List of Alternative Crops and Enterprises for Small Farm Diversification

Alternative Farming Systems Information Center Masthead

Alternative Crops and Enterprises for Small Farm Diversification

Printer Friendly Page



	Compiled by: Mary Gold and Rebecca S. Thompson Alternative Farming Systems Information Center Updated May 2011 Print PDF version




	About this list: This list of alternatives was compiled using AFSIC reference request files, the subject files in our office, as well as previously compiled lists, most notably "Innovative Farming Idea List," (1987) compiled by Nancy Grudens Schuck, Farming Alternatives Project, Cornell University and "Ideas for Alternative Agricultural Enterprises," (1996) put together by the Missouri Alternatives Center. [See their Web site's database of Extension and related on-line publications about alternatives: http://agebb.missouri.edu/mac]. This list is not comprehensive, but presents some of the more accessible innovations available to farmers. What can alternative crops and enterprises do for my farm? The "Diversifying Cropping Systems" Bulletin for farmers and agricultural educators is a primer on planning diversification with alternative crops, agroforestry, and cover crops. This Sustainable Agriculture Network resource features "factors to consider before diversifying, specific diversification strategies and expert sources of information." [http://www.sare.org/Learning-Center/Bulletins/National-SARE-Bulletins/Diversifying-Cropping-Systems]
	Back to Top


	Where can I find information on agricultural alternatives? To find out more about alternatives suited to your area, start by contacting your local or State Extension office. A listing of Extension Office directories and alternative agriculture publication sites is included below. The Alternative Farming Systems Information Center maintains the Alternative Crops and Plants Web site and publishes Great Places to Find Information about Farming Alternatives, both of which offer a selection of information-rich Web sites and organizations. http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/pubs/findinfo.shtml http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?info_center=2&tax_level=1 &tax_subject=298 Agricultural Sustainability Notes Series: Questions to Ask About Alternative Crops (Washington State Univ.) lists questions on economic and production issues to explore before selecting a specific crop alternative. http://pnw-ag.wsu.edu/AgHorizons/notes/sr3no1.html Evaluating a Rural Enterprise (ATTRA) provides more detailed discussion about assessing farming alternatives. http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/evalrural.html A PRIMER for Selecting New Enterprises for Your Farm (University of Kentucky), a tool for evaluating new enterprises for a farm or family business, is based on worksheets used to evaluate the "Profitability, Resource requirements, Information needs, Marketing decisions, Enthusiasm for, and the Risk associated with a new enterprise." http://www.uky.edu/Ag/AgEcon/pubs/ext-aec/ext2000-13.pdf The Small Farm Today "The Original How-to Magazine of Alternative and Traditional Crops, Livestock, and Direct Marketing" http://www.smallfarmtoday.com/ Alternative Crop Suitability Maps (Illinois State Water Survey) presents "climate and soil requirements for alternative and traditional crops." http://www.isws.illinois.edu/data/altcrops/ Additional resources on specific agricultural alternatives may be found at your State Department of Agriculture, crop and livestock associations, searchable publication lists and databases, as well as at your local and/or university library. [See Resources section, below]
	Back to Top


	The list: Field Crops Feed and Forage Fiber, Fuel, Edible and Industrial Oils Food Grains, Pseudocereals, Legumes, etc. Specialty and Ethnic Vegetables (see also Field Crops) Fruits and Nuts Horticultural/Nursery Agroforestry/Forest Products Livestock/Animals Game Related Exotic Livestock/Minor Breeds/Special Uses Poultry Aquaculture/Fishfarming Pet and Medicine Related Farm and Home Enterprises Services Recreation and Education Value-added Products/On-farm Processing
	Back to Top


	Field Crops: Feed and Forage... Bird seed (sunflower, proso millet, canary grass, etc.) Forage brassicas - turnips, rutabagas Kochia Medics Sainfoin Switchgrass Fiber, Fuel, Edible and Industrial Oils... Borage Broomcorn Canola Castor beans Comfrey Corn (for oil) Crambe Cuphea Flax Guayule Jojoba Kenaf Lesquerella Lupine Meadowfoam Milkweed Perilla Safflower Sesame Sunflowers Vernonia Food Grains, Pseudocereals, Legumes, etc.... Adzuki beans Amaranth (food and feed) Barley Buckwheat Dry edible beans (fieldbeans) Einkorn Emmer Field peas (food and feed) Garbanzo beans (chickpeas) Hops Indian corn Jerusalem artichokes (food and feed) Kamut Lentils Malting barley Mung beans Organically grown grains of all types Peanuts Pearl millet Popcorn, white and colored Psyllium (medicinal) Quinoa Seed production - registered and certified seed, turfgrass, etc. Sesame (seeds) Sorghum (syrup) Soybeans, incl. natto soybeans for tofu, tempeh; and Edible soybeans (edamame) Spelt Triticale Wheatgrass Wild rice
	Back to Top


