Canadian Organic Growers (COG) has established a strong reputation for producing practical, high-quality guides for North American organic producers. “Crop Planning for Organic Vegetable Producers,” the latest addition to their Practical Skills Handbook series, was developed with support from the Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF) and is now available through COG and other outlets.

As a member-based federal charity in Canada, COG’s mission includes publishing educational resources for organic and transitioning growers. For market gardeners and farmers, managing 40 to 60 different vegetable varieties simultaneously is a demanding task. When directly marketing their produce, growers often plant overlapping successions to ensure sufficient harvests for various sales channels, including farm gates, farmers’ markets, restaurants, and subscription services (CSAs). While crop planning can be complicated, this handbook breaks the process into manageable, logical steps, providing clear reasons for each step’s importance and the benefits of following the process. It offers extensive guidance through templates, examples, a case study, and real-life success stories.

COG appointed Frédéric Thériault and Daniel Brisebois as the authors of the book. Fred and Dan are two of the five farmers operating Tourne-Sol Cooperative Farm near Montreal, Quebec, which has rapidly grown from 30 to 250 CSA customers and expanded its farmers’ market sales in just five years. Crop planning has been crucial to their success. The methodology presented in this book draws from years of experience across various farms and incorporates insights from their studies, farmwork, existing resources, and interviews with vegetable growers nationwide.

The successful farmers they consulted shared a common approach: set seasonal objectives, estimate how much to grow, order seeds, take notes during the growing season, and use those notes to plan for the following year.

By following their methods, vegetable growers can achieve not just a complete seed order but, more importantly, a week-by-week calendar of greenhouse and field operations, along with templates to record harvests and sales, enabling customization for the following year.

The book features profiles of eleven vegetable growers, highlighting a range of operations from small, intensive farms using walking tractors and hand tools to larger farms utilizing cultivating tractors and significant labor forces. All these examples demonstrate how effective crop planning contributes to a thriving farm. Farm profiles are particularly popular among COG readers.

The crop planning process is beneficial for vegetable growers at any experience level or operation size. Its methods are relevant not only for commercial growers but also for homesteaders. Additionally, the planning process will interest non-organic market growers, though the book emphasizes organic principles, including crop rotations that enhance soil quality.

The eleven steps outlined in the book are:

1. Set your financial goals.
2. Develop a marketing plan.
3. Create field planting schedules.
4. Develop crop maps.
5. Select vegetable varieties and finalize the planting schedule.
6. Generate greenhouse schedules.
7. Complete a seed order.
8. Create a field operations calendar.
9. Execute the crop plan.
10. Analyze crop profitability.
11. Prepare for the following year.

Throughout the process, the book addresses:

– Estimating initial sales forecasts based on financial needs and preparing for a CSA or market stand.
– Approaching crop planning in a systematic manner: calculating the required quantities, planting dates, and frequencies of each vegetable to meet sales targets. It includes comprehensive vegetable reference charts to support this planning.
– Estimating yields and safety factors to ensure targets are achieved, and adjusting these estimates as the grower’s expertise and the crop plan evolve.
– Considering the broader context of crop planning: bed and field layout, crop rotation, soil management, organic regulations, and how one year’s plan fits into a multi-year strategy.
– Monitoring the crop plan and record-keeping: staying on track through the season and how to adapt plans as needed.
– Reviewing the crop plan at the end of the season in terms of profitability and how this evaluation informs next year’s strategy.