2023 Pick TN Conference – TOGA Speakers

Thursday, February 16th

1:00pm-1:45pm – Tips for Less Tillage and More Cover Crops with Steve Groff

Steve Groff will share from his over 2 decades of experience transitioning to less tillage. He’ll review ideas he’s discovered and those he’s seen in his travels around the world. If you have any planting window of 4 or more weeks, there is no reason not to plant cover crops! Steve will also answer questions for specific challenges you may have.

2:00pm-2:45pm – Advancing Soil Health Practices with Steve Groff
Steve Groff will discuss how anyone can advance soil health practices they currently do on their farm. This session will be filled with practical advice Steve has learned from his decades of experience and hundreds of research plots he has done on his farm. He’ll also share about a bonus for those who are diligent in moving forward using regenerative agriculture practices.

4:00pm-4:45pm – Growing Organic Profitable Greens 52 Weeks a Year with Ray Tyler

Join Ray Tyler as he teaches the art of growing and selling diverse greens Organicly 52 weeks of the year. His unique system of growing vegetables on 1 acre under a mix of low-tech caterpillar tunnels and high tunnels earns him over $500,000 per year. In this workshop, Ray will teach his complete system, including the following: till and no-till methods, building and maintaining fertile and Organic living soil, selecting proper varieties for all 4 seasons, consistent germination 52 weeks of the year, creating a no-weed growing bed system, building a permanent irrigation system and selling the harvest year-round. Ray will provide a detailed workbook for you to fill out and take home, ensuring you leave with the best current practices and knowledge to select, grow and sell more greens than you could ever imagine from your farm.

Friday February 17th

8:00am-8:45am – Organic Certification and Naturally Grown with Matthew Young

Matthew Young will discuss the process of becoming Certified, and the similarities and differences of the two types Certifications.

8:00am-8:45am – Growing Plants with a Purpose with Cindy Shapton

With more and more people wanting to grow organic food and medicine in their backyards, choosing the right plants is essential. Who has time to weed around plants that don’t contribute to your family, critters or garden?

9:00am-9:45am – Humic Substances (Bio Stimulants) in Organic Production with Dilip Nandwani and Pinkky Kanabar

Humic substances (HSs) are biostimulants used for crop production in organic farming to enhance yield and quality of produce. Humic substances are the major natural component of organic matter formed in soil from the decomposition of dead cell materials by microorganisms. Humic substances include humic acids, fulvic acids, and humins. HSs have indirect effects (e.g. increase in fertilizer efficiency, reduction of soil compaction) or direct effects (e.g. improvement in the overall plant biomass on plant growth, increase of the root growth and uptake of some nutrients), and enhanced tolerance to abiotic stress such as salinity. We shall discuss application of humic substances in organic vegetable production and share results of organic melons and sweet pepper research trials conducted at Tennessee State University organic farm.

9:00am-9:45am – Advancing Soil Health Practices (Repeat) with Steve Groff

Steve Groff will discuss how anyone can advance soil health practices they currently do on their farm. This session will be filled with practical advice Steve has learned from his decades of experience and hundreds of research plots he has done on his farm. He’ll also share about a bonus for those who are diligent in moving forward using regenerative agriculture practices.

10:00am-10:45am – Companion Planting: The Science is Often Anecdotal with David Cook

Companion plants have been reported to influence neighboring plants in many ways. It has been reported that companion plants have the ability to improve the health and flavor or interfere with the growth of a companion. They may attract beneficial insects and also repel common pests. Companion plants are often used to attract pollinating insects. Companion plants have been used as trap crops. Trap cropping is the practice of planting something between the main crop that attracts a specific pest away from it. With almost infinite amounts of information on the web, how do you know what really works and if there is any science supporting the information. This presentation will look at some of the science behind companion plants along with some of facts and myths.

11:00am-11:45am – Growing Organic Profitable Greens 52 Weeks a Year (Repeat) with Ray Tyler

Join Ray Tyler as he teaches the art of growing and selling diverse greens Organically 52 weeks of the year. His unique system of growing vegetables on 1 acre under a mix of low-tech caterpillar tunnels and high tunnels earns him over $500,000 per year. In this workshop, Ray will teach his complete system, including the following: till and no-till methods, building and maintaining fertile and Organic living soil, selecting proper varieties for all 4 seasons, consistent germination 52 weeks of the year, creating a no-weed growing bed system, building a permanent irrigation system and selling the harvest year-round. Ray will provide a detailed workbook for you to fill out and take home, ensuring you leave with the best current practices and knowledge to select, grow and sell more greens than you could ever imagine from your farm.

Lunch and Learn 12:00pm-12:45pm

1:00pm-1:45pm – Organic and Naturally Grown Certification (Repeat) with Matthew Young

Matthew Young will discuss the process of becoming Certified, and the similarities and differences of the two types Certifications.

1:00pm-1:45pm – Harmonious Habitat with Jeremy Leckich

In this class, we will discuss how to bring harmony to the places we call home, whether in an urban, suburban, or rural context. The class will lay out simple yet effective steps to activate the potential of our habitats and build relationships with the greater ecosystem in which we reside. The class will offer various strategies for growing food and medicine, as well as rain catchment, based on lessons learned working on numerous homesteads with a plethora of clients.

1:00pm-1:45pm – On Farm Custom Production with Chris Simpson

Participants will get an overview of our Custom Slaughter facility and how we grew from a backyard processor to a State Certified Custom Slaughter facility that currently does Chicken, duck, rabbit, pork, lamb and beef. We will discuss how to get started, capital investment requirements, State and USDA requirements. We will also discuss the systems needed to sell Chicken, lamb beef and pork from an on farm custom slaughter operation.

2:00pm-2:45pm – Herbs for Food, Medicine and Cut Flowers with Cindy Shapton

Herbs are amazing multi-faceted plants that can be eaten for dinner or added as a spice or used as medicine to sooth an upset tummy or ease a headache or calm an itchy bug bite. These same plants can add dimension, texture and scents to cut flower bouquets and wreaths year-round.

2:00pm-2:45pm – Pasture Raised Chickens with Chris Simpson

Participants will get an overview of our Pastured Poultry Operation from the design of our brooder, shelters, fencing, feeders, watering systems as well as our processing operations. We will cover startup operations for a pastured poultry production system as well as marketing and sales overview and recommendations.

3:00pm-4:45pm – How to Sell Produce in a Challenging Economy with Ray Tyler

In this workshop Ray will teach how he stays flexible and adaptable in any economy. He will also share some systems for making sure that your costumers remain loyal and how to keep them interested and engaged and coming back week after week.

3:00pm-3:45pm – Introduction to the Production of Organic Livestock with Ann Peischel

We’ll discuss the National Organic Standards and the minimal use of off-farm inputs and management practices to support biodiversity and maintain and promote ecological balance. How is organic certification obtained and the application of organic livestock systems (soil health, pasture management, water, breeding, housing, equipment, health and marketing).