	Specialty and Ethnic Vegetables: See also Field Crops Asparagus Baby vegetables Cabbage Carrots Celery Chinese water chestnuts Cole crops (broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi) Corn, miniature Fenugreek Edible flowers Garlic Gourds, ornamental Gourmet vegetables Greenhouse production for out-of-season crops Heirloom varieties of any vegetable Herbs - culinary and medicinal Horseradish Luffa gourds Mushrooms- agaricus, shiitake, oyster, morel, etc. Onions (transplants, shallots, sweet, early) Organically grown vegetables of all types Oriental vegetables Peas and pea shoots Peppers - specialty types (purple, hot, etc.) Pumpkins Red beets Salad greens - mesclun Sprouts (alfalfa, bean, etc.) Squash Sweet corn Sweet potatoes Tomatoes - specialty types Truffles Wasabi
	Back to Top


	Fruits and Nuts: Apples, esp. Heirloom varieties Asian pears Brambles - blackberries, raspberries, loganberries, blackraspberries, etc. Blueberries Cranberries, currants Elderberries Gooseberries Kiwi, hardy Lingonberries Melons - specialty types Paw paw Rhubarb products Strawberries, day neutral types Table grapes, seeded and seedless Wine grapes for home brewing market
	Back to Top


	Horticultural/Nursery: Bedding plants - annual flowers, herbs, etc. Field grown cut flowers Field grown mums Flowers for drying Greenhouse production Hydroponic production Organically grown bedding plants and fruit trees Potted annuals Native plants/wild flowers and seeds Regionally hardy shrubs and perennial flowers
	Back to Top


	Agroforestry/Forest Products: Bamboo Christmas trees Firewood Paulownia Sawlogs Tree seed collection Wild nuts
	Back to Top


	Livestock/Animals: Game Related... Beefalo (hybrid of buffalo and beef) Buffalo (American Bison) Deer - fallow deer, red deer Elk (wapiti) for meat and antlers Fish bait - worms, minnows Pheasant for release/restocking programs and meat Exotic Livestock/Minor Breeds/Special Uses... Alpacas and llamas for pack animals, hair, and pets Boar Butterflies (for gardeners) Fox, red, silver, and blue Goats for milk, meat, and hair (Angora) Horses - draft horse breeding, miniatures, exotics Mink Mules and donkeys Ostriches, rheas, emus Rabbits for meat, lab animals, and hair (Angora) Reindeer Sheep/Lambs for meat, wool, milk (for cheese) Veal, conventional and certified Water buffalo Worms (for composting) Yaks Poultry... Balut (duck eggs partially incubated) Chicken eggs partially developed (for Asian markets) Doves Duck - meat and paté Free range poultry of all types Geese Guinea fowl Organically raised poultry of all types Peafowl/Peacocks (feathers) Pigeons Quail/Squab Turkey Aquaculture/Fishfarming... Aquaponics (combining aquaculture and hydroponic operations) Bass, Trout, Catfish, Crayfish, Tilapia Watercress and other aquatic plants Pet and Medicine Related... Dogs (guardian) Guinea pigs Pet foods - crickets, mealyworms, etc.
	Back to Top


	Farm and Home Enterprises: Services... Antique shop/Antique restoration Boat storage Direct marketing operations - U-pick, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), farmstand Child care in country setting Composting services and products Custom machinery work Custom planting and care of window boxes and container annuals Custom planting and care of vegetable gardens Custom slaughter Farm sitting Gift shops Pet motels for large as well as small animals Religious services held on farm, e.g. sunrise Easter services, weddings Restaurant Seed and supplies distributor Small engine repair Taxidermy Recreation and Education... Barn dances Bed and breakfast Campground Chuck wagon Fee hunting and fishing/game farms Hunting, fishing, and nature hike guides Lectures on herbs, gardening at farm Museum of old farm equipment on working farm Petting zoo Sleigh rides with work horses Tours for public, school children Trail rides Vacations on farm Wagon trains Value-added Products/On-farm Processing... Cheese Cider and other apple products Confections and candles Corn snack foods Crafts Dried flowers, e.g., cultivated, arid, wild Dried Fruits Fresh or stone ground grains Furniture, e.g. outdoor chairs, picnic tables Honey and beeswax products Meat processing, e.g., jerky Sawmill Soapmaking Tanning hides Toys from wood Wheatweaving Winemaking Wool processing and spinning
	Back to Top


