Rodale Institute

09/19/2026

🍂 Celebrate the harvest and the changing of the seasons at Rodale Institute’s FREE annual Fall on the Farm event!

📅 Saturday, October 3
⏰ 10 AM–3 PM ET
📍 Kutztown, PA

Enjoy all the best parts of fall, from scenic farm-wide wagon tours and exploring our corn maze to live music and delicious fare from local food vendors.

Families can also enjoy pumpkin painting and a photo booth with a natural backdrop, while fellow gardeners can shop our fall plant sale. 🌱🎃

Join us for a day on the farm as we celebrate the season together!
For more information, please visit:

Enjoy wagon rides, a corn maze, and more at Rodale Institute's annual Fall on the Farm event!

09/18/2026

Join us on October 1, 2026, at the Gardener's Outpost in Columbia, SC from 5-8 p.m. for an opportunity to connect, learn, and foster collaborations within the specialty crop community during the South Carolina Black Farmers Coalition Conference from October 1–3, 2026 in Columbia, SC. This opening evening at Gardener’s Outpost will include a panel discussion on growing organic specialty crops and an Organic buyer-seller mixer. This discussion will provide attendees with firsthand insights into organic transition, market needs, and building successful relationships. With local food, we connect, ask questions, and strengthen field-to-market pathways.

This gathering is designed to foster connections between those passionate about sourcing and supplying local, sustainable, and organic food. We hope to see you there!

Learn more and register today at:

Join us for an opportunity to connect, learn, and foster collaborations within the specialty crop community during the South Carolina Black Farmers

09/18/2026

Extreme weather can make an already unpredictable growing season even harder. But healthy farming systems can help build resilience from the ground up. 🌱

Research shows that regenerative organic farms can maintain higher yields during extreme weather events, helping create greater stability as climate conditions become more unpredictable.

By building soil health, increasing organic matter, improving water infiltration, and supporting biodiversity, regenerative organic practices can help farms better withstand periods of drought, heavy rainfall, and other weather extremes.

Resilience isn’t just about recovering after extreme weather. It’s about building farming systems that are better prepared for it.

Source: Regenerative Organic Alliance Impact Report, 2022–2023

09/17/2026

Join us for an inside look at Rodale Institute’s Agroforestry Center! Tour the site, connect with our expert staff and researchers, and learn more about the innovative work happening in agroforestry.

You’ll also have the opportunity to see drone demonstrations in action and explore how technology and agricultural research are coming together in the field.
Come curious, bring your questions, and enjoy refreshments while connecting with fellow farmers, researchers, and agriculture enthusiasts.

Registration is free, and all are welcome!

To register, please visit:

Join us for an inside look at Rodale Institute’s Agroforestry Center! Tour the site, connect with our expert staff and researchers, and learn more about

09/16/2026

🌱 California Organic Center Field Day | October 1 | Camarillo, CA

What if agriculture could move from sink to source?

Join us for a day of field-based learning focused on building agricultural systems that generate more of what communities need: clean water, healthy soils, resilient production, biodiversity, and economic durability.
We’ll take a critical look at plastic mulch and explore research on high-residue cover crops and reduced tillage as biologically driven alternatives—not simply eliminating a material, but rethinking how the entire system functions.

📍 Camarillo, CA
📅 October 1
⏰ 8:30 AM–2:30 PM PDT

The day includes field sessions, lunch, a panel discussion, and an introduction to the Holdfast collective’s work.

To register, please visit:

Moving Agriculture From Sink to Source In plant physiology, young leaves function as sinks. They require energy and nutrients to grow. As they mature,

09/15/2026

Healthy soil is the foundation of productive, resilient farming systems. But building that health while using nutrients efficiently remains an ongoing challenge in organic agriculture.

Join Rodale Institute on October 7 for a webinar exploring how our Soil Nutrient Management Program is working to strengthen regenerative organic systems through better nutrient cycling, soil structure, and biological activity.

Led by Dr. Dinesh Panday, the program studies locally sourced inputs including compost, poultry litter, and biochar to better understand how farmers can build soil organic matter, improve nutrient efficiency, and support crop productivity. The research also tackles challenges facing organic farmers today, from yield gaps and nutrient inefficiencies to w**d pressure and increasingly variable climate conditions.

📅 October 7

⏰ 2–3 PM EDT

💻 FREE Online webinar

Register here:

Rodale Institute’s Soil Nutrient Management Program advances regenerative organic farming by strengthening soil health and improving nutrient use to

09/10/2026

🌱 Apply Today

Applications for the 2027 Rodale Institute Farmer Training Season are now open.

At Rodale Institute, we believe the future of farming begins with education and hands-on experience. Our Farmer Training Program equips the next generation of farmers with the skills, knowledge, and values needed to lead in regenerative organic agriculture.

This is more than training, it’s an opportunity to join a movement that is transforming our food system from the ground up.

📩 Applications are now being accepted:

Learn more about Rodale Institute's Farmer Training Program that helps beginning growers start their regenerative organic career.

09/07/2026

Choosing the right corn variety can make all the difference in the field.

Join us at Rodale Institute for our 2026 Organic Corn Variety Trial Field Day, where you'll have the opportunity to compare 13 organic corn varieties from seven leading organic seed companies growing side by side.

Walk the plots with Rodale Institute researchers and seed company representatives as they discuss each variety's performance, characteristics, and management considerations to help you make informed decisions for your farm.

After the field evaluations, stay for lunch and continue the conversation with fellow growers, researchers, and industry partners.

🌽 Tuesday, September 22

🕙 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

📍 Rodale Institute (Parking at the FST Farm)

The event is free and open to the public. Coffee and lunch will be provided, and registration is requested: https://rodaleinstitute.org/events/corn-variety-trial-field-day/

09/07/2026

Agriculture has always experienced unusual years. The challenge is determining when an unusual year is part of a longer shift.

Long-term research records give scientists a way to compare present conditions with decades of observations. They may reveal changes in seasonal timing, rainfall distribution, crop performance, soil characteristics, or the frequency of certain stresses.

Climate research does not only need better models of what may happen next. It also needs reliable memory of what happened before.