Instructor: Dan Birnstihl, Rimol Greenhouse Services
Content Level: Beginner-Intermediate

A high tunnel is a major investment for any grower, but one that can quickly pay off with a strong return on investment (ROI). This workshop will provide calculations on the typical ROI of a high tunnel and offer practical strategies for increasing return on investment. This includes growing different crops and varietals that can yield more profits, investing in upgrades or automation for the tunnel, or even growing through the winter.

Dan Birnstihl leads Inside Sales and Customer Service at Rimol Greenhouse Systems. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps, Dan attended UNH to earn his degree in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems. He worked as the Farm Director at Hip Peas Farm before joining the Rimol team in 2022.

Instructor: Chad Cochrane, NRCS NH
Content Level: Advanced

While soil organic matter is widely recognized for improving soil health, its role in carbon cycling is far more complex and dynamic. This advanced session explores how soil organic matter is measured, how carbon is stabilized, transformed, and utilized by soil microbial communities, and how these processes influence nutrient availability, water dynamics, and crop performance. Participants will examine management strategies to intentionally build and manage soil carbon, including targeted use of amendments such as compost and biochar, with an emphasis on practical, farm-scale decision-making.

Chad Cochrane is the State Agronomist for the USDA-Natural Resource Conservation Service. He works statewide promoting conservation agronomy, sustainable agricultural practices, and soil health management systems. Chad has been a lead supporter and promoter of no-till planting methods, the use of cover crops, and irrigation water management on all sizes and types of farms.

Instructor: Ridge Shinn, Northeast Grass-fed Beef Initiative
Content Level: Intermediate-Advanced

The Regenerative Grazing talk will focus on economic viability of grazing, creating 3-6 times more biomass per acre, improved animal health, and reproduction. This talk will also cover how management of the solar collector (grass) with ruminants creates consistent high-quality meat. Ways to economic success with grazing includes calves in sync with nature that will winter graze and use limited structure to avoid concentration of nutrients. Success is measured by evidence of rumen function (manure quality). Economic success with adaptive multi-paddock (AMP) grazing also creates resilience and combats drought and flooding.

Ridge Shinn is the Executive Director of Northeast Grass-Fed Beef Initiative (NGBI). NGBI recently received a Henry P. Kendall Foundation grant to support their collaborative work at Vermont State University in establishing a grass-fed beef supply chain for VTSU cafeterias. NGBI has also submitted a 24-credit Regenerative Grazing curriculum to VTSU. Ridge has been a leader in the shift from feedlot production to raising cattle on a diet of 100% grass and forages. His work has been recognized in Time Magazine, Atlantic Monthly, New York Times, Wine Spectator, and Smithsonian.

Instructor: Paul Doscher, Windcrest Farm
Content Level: Intermediate to Advanced

Cut-your-own Christmas trees can provide a reliable off-season income stream for small organic growers while making productive use of land that may be less suitable for food crops. This workshop explores how Christmas tree production can fit into a diversified organic farm system. Participants will learn how to select appropriate tree species for their climate and soils, and how to manage fertility and site conditions organically. We will also cover common pests and diseases and effective organic strategies for prevention and control. Whether you are considering adding Christmas trees to an existing farm or starting a new enterprise, this session will offer practical, experience-based guidance for long-term success.

Paul Doscher and his family have been organic growers for more than 45 years. They originally started a modest market garden, selling from the farm and at farmers markets. In 1986 they were awarded the “Organic Gardener of the Year” by the Rodale Press. They began growing Christmas Trees in the late 1980s, opening a cut-your-own operation about 30 years ago. The farm hosted about 3 acres of trees, and was entirely operated by the family. They retired the commercial Christmas Tree operation in 2025. Paul is a former professor of environmental science and land conservation professional with the Society for the Protection of NH Forests.

Instructor: Maria Noël Groves, Wintergreen Botanicals
Content Level: Beginner-Intermediate

So many wonderful herbs to heal the gut and enhance digestion can be grown in the garden or foraged from the wild. Maria will focus on a handful of favorite herbs from her newly released Herbal Gut Health book that benefit various aspects of digestion. These will include marshmallow, dandelion, fennel, plantain, and catnip. Learn how to make simple, delicious recipes like gut-healing teas, powder blends, carminative glycerites, and digestive bitter tinctures or oxymels with local, organic plants.

Maria Noel Groves is a clinical herbalist who runs Wintergreen Botanicals Herbal Clinic and Education center in Chichester, NH. She is the author of the award-winning, best-selling Body into Balance: An Herbal Guide to Holistic Self Care, Grow Your Own Herbal Remedies, Herbal Remedies for Sleep, Herbal Gut Health.

