Microfarming for profit From garden to glory

As more and more people convert their yards into vegetable gardens, urban farming establishes itself as très Brooklyn, and middle-class incomes falter, many newly hatched home agriculturalists are bound to daydream about turning their green thumbs into greenbacks. This useful, entertaining guide from DeWitt, the prolific author dubbed the "pope of peppers," gives prospective microfarmers the dirt on realistic essentials for turning a garden into a money-making enterprise. Unlike some starry-eyed back-to-the-land advocates, DeWitt, who has gardened and sold garden produce from an early age, warns readers that a microfarm is more likely to enhance rather than replace current income sources and that sales and business know-how are more important than gardening skills. The author advises on such basics as business plans and sales techniques; profiles a range of actual working microfarms, from flowers to killer bees; and relates hilarious stories from his own microfarming, including a disastrous attempt at cannabis raising. Emphasizing the importance of value-added products, DeWitt offers up some wacky but shrewd agrotourism ideas: Edible Aquarium and Sushi Bar or Beautiful but Deadly Microfarm and Poison Museum, anyone? (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

DeWitt, aka the "Pope of Peppers," is an industry unto himself: an authority on chile peppers and spicy foods, radio producer, best-selling author (of gardening guides, food histories, and cookbooks), and professor (agriculture, consumer and environmental sciences) at New Mexico State University. He has also long been a microfarmer-i.e., one who farms on land between 1/4 to five acres in size, and who's growing to make money. He thinks the business might be a good fit for retirees, those who already work at home, or people with an entrepreneurial streak-folks looking to supplement their income. He offers crop suggestions, profiles several successful microfarmers, discusses his own operation, and finishes with some hard business realities (e.g., it's about selling, stupid!). The author dispenses lots of sage advice: grow what you love; use raised beds; diversify your crops; develop value-added products; write a business plan; learn the selling game; and, amid the toil, "Don't forget to take a break for a beer." VERDICT As a guide for those who are wondering if they want to farm or not, this is a solid start, sure to energize and entertain. A more detailed discussion of microagricultural practice can be found in Jean-Martin Fortier's The Market Gardener (2014).-Robert Eagan, Windsor P.L., Ont. (c) Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.