Trainings for Farmers and Ranchers in Virginia
The Virginia Beginning Farmer & Rancher Coalition (VBFRC) aims to keep farmers and ranchers in Virginia informed about trainings and events happening throughout the commonwealth. We share featured trainings offered by Coalition partners and compile a comprehensive list of trainings and events throughout the region through our monthly newslbast. We send our the newsblast via email. Join our listserv if you would like to receive that communication. Also make sure to check out our webinars and A Taste of Farming, a video series that covers farming basics.
Featured Trainings
The Small Farm Outreach Program's New and Beginning Farmer & Rancher training is designed especially for minorities, socially disadvantaged and military veterans who want the opportunity to learn how to start and maintain a successful farm business. Their holistic approach includes education, outreach, hands-on experiential learning, training and technical assistance as well as farmer-mentor support for those who participate. Participants begin with a small farm orientation workshop and can attend a whole farm planning workshop as well. Visit their website for more information and don't miss their event's page with monthly workshops and trainings.
The Northern Piedmont Beginning Farmer and Rancher Program is pleased to offer, An Introduction to Getting Your Hands Dirty. This is a 6-week course with two Saturday labs at the Fauquier Education Farm. The course is intended for serious gardeners and Beginning Farmers who want to sharpen their production skills by broadening their basic level of knowledge of the tools and concepts of professional crop production. Classes run April 3 to May 8. Cost is $100 per person or $150 per couple. For more information, see their flyer or contact Jim Hankins at fauqieredfarm@gmail.com or 540-338-4338.
This course promotes the stewardship of small parcels of land for the personal enjoyment of the owners and improved environmental quality for society. If you own 1 to 10 acres in the Eastern United States that is forested or has unmowed natural areas, this course is for you. It is for you if you have a mowed lawn area that you want to turn into a woodland. It is also for you if you are a land manager or part of a group that manages natural areas, such as a preserve or a community woodland. This course runs April 8 to June 17.
You are invited to attend the upcoming Virginia Farm-to-Table Webinar Series scheduled for Tuesday, May 7 and Tuesday, May 14, 2024 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (EST). The webinar series features Dr. Elizabeth Heilman. Dr. Heilman is a Professor in the School of Education at Wichita State University and co-founder of Regenerative Wisdom. Dr. Heilman and her husband Dale Strickler live in Iola, Kansas a short distance from Dale’s family farm. Dr. Heilman researches and teaches on how the most socially powerful belief systems are formed and the psychological, cultural, and political factors that shape them. Her current work focuses on what is most needed educationally and socially to foster sustainable human flourishing, which includes understanding the connection to environmental ecology, emotional ecology, regenerative agriculture, and food systems. In this two-part series, Dr. Heilman will focus on how to root resilience in farm communities and strategies to empower farmer participation for meaningful and durable results. The webinars are aimed to enhance understanding among farmers, Extension personnel, technical service and cost-share providers, government agencies, nonprofits organizations, and corporations about the unique cultures and sociologies of rural communities that influence behavior, resilience, adoption, and participation.
Save the Date for the 360 Beef Discussion Group gatherings every month from 6-7 pm in Goochland County! May 14, June 11, July 9, August 14, September 17, October 8. More details coming soon.
Save the Date for the 360 Cut flower Discussion Group gatherings every month from 9 – 10 am in Goochland County! May 17, June 13, July 18, August 13, September 19, October 15. More details coming soon.
Monthly Newsblast
Click the image below to be taken to a .pdf of our monthly newsblast with events and resources from across the state. We post these at the beginning of each month and announce each one on our listserv. While our newsblast is quite comprehensive, some events and trianings might not be listed. If you would like to add your beginning farmer events to the list, please send an email including the event title; dates; a short summary; and any flyers, attachments, or hotlinks to vabeginningfarmer@vt.edu
Newsblast Archive
Click the links below for previous newsblasts.
The Virginia Beginning Farmer & Rancher Coalition is a state-wide and coalition-based Extension program, housed in Virginia Tech’s Department of Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education. Funding was sponsored by the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Award #2023-49400-40885. For more information about the program, contact Katie Trozzo, Program Coordinator, at vabeginningfarmer@vt.edu or (540) 232-2233. For other questions, contact Kim Niewolny, Program Director, at niewolny@vt.edu.
For website updates, such as broken links, please contact vabeginningfarmer@vt.edu
