Educational Materials

• 2017 Census of Agriculture

  Comprehensive summary of agricultural activity nationwide.

• Acquiring Your Farm

  This online tutorial includes seven modules, including one on farmland tenure, which describes how farmland is acquired and held, U.S. trends and land tenure principles.

• Affording Our Land: Financial Literacy Guidebook for Young Farmers Provided by The Greenhorns

  Guidebook aimed at helping new, beginning and young farmers explore their options for accessing land and credit to start farm businesses. Authors: Severine v T Fleming, Kristen Loria, Kendra Johnson and Cara Siprelle.

• African Americans Have Lost Untold Acres of Land Over the Last Century: An obscure legal loophole is often to blame

  Article about the history of heirs' property and how it impacts African Americans.

• Ag Lease 101

  Learn about alternative land lease agreements and view templates.

• AGAware Balance Sheet Template

  Use this balance sheet in order to get a better understanding of your current and projected finances.

• Agricultural Land Tenure: A Curriculum for Beginning Farmers and Farm Seekers

  Lessons and modules about farmland access and tenure, including "Farmland Tenure Basics, Financial Assessment, Owning Farmland, Finding Farmland, Leasing Farmland, and Community Partners."

• Agricultural Lease Example

  This lease example serves as a general illustrative overview and a starting point for farmers and farm owners as they develop individualized lease agreements. This example is provided for educational and general information purposes only.

• Agricultural Leases: An Overview

  Basic information about different types of leases.

• AgTransitions

  AgTransitions is a free web app designed to help you transition you business to the next generation. Step-by-step guide to help farmers develop a transition plan.

• Basic Accounting: Guidance for Beginning Farmers

  National Center for Appropriate Technology ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture created this publication is to lay out several financing options available to beginning farmers to start a farm and to illuminate the step-by-step process of applying for a loan.

• Beginning Farmers' Guide to Conservation Easements

  Factsheet with key information about conservation easements for beginning farmers.

• Build a Lease Tool

  Design a lease that fits your situation and needs. (Educational tool, not intended to produce legal documents.)

• Cash Rent Survey Web Page

  Data about cash rents by county.

• Climate Data Web Page

  Information about climate patterns, water and soil moisture conditions.

• Cooperative Farming

  This guide introduces the concept of cooperative farming and the gives examples of the ways in which farming communities have found success in cooperative farming.

• Cultivating the Next Generation: Resources and Policies to Help Beginning Farmers Succeed in Agriculture

  Learn about access to capital, land, and infrastructure and assistance with agricultural production, business planning, and marketing.

• Disaster Preparedness

  What Heir Property Owners can expect when Applying for Assistance

• Elements of a Good Farm Lease

  Factsheet containing many of the important elements of a good farm lease.

• Estate Planning

  How Making a Will Protects Your Land and Loved Ones

• Farm Access Methods

  Land for Good created this guide to help farmers make informed decisions about how they access affordable land. This guide organizes farm access and tenure methods into three basic categories: “ownership now,” “ownership in the future” and “no ownership.”

• Farm Answers

  Farm Answers is the USDA-NIFA beginning farmer and rancher (BFRDP) clearinghouse, providing resources to help you get started farming, as well as tools to help more seasoned producers succeed.

• Farm Leasing Tutorial

  Modules designed to Introduce you to the benefits and challenges of leasing.

• Farm Legacy Letter Template

  A series of prompts to help exiting farmers write down their farm history and exit goals.

• Farm Legacy Workbook

  A workbook designed to help farmers navigate the succession process.

• Farm Rental Assessment Checklist

  Checklist for evaluating a site to lease.

• Farm Service Agency Loans-National Young Farmers Coalition

  A guidebook to help young farmers and ranchers navigate the credit options offered by the Farm Service Agency. This is the first comprehensive plain language guide to FSA loans since before the introduction of the popular microloan in 2013.

• Farm Succession and Transfer: Strategies for the Junior Generation

  Suggestions and strategies to help the incoming farmer through the farm transfer process.

• Farmer's Guide to Conservation Stewardship Program

  A comprehensive guide to understanding the Conservation Stewardship Program through NRCS. This guide outlines the benefits, eligibility and enrollment process for the program.

• Farmland Access in Urban Settings

  This guidebook addresses the unique aspects of land access in urban settings, such as those associated with location, cost, security, infrastructure and regulations.

• Farmland Access ToolKit

  Helping farmers and landowners affordably access, transfer and conserve farmland.

• Farmland Assessment Checklist

  Checklist for evaluating properties.

• Farmland Protection Program

  This resources provides a better understanding of the NRCS Ag Land Easement Program and how it can contribute to local communities.

• Federation of Southern Cooperatives Land Assistance Fund

  Federation of Southern Cooperatives Land Assistance Fund strives toward the development of self-supporting communities with programs that increase income and enhance other opportunities; and we strive to assist in land retention and development, especially for African Americans

• Field Journal For Beginning Farmers

  The resources, practices and strategies outlined in this Field Journal is for anyone involved with the food system – which is anyone who eats food! It’s focus is to encourage youth of many ages to consider farming as a career, in particular youth in middle and high school.

• Finding Farmland Calculator

  Use this calculator to build scenarios for purchasing farmland. You can compare detailed estimates of total costs, monthly payments and affordability metrics, then download the results to have on hand when meeting with a loan officer.

• Finding Farmland Course

  Lessons on financials related to acquiring your farm.

• Finding Good Farmland: How to Evaluate and Acquire Land for Raising Crops and Animals

  Information you need to have before purchasing farmland, ex. permits, codes, taxes etc.

• Finding Land to Farm

  This publication highlights some common ways to lease or own land. It outlines important considerations about each of these leasing options and paths to ownership.

