The arrival of a new growing season always brings hope and inspiration. We can all benefit from a little inspiration—and our farmer-entrepreneurs and farmland stewards provide plenty of it. Find more inspiration in this issue from a farmer who is cultivating joy on his land access journey.

For beginning farmers, recent price increases and real estate competition have only heightened the barriers to gaining access to farmland. More farmers are exploring farming as a group to lower land costs, but also to share resources, equipment, labor, mutual support and community. Read more in this issue about our new guide for accessing farmland together.

Senior farmers continue to seek our help developing a sound transition plan as they look to retire (or farm less) and keep their farm in farming. In many cases, identifying a new successor is key to preventing the loss of a farm and creating new farm access opportunities for our next generation of farmers. Read more in this issue about a new workbook that helps answer one of the questions we hear most often from farmers about farm succession—Where do I start?

And check out the list of recorded online workshops and webinars hosted with our state partners that you can review when it's convenient.

Farmers are asking for our help everyday. With spring comes an opportunity to renew your support! Your donation will go right to work supporting and advocating for the continuation of viable farms in our communities. Give today at landforgood.org/donate.

With gratitude,

Jim Hafner

Executive Director

Bo fell in love with farming at a young age because he found himself in a constant state of learning. He loved how much there was to learn and how farming allowed him to be his true creative self.

After 12 years of farming on leased land in southern and central Maine, Bo was looking to purchase farmland. He held multiple land leases over the years and received guidance from our leasing tools and resources. When Bo encountered obstacles in his search for farmland to purchase, he reached out for help. Our team helped him through the process, clarifying goals and objectives, offering referrals, resources, and connections including strategies to connect with local landowners. With the proper help and support, Bo knew when the right property came onto the market.

2022 looks to be an exciting growing season at Dandy Ram Farm where Bo grows annuals and perennial flowers, seeds for a seed company, and sustainably harvests greenery for wreaths that he ships throughout the US. The farm's new location on 18 acres of land has a farmhouse, a small barn that will serve as a flower studio, and a newly constructed seedling greenhouse.

Farm succession planning—

Farm succession planning is critically important for all farms. Preparing for such an important transition helps ensure that you achieve goals for the family and the farm. But, succession planning can present challenges, and there are many angles to consider.

If you're just getting started on this path, you may be wondering where to begin. A new workbook, Farm Succession Planning: Where Do I Start? will help you start to think about and address the important issues, including those that you may have avoided or not thought of. Developed in collaboration with other farm succession advisors and farmers who have planned for succession, this workbook can be helpful in a variety of ways. You can complete the worksheets on your own or with an advisor or trusted friend, and share them with other family members or financial consultant or attorney in the process.

Check out our new workbook, Where Do I Start?

Find additional tools & resources for farm transfer planning, including recorded webinars. Need more guidance? We offer one-on-one advising to New England farmers. You can get help to start, continue or complete your farm succession plan. Low or no-cost assistance is available. To initiate a consultation, complete this farm succession form.

Group land access can address one of the biggest challenges for farmers: getting onto land. We are hearing from many new and young farmers— including those from groups that were and are marginalized due to their race, class, ethnicity, gender—that they find it appealing to be with and share with other farmers.

Farmers face common challenges. Many farmers are exploring ways to farm collectively. This can allow farmers to share resources, assets, knowledge, skills, equipment, labor—and the expense of land. Land for farming is expensive and hard to find, especially when looking for a "home farm" with housing.

A new educational tool, Accessing Farmland Together, helps farmers navigate the questions and options around owning or renting land and addresses group land access challenges. Shared vision, clear structures and appropriate written documents are all important—as much as the interpersonal, management and legal relationships involved. Read more

Check out our new tool, Accessing Farmland Together.

Farmers are looking for land. As a landowner, when you make your land available to farmers you help secure a future for farming in your community. Partnering with farmers and land stewards to create productive and sustainable uses for all or parts of your property can bring many rewards!

This spring we offered a new, annual webinar series, Make Your Land Available for Farming. Watch the archived sessions to understand your land’s potential for farming and the variety of arrangements to consider.

The webinar series also highlights steps for successful land tenure arrangements— thinking through what enterprieses your land may support, your personal vision and goals for the land, as well as infrastructure, safety, and housing needs. You'll learn appropriate strategies and the mechanics for making any amount of land available to a farmer. Hosted by New England Farm Link Collaborative: Connecticut FarmLink, Maine FarmLink, Vermont Land Link, and Land For Good. 

Find more tools & resources to make your land available for farming.

If the spring months have you too busy in the field to be in a classroom, we recorded a number of online workshops and webinars hosted with our state partners so you can watch and learn at your own pace!

Find all these webinars and more, including mission moments on our YouTube channel:

-Affording Farmland

-Conducting a Farmland Search

-Establishing a Good Farm Lease

-Making Your Farm Available to a Successor 

-Retirement Planning for Farmers, Considerations for farmers of all ages

-Farm Succession Planning series

-Communication Between Farm Seekers & Landowners

-Make Your Land Available for Farming series

Together we can break down barriers to farmland acess, tenure, and transfer.

Your support today can help strengthen the security of agriculture in New England! You help us continue to connect transitioning farmers and other landowners to our region’s diverse and entrepreneurial beginning and expanding farmers.

Farmers like Bo need your help now more than ever to find secure land tenure and keep their farms thriving. Please make a gift today!