Farmer Rancher Grant Program of NCR-SARE is for farmers and ranchers who want to explore sustainable solutions to problems through on-farm research, demonstration, and education projects. The Farmer Rancher Grant offers grants of up to $7,500 for an individual applicant, $15,000 for 2 applicant farmers cooperating, and $22,500 for three or more farmers cooperating. More information about the grant is available at http://www.northcentralsare.org/Grants/Our-Grant-Programs/Farmer-Rancher-Grant-Program
In Indiana, we had five farmer-initiated projects selected to receive funding in 2017. They were:
- James Catron of Hallelujah Acres Farm in Lebanon, IN was awarded $7,500 for the project, “Measure the Effectiveness of Interseeded Cover Crops for Proactive Weed Prevention in a Chemical-free, Low-till Vegetable Market Garden Operation.”
- Jane Loomis of Old Loon Farm in Columbia City, IN was awarded $22,477 for the project, “Investigating the Possibilities of Cooperative Sorghum Syrup Production and Marketing for Strengthening Small Farm Sustainability in Northern Indiana.”
- Thomas McEvilly of McEvilly Gardens LLC in Bloomington, IN was awarded $7,458 for the project, “Differential Impacts of Growing Medium on Micro Greens Productivity.”
- Genesis McKiernan-Allen of Full Hand Farm in Noblesville, IN was awarded $6,244 for the project, “Hoosier Young Farmer Coalition.”
- Denice Rackley of Clearfield Stockdogs and Lamb in Bennington, IN was awarded $21,714 for the project, “Success with Stockdogs: Herding Workshops and Continuing Skills Development for Livestock Producers.”
Congratulations !!!
Partnership Grant Program of NCR-SARE is intended to foster cooperation between agriculture professionals and small groups of farmers and ranchers to catalyze on-farm research, demonstration, and education activities related to sustainable agriculture. An Agricultural Professional is the grant applicant and the principal investigator. Three or more farmers or ranchers are substantially involved in the project. More information about the program is available at http://www.northcentralsare.org/Grants/Our-Grant-Programs/Partnership-Grant-Program
In 2017, Wenjing Guan with Purdue University was awarded $29,791 from the grant for the project “Using Grafting Technology to Enhance Greenhouse Cucumber Production in High Tunnels”. Grafting has the potential to extend harvest season and increase the yield of cucumbers. This project introduced cucumber grafting technology to vegetable farmers, with the goal of enhancing early season cucumber production.
Updates about the project will be published in the Vegetable Crops Hotline. If you are interested in participating in this project, please contact Wenjing Guan at guan40@purdue.edu.
The Call for Proposals for the 2018 NCR-SARE Grant Programs will be announced in Fall. Please watch for the announcements if you are interested in applying for the grants.