The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower’s Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming

Price: $29.99 - $15.05
(as of Sep 15, 2026 15:02:22 UTC – Details)

Transform 1.5 acres into a 6 figure annual income through proven small-scale organic farming methods. Jean-Martin Fortier demonstrates how he and his wife built a thriving market garden operation feeding 200+ families while maintaining work-life balance using low-tech, high-yield techniques that work in any climate.

Why This System Works Where Others Fail:

Unlike industrial farming that requires massive acreage and equipment, this micro-farming approach maximizes profits per square foot through intensive, sustainable methods. Based on 10+ years of real-world success, these techniques have been replicated by thousands of growers worldwide.

What You’ll Master:

Profitable crop selection – which vegetables generate $15-20 per square foot annually Efficient farm layout – design systems that minimize work while maximizing yieldsTool and equipment choices – cost-effective alternatives to expensive machinery Four-season production – extend harvests for year-round income streams Direct marketing strategies – command premium prices through CSA and farmers markets Financial planning templates – track profits, plan cash flow, and scale systematically

Proven Results from Real Farmers: Over 200,000 copies sold worldwide have helped farmers like you transition from hobby gardening to profitable small-scale agriculture. Jean-Martin’s students report achieving financial independence on 2-5 acres using these exact methods.

Start building your profitable market garden operation today. This isn’t theory – it’s a complete playbook from someone who’s actually making a living from small-scale farming.

From the Publisher

Garden Design

We’ve laid out the gardens so that all plots are equidistant from a multi-functional building that houses the washing, processing, and storage areas. This setup maximizes day-to-day productivity by minimizing onsite foot traffic.

Soil Preparation

Covering the soil with an opaque tarp for a few weeks is how we manage to clean the surface of our beds without having to work the soil. This technique is also quite beneficial in reducing weed pressure for the following crop.

Compost

To complete our compost needs, we make our own with crop residues and other available carbonaceous material. When building the pile, we inoculate it with “bokashi” type bacteria, which help to decompose the heap without us having to turn it.

Planting Seeds

To speed up the procedure when seeding flats, we use a homemade vacuum seeder, also known as a plate seeder. This simple yet brilliant device uses a vacuum to hold seeds onto a flat plate drilled with small holes to match the seed size and pattern of cells in a tray. You then flip over the plate onto a filled cell flat and shut the vacuum off, letting the seeds fall into place.

Seedbed Preparation

When cultivating with a hoe, it’s much easier to follow a straight line than a wandering one. This is why we mark our rows. We do so by fitting a few short lengths of interchangeable plastic tubes over the tines of our bed preparation rake. Our row spacing calculation is based on the width of the hoes we use and the optimal spacing for each crop.

Harvesting and Record Keeping

To prevent mistakes from happening again the following year, we record all our observations in a loose-leaf binder with a section for each crop. For each cultivar, we note the actual seeding, planting, and harvesting dates along with the yield produced. We also record the number of beds planted, which allows us to adjust our targets for the following year if necessary. At the bottom of each page, we leave a space to note any other useful observations

Publisher ‏ : ‎ New Society Publishers
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 1, 2014
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 224 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0865717656
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0865717657
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.12 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.5 x 0.43 x 8.5 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #29,229 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #2 in Agriculture Industry (Books) #7 in Sustainable Agriculture (Books) #10 in Restaurant & Food Industry (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars (2,336) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Customers find this gardening book informative and practical, providing clear, concise information and helpful methods that benefit both beginners and experienced gardeners. The book is well-written and easy to understand, making it a must-read for aspiring farmers. They appreciate its content on intensive market gardening techniques and consider it well worth the money, with one customer noting it’s the best book for small farms. Customers find the book inspiring, with one mentioning it’s an encouraging read for aspiring young farmers.