241. Jill Ragan on Growing a Tiny but Mighty Farm

What's holding you back from full-time farming?   On this episode of the Thriving Farmer Podcast, we’re joined by Jill Ragan, Owner of Whispering Willow Farm, located in Central Arkansas. Along with her husband, Nathan, Jill’s mission is to create an environment where people come together, foster sustainable practices, and build a resilient local food system. Jill teaches others how to plan and steward their own farms through her social media, online courses and her recently released book The Tiny But Mighty Farm. Tune in today to hear all about Jill’s journey from working a 9-5 job to full-time farming!   You’ll hear:   How Jill got into farming 2:00 How Jill sources the farm’s soil 11:50 About what tools they use for production 15:06 What the Whispering Willow team looks like 18:06 What Jill would change if she could start the farm over again 21:52 About Jill’s motivation to write her book The Tiny But Mighty Farm 24:20 What the most common questions are that Jill has received 29:49 About Jill’s experience with selling to restaurants and breweries 32:20 Jill’s advice for an aspiring farmer 39:48   About the Guest:  Jill Ragan, along with her husband Nathan, are the owners of Whispering Willow Farm in central Arkansas. Along with their three daughters, their family is striving to stay connected to their local community by sharing food and flowers with those around them. Through various outlets like her growing YouTube channel and her new book The Tiny But Mighty Farm, Jill teaches about gardening and, most importantly, flourishing on your home farm no matter the size.    Resources: Jill's book - The Tiny But Mighty Farm Website - www.thewhisperingwillowfarm.comInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/whisperingwillowfrm/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/whisperingwillowfarm15 YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@WhisperingWillowFarm       GrownBy is the farmer-owned online marketplace. In the last three years, their 200 farmers have sold over $2M of products to shoppers on the GrownBy app. GrownBy works for all scales and types of farm sales. Spring Plant Sale? Yup. Annual Freezer Meat Emptying? Check. Multi-season, multi-farm 300 member CSA operation? Absolutely. GrownBy supports it all. As a cooperative, farmer success is their #1 priority. They are the first farmer-owned cooperative ecommerce platform in the world. With auto-payments, built-in customer notifications, CSA subscriptions, and customers helping to pay site fees, GrownBy is a tailored fit for your farm’s online sales. Upcoming, GrownBy will be the first online platform accepting SNAP/EBT with authorized farms. Startup is free, and pricing is transparent and affordable. The cooperative collects 2% of each transaction, but customers often contribute to this fee and bring down farmer costs significantly. Listeners to the Thriving Farmers Podcast get 50% off their first three months on GrownBy. Just email [email protected] to get this offer. You can learn more at GrownBy.com, or download the app on the Google Play or Apple App stores.