• Finding Land to Farm: 6 Ways to Secure Farmland

  This publication highlights some common ways to lease or own land. It outlines important considerations about each of these leasing options and paths to ownership.

• Finding, Assessing and Securing Farmland: A Plain Language Guide

  Understand the process of locating and securing farmland.

• Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In

  Step-by-step strategy for coming to mutually acceptable agreements in all levels of negotiation.

• Greenhorns

  Greenhorns’ mission is to create a welcoming cultural space and a practical professional resource for the incoming generation.

• Growing Farm Profits

  This online course was developed for farmers and those who help farmers to build more sustainable farming enterprises. The content has a vegetable production slant, yet many concepts/principles will be informative to other producers.

• Growing Local: A Community Guide to Planning for Agriculture and Food Systems

  This guide provides a history of food system planning, principles, and practices, and a comprehensive toolbox of programs and policies.

• Growing on Solid Ground: A Farmers Guide to Land Tenure

  Covers land tenure options, agricultural leases, crop-share agreements and owning land.

• Harvesting a Profit

  A comprehensive guide to using financial information to improve farm profitability.

• Heirs' Property Retention Coalition

  Coalition to help southeastern families of color stem the tide of heirs' property land loss. Offers resources, research and referrals.

• Heirs' Property Understanding Legal Issues in Georgia

  The purpose of this factsheet is to prevent the loss of land owned as heirs’ property in Georgia. It examines state laws that are relevant to heirs’ property owners in Georgia, and outlines steps they can take to resolve property issues before seeing an attorney.

• Indian Land Tenure Foundation

  National community-based organization focused on American Indian land recovery and management.

• Land Values 2017 Summary

  Data on crop acreage, land use, grain stocks, farms, rents and the value of land and sales.

• Managing Indian Land in a Highly Fractionated Future

  Information about the problems and challenges of American Indian land ownership.

• National FIELD Network Map

  New Entry Sustainable Farming Project's FIELD Network continues to develop the capacity to serve Incubator Farm Projects and Apprenticeship Training programs across the country, we are encouraging regional collaboration.

• Planning the Future of Your Farm: A Workbook Supporting Farm Transfer Decisions

  Workbook for those who want to keep their farmland in production or their family as it passes to the next generation.

• Plant Hardiness Zone Map

  Interactive maps with information about plant hardiness zones nationwide.

• Population Web Page

  Population estimates and projections for different geographies.

• Power of Capital Workbook

  An informational workbook on farm business banking

• Publication 225, Farmer's Tax Guide

  Publication describing how federal tax laws apply to farming.

• Purchase of Agricultural Conservation Easement Programs

  Factsheet describing what easements are, how they protect farmland and where they're available.

• Refugee Farmer Teaching Handbook

  Handbook for staff providing training and technical assistance in immigrant and refugee farmer-training programs.

• Share Farm

  Founded to help connect small farms and Minority farmer to a larger market, Share Farm uses an inclusive, digital supply chain and existing distribution infrastructure to create a dynamic digital marketplace that empowers local growers.

• Six Guidelines for "Getting to Yes"

  Six skills to aide you in the negotiation process.

• Society of Rural Appraisers and Farm Managers

  Directory of members of the American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers who can help you evaluate land and develop a management plan.

• The Federation of Tax Administrators

  Find each state's tax agency's current website.

• USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

  Agency within USDA that helps farmers manage and conserve natural resources. Use this link to locate a service center.

• USDA Urban Agriculture Toolkit

  The toolkit lays out the common operational elements that most urban farmers must consider as they start up or grow their operations. It also contains a special section on resources for developing indoor growing operations, such as aquaponic facilities.

• Web Soil Survey

  Soil data and information provided by the NRCS.

• Your Land, Your Georgia: Planning for you Legacy

  A Getting Started Guide to Farm Transfer Planning

Service Providers

• AgPlan Business Plan Development

  AgPlan is powerful website developed to help rural businesses develop a business plan. AgPlan is free of charge for anyone to use individually or in educational programs.

• Agricultural Land Easements - NRCS

  The Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP) helps landowners, land trusts, and other entities protect, restore, and enhance wetlands or protect working farms and ranches through conservation easements.

• Conservation Districts

  Directory of the 3,000 conservation districts across the country. Conservation districts can provide maps, soil evaluations, and conservation plans.

• Cooperative Extension System

  Educational network with local offices of experts ready to provide practical and research-based information to agricultural producers and small business owners.

• Farmer Veteran Coalition

  The mission of Farmer Veteran Coalition is mobilizing veterans to feed America. The Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund is a small grant program that provides direct assistance to veterans who are in their beginning years of farming or ranching.

• Farmers.gov

  Farmers.gov provides farmers, ranchers, private foresters and agricultural producers with online self-service applications, educational materials, engagement opportunities and business tools.

• Federation of Southern Cooperatives

  Organization in the Southeast that organizes cooperatives, works with Black farmers, and provides heirs' property assistance and development of cooperatives, housing, marketing, small businesses and credit unions as a collective strategy to create economic self-sufficiency.

• New Entry Sustainable Farming Project

  Create resilient food systems by providing professional development, capacity building and network support to programs that train beginning farmers or those that work to promote their success through activities that benefit agricultural producers and consumers of all backgrounds.

• NRCS Georgia

  The Natural Resources Conservation Service provides technical assistance on natural resources issues and assists individuals, groups, communities and counties implement soil and water conservation practices to protect the 34 million acres of privately owned land in Georgia.

• Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research Education

  Supporting the family farm, promoting conservation and strengthening communities through sustainable agriculture strategies.

• Williams Farm Incubator Program

  A program that provides access to land, training and resources to beginning farmers belonging to groups subject to racial, ethnic and gender prejudice.