Instructor: Anna Hubbard & Cam Huftalen, Vital Communities
Content Level: Beginner

Over the past year, Vital Communities has been developing resources and programming to build and nurture Farm to Early Childhood Education programs in the region. In this presentation, Vital Communities will provide an overview of what Farm to Early Childhood Education is, how it benefits both children and local growers, and what resources and opportunities are available for local farmers to become more engaged with Farm to Early Childhood Education. The presentation will highlight tools that Vital Communities has developed, such as an interactive map and curricula focused on early-age agricultural literacy, as well as various ways farmers can engage with local early childhood education programs through food procurement and educational opportunities. The session will conclude with a roundtable discussion aimed at sharing attendees’ experiences with Farm to Early Childhood Education and exploring hopes for how participants can help sustain and build on the momentum this field has generated in recent years, ensuring that local farmers continue to be supported.

Anna Hubbards background is in applying systems-based thinking to land conservation and permaculture design/installation throughout the Monadnock and Upper Valley Regions. Since joining the Vital Communities team, they have focused on Farm to School, Farm to Early Childhood Education, and general support for Upper Valley food producers.

Cameron Huftalen has a background in cultivating resilient local food systems, previously working with the Kearsarge Food Hub in Bradford. Over the past several years at Vital Communities, they have worked to connect local farms and farmers to community members and food access programs and supported grassroots coalition building amongst hyper local community food projects.

Instructor: Akilah Z. Campbell, Zuri Wingi
Content Level: All Levels

This workshop explores how African Diasporic and Indigenous agricultural traditions shaped New England’s food system and continue to nourish communities today. Participants will learn about the ecological knowledge, seed keeping, and community care practices that sustained these populations for generations and laid the groundwork for sustainable agriculture in the region. We will also highlight how the different projects in the area are carrying this legacy forward through heritage crop cultivation, education, mutual aid, and collaboration. Through storytelling, historical grounding, and hands-on engagement, attendees will gain insights into culturally rooted agricultural practices and how to integrate them into their own farms, gardens, and/or community work.

Akilah Campbell has over 15 years of experience in farming, teaching, curriculum & program development, and community organizing. She is a former cofounder of a community center that focused on farming education, food justice, and social justice issues, where she developed and implemented programs in these areas. She has also worked at the national level to help farmers who are Black, Indigenous, and Other People of Color with technical assistance to promote farm and food systems resiliency in their local communities and regions. Akilah is currently working on the Zuri Wingi Heritage Harvest Project at Tuckaway Farm in Lee NH to bring crops and agricultural education from the African Diaspora and Indigenous Populations to the region. She is also a member of Durham's Wagon Hill Farm & Garden where she was the Education and Community Outreach Coordinator, a Board Member, and a Food Pantry Volunteer. She earned degrees in Wildlife Management/Ecology and Music Education from the University of New Hampshire, and is currently pursuing a M.S. in Natural Resources and the Environment.

Instructor(s): Ally Lynch & Allison Bussiere, Gather
Content Level: All Levels

Gather’s Community Food Center model goes beyond emergency food distribution, creating a welcoming hub where individuals and families can access nutritious food, build skills, and connect to resources that support long-term food security. This session will provide an inside look at how Gather has developed and expanded its Community Food Center to meet evolving community needs while strengthening connections across the local food system. Participants will learn how Gather integrates pantry services, prepared meal, culinary and gardening education, and partnerships across the food system into a coordinated, community-centered approach. The session will also explore how local food access fits within this model through purchasing from regional producers, gleaning, and collaboration with farms and community partners to increase access to fresh, locally grown foods.

We’ll share insights on growth, operational challenges, and lessons learned in building and sustaining a multifaceted Community Food Center. Through facilitated discussion, participants will exchange ideas, explore common challenges, and consider how elements of this model can be adapted in communities across New Hampshire. Attendees will leave with practical strategies, new connections, and inspiration for strengthening community-based food access.

Ally Lynch joined Gather in 2023 with a background in hunger relief, having previously worked with an international nonprofit focused on addressing global hunger and malnutrition. After starting a family, Ally followed her passion for the outdoors and local food by working on a four-season vegetable farm in South Hampton, NH. That experience deepened her commitment to locally sourced food and expanding access to fresh, nutritious produce within the community. At Gather, she helps strengthen connections between local farms and food access programs through gleaning, gardening, and community partnerships. Outside of work, Ally enjoys cooking, gardening, woodworking, and spending time with her family.

Allison Bussiere first connected with Gather as a volunteer in 2013, inspired by its collaborative, community-based approach to strengthening food access on the Seacoast. After years of involvement with Cooking 4 Community and local food initiatives, she joined the staff in 2022 to coordinate the Seacoast Food Providers Network and now serves as Food Systems Coordinator, working across local and statewide partnerships to build a more resilient, connected regional food system. Her work centerson programming that expands access to fresh, local food. Today, Allison’s work centers on strengthening community food access through Gather’s Community Food Center. She works at the local, regional, and state levels to build partnerships, share resources, and expand access to fresh, locally grown food across the Seacoast and beyond.