	Resources: Extension Office or Land Grant University Directories and Publication Sites National Institute of Food and Agriculture Cooperative Extension System Offices E-answers is a searchable Web site for research-based information on a wide range of Extension or Outreach-oriented subjects. Missouri Alternatives Center and MAC Link List of Extension information on Alternatives Alabama Cooperative Extension (Auburn Univ.). Publications (see Agriculture) Univ. of Arkansas Arkansas Agriculture: Specialty Agricultural Production Searchable Publications Database Univ. of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications Agronomy Research and Information Center Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program Cooperative Extension Service Vegetable Research and Information Center Colorado State Univ. Cooperative Extension Publications by title Specialty Crops Program Univ. of Florida. Cooperative Extension Small Farms and Alternative Enterprises EDIS topics, including alternative crops and livestock Alternative Opportunities for Small Farms Univ. of Georgia. Cooperative Extension College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences. Publications Univ. of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. Publications or http://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/site/BrowsePubs.aspx Univ. of Idaho Animal Science Crop Production Iowa State Univ. Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension Topics Extension Publications Kansas State Univ. Publications and Videos Library Kansas Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Alternative Crops (KCSAAC) Reference Library Univ. of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service and Kentucky Agriculture Experiment Station Online publications New Crop Opportunities Center. Crop Profiles Louisiana State University Ag Center. Research and Extension Crops and Livestock Univ. of Maine Cooperative Extension Publications Catalog Univ. of Maryland. Extension Publications Univ. of Massachusetts. Extension Agriculture and Landscape Program. Michigan State Univ. Extension Area of Expertise Teams Searchable Extension Database Univ. of Minnesota. Extension Agriculture: Crops, Specialty and Alternative Agriculture: Alternative Animal Enterprises Mississippi State Univ. Cooperative Extension, Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station MSUcares Univ. of Missouri Agriculture Publications Alternative Crops Montana State Univ. Cooperative Extension Service. Agriculture publications Crop Publications Univ. of Nebraska. Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources Specialty Crops Specialty Livestock Publication Catalog Index Rutgers State Univ. of New Jersey Cooperative Extension. Publications North Carolina State Univ. and Cooperative Extension Horticulture Information Leaflets Growing Small Farms. Web Resources - Alternative Crops North Carolina Specialty Crops Program North Dakota State Univ. Extension Crop Production ProCrop Crop Production Information Ohio State Univ. Extension Agriculture Oklahoma State Univ. OSU Extension Facts Oregon State Univ. Extension and Experiment Station Agriculture Publications and Multimedia Catalog Commercial Production Vegetable Guides Northwest Berry and Grape Information Network Oregon Small Farms Penn State Univ. Agricultural Alternatives magazine College of Agricultural Sciences. Publications Clemson Univ. Cooperative Extension Publications Home and Garden Leaflets Univ. of Tennessee/Tennessee Farm Bureau Center for Profitable Agriculture Texas A & M Univ. Horticultural Alternatives for Texas Agriculture Specialty Vegetables Virginia State Univ., and the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State Univ. Cooperative Extension resources by subject Washington State Univ. Cooperative Extension. Publications West Virginia Univ. Cooperative Extension Center for Agriculture, Natural Resources and Community Development Univ. of Wisconsin. Cooperative Extension Program Teams Crops (select "fruits" or "vegetables")
	Back to Top


	Other Resources for Agricultural Alternatives The National Agricultural Library's AGRICOLA database The Agricultural Network Information Center (AgNIC) includes a searchable database. The Agricultural Marketing Resource Center (AgMRC) identifies directories of value-added agriculture resources, and it provides production and marketing information for many commodities and products. http://www.agmrc.org/directories__state_resources/ or http://www.agmrc.org/commodities__products/ Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA) Aquaculture information sources include AFSIC's Aquaculture Resources Web page, the Aquaculture Network Information Center (AquaNIC) and ATTRA's publication, Aquaculture Enterprises: Considerations and Strategies. The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy Australian New Crops Mid-Atlantic Regional Fruit Loop (Cooperative project of State universities) State Departments of Agriculture (USA.gov) U.S. Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service Plants Database Alternative Crops Univ. of California Small Farm Program Specialty Crops http://www.sfc.ucdavis.edu/crops/ Includes the Specialty and Minor Crops Handbook; UC Vegetable Research and Information Center; UC Fruit and Nut Research Center; crop profiles; articles and more Illinois State Water Survey Alternative Crop Suitability Maps Maryland Small Ruminant Page Univ. of Minnesota Minnesota Farm Opportunities. Diversification Options. Fruits, Vegetables and Other Crops Livestock and Poultry Options Ohio State Univ. PlantFacts Database Oklahoma State Univ. Breeds of Livestock Plants For A Future database or http://www.pfaf.org Purdue Univ., Center for New Crops and Plant Products NewCROP CropSEARCH Rodale New Farm Resource Directory http://newfarm.rodaleinstitute.org/cms/resource.php Univ. of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension, Univ. of Minnesota Extension Service, and the Center for Alternative Plant and Animal Products Alternative Field Crops Manual Alberta Agriculture Special Crops Web site Manitoba Agriculture and Food Crop Production and Management World Crops World Crops for the Northeastern United States
	Back to Top

Last Modified: May 06, 2011