substitute for experience.
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Get control of your weeds. Ground that seems barren in the Great Basin suddenly explodes with weeds when irrigated, especially in new gardens. Solarization seems to work well here.
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Make a business plan. You should know how much it will cost to grow, whom you plan to sell to, and what price you can get.
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Grow what you are passionate about. Most growers do not get rich from growing. Passion will keep you motivated long term.
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Commercial growers are subject to various regulations. You will need to learn about those, but you need to know what exactly (and how) you will be growing or selling before tackling those issues.
Finally, don't forget to consider your time availability. Gardening in the Eastern Sierra coincides with hiking and climbing seasons. If your interests are focused on the outdoor activities available here, then you will eventually run into a conflict that you must sort out. During growing season, farming is full-time(+) work, and plants don't take vacations. Not every crop is equally intense, so learning what works for your commitment level is important up front.
All that said, it is possible to successfully operate a market garden in the Eastern Sierra. Take it slowly. Learn how to grow crops here, and discover what works for you. At that point you will be in a great place to make the leap into commercial growing.