Online Courses for Farmers of All Experience Levels

Posted on September 5, 2021 by Taylor in Animal Husbandry, Bees, Beginning Farmers, Business, Education, First Generation Farmers, Internet Resources, Livestock, Local Food, Management, Marketing, Pest Control, Planning, Poultry, Small Farms, Sustainable Agriculture // 0 Comments

Online Courses for Farmers from the Cornell Small Farms Program – 2021-22 Lineup

Are you looking to improve your technical or business skills to benefit your farming operation? Consider joining one of our more than two dozen online courses for farmers during live instruction this upcoming online course season.

The Cornell Small Farms Program is excited to announce that our online courses will begin live webinars this month. Our suite of online courses is offered on a user-friendly platform, which grants registrants permanent access to their course content. Also, courses have tiered pricing based on household size and income to make access to the courses more affordable and equitable for everyone.

Registration is now open for all courses, with live content starting at the end of September for our first block of courses.

BF 101: Starting at Square One
- So you’re thinking about starting a farm, but feeling overwhelmed by all the decisions? This course was designed to assist new and aspiring farmers in taking the first steps in thinking through farm start-up (whether you already have land access or not).
BF 112: Reading the Land
- This new course is a 4-week exploration of how you can confirm and/or measure improved land health. You will learn how to read the land, and how to conduct various biological monitoring practices, from simple to more complex.
BF 204: Quickbooks for Farmers
- Are you a beginning farmer? Or are you a current farmer with the desire to switch to an online accounting system? Then our quick guide to Quickbooks is for you. Learn the software’s basic features, such as sales tax, inventory, invoicing, adjustments, and year-end procedures.

Our program offers more than two dozen online courses for farmers. These courses cover a range of topics any farmer needs to succeed, such as beekeeping, holistic financial planning, soil health, vegetable farming, and so much more. Experienced farmers and extension educators guide students through course content, including weekly live webinars, videos, and resources.

New additions to our online course suite include “Access to Capital” for anyone seeking funding for a farm enterprise, and “Cut Flower Production” which offers an introduction to the business of flower farming. Last year we had also added a 4-week intensive in how “Reading the Land” can help you monitor its health, a course on “Beef Cattle Management,” and a primer on “Social Media & Online Marketing” for your farm business.

The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in Teachable, our online course platform. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the interface of the course for a dedicated time slot each year to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from presenters and ask questions in real-time. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.

You can browse all of our course offerings on our website. You can learn more about our courses, including answers to common questions, on our course FAQ.