10 Steps for Conducting Research on Your Farm or Ranch
Released September 2026, 10 Steps for Conducting Research on Your Farm or Ranch, provides a practical framework that can help producers design and carry out on-farm research projects.
This bulletin helps producers turn ideas into well-designed research projects, create detailed plans for implementation, and generate meaningful results that can improve decision-making and be shared with others. It serves as a companion to SARE’s How to Conduct Research on Your Farm or Ranch, which provides more in-depth guidance on technical topics such as experimental design, statistical analysis and on-farm research methods.
Developed for farmers, ranchers and agricultural educators, the workbook walks users through 10 essential steps in conducting on-farm research:
Download or order your free print copy of www.sare.org/10-steps or by calling (301) 779-1007. The bulletin is also available in quantity for free to educators for use in educational workshops, classes or tours.
Facilitating On-Farm Research
Agricultural educators and technical service providers are often asked to help facilitate relationships between farmers and other individuals or organizations (students, researchers, service providers, etc) who have varying degrees of experience working with commercial farms. A team from the University of Vermont’s Commercial Horticulture program developed an etiquette guidance document for those new to farm partnerships to help foster positive relationships. Facilitating Positive Relationships with Farmers for On-Farm Research (June 2025) provides guidance on making initial contact with farms, next steps when a farm agrees to participate, recommended practices when visiting farms, biosecurity measures, and components of wrapping up a project. Authors include Vern Grubinger, Becky Maden, Heather Darby, and Joshua Faulkner and Laura Olsen. View the
Grants Available from Northeast SARE
This one-page Grant Comparison Chart can help you determine which Northeast SARE grant program may be a match for your project idea. Grants Available from Northeast SARE provides a brief description of each grant program including funding caps per project, typical project duration, approximate application due dates and contract start dates, and eligibility and collaboration requirements. (June 2025).
The Basics of Farm Business Planning
The Basics of Farm Business Planning (June 2025) offers a framework to help farmers clarify their goals, evaluate their resources, and build financially and ecologically sound enterprises. Developed with input from experienced farmers and educators, the guide introduces five essential planning steps: Identifying values; understanding your farm’s history and current situation; defining vision, mission and goals; strategic planning and evaluation; and implementing and monitoring. Hard copies of the bulletin is is available in quantity for free to educators for use in educational workshops, classes or tours.