Goals & Needs

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The UCCE Small Farms and Specialty Crops advisor and program staff assist small-scale and socially disadvantaged farmers to thrive economically through extension support, training, research on specialty crops, and policy communication. Our work supports farmers of a diversity of cultures who operate a wide variety of farming operations, often with limited resources. These include a large population of Chinese and other Southeast Asian immigrant farmers in Santa Clara, San Benito, and Santa Cruz Counties. Recently, a group of Asian and Hispanic farmers received funding through the Healthy Soils Program to implement practices such as compost application, cover crops, and mulching on their already diversified farms. These practices present an exciting opportunity to sequester carbon, build soil microbial diversity, and reduce reliance on synthetic fertilizers, as well as addressing regional environmental issues such as air and water quality. 
 

The GrizzlyCorps Member will assist small-scale, socially disadvantaged, and highly diversified farms to integrate practices that improve soil health and integrated pest management with current crop management practices.

 

To this end the Member will:

 

• Work directly with farmers to identify and implement soil health and conservation practices that address production issues on their farm such as nutrient management, insect pest management, disease and weed management.

• Interview CDFA Healthy Soils Program grant recipients about the impact of the implementation of the healthy soil practices on their farm. Collect and transcribe the interview data. Develop featured farmer profiles from the interview information.

• Assist with group trainings on topics related to soil health practices such as nonchemical weed management, beneficial insects for pest control, and use of equipment for compost application.

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Other duties can include assisting with organizing workshops for small farmers, and/or socially disadvantaged farmers, assisting with our ongoing research projects on specialty crop production, developing bilingual outreach materials, including factsheets, reports, and social media posts in simplified Chinese, and assisting with efforts to inform policies affecting the farmers we support. 

 

The small farms team at UCCE Santa Clara County consists of the Small Farms and Specialty Crops Advisor and 4-6 full-time and part-time staff based out of either our San Jose or San Martin offices. Current projects include assisting small-scale farmers who have received Climate Smart Agriculture funding; research on nitrogen fertilizer requirements for specialty vegetable crops; bilingual extension support in Chinese and Spanish; food safety outreach and education for small farms; and marketing support for small farms.

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Capacity Building Projects

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The GrizzlyCorps Member will assist small-scale, socially disadvantaged, and highly diversified farms to integrate practices that improve soil health and integrated pest management with current crop management practices.

 

To this end the Member will:

 

• Work directly with farmers to identify and implement soil health and conservation practices that address production issues on their farm such as nutrient management, insect pest management, disease and weed management.

• Assist with group trainings on topics related to soil health practices such as nonchemical weed management, beneficial insects for pest control, and use of equipment for compost application.

• Interview CDFA Healthy Soils Program grant recipients about the impact of the implementation of the healthy soil practices on their farm. Collect and transcribe the interview data. Develop featured farmer profiles from the interview information.

Other duties can include assisting with organizing workshops for small farmers, and/or socially disadvantaged farmers, assisting with our ongoing research projects on specialty crop production, developing bilingual outreach materials, including factsheets, reports, and social media posts in simplified Chinese, and assisting with efforts to inform policies affecting the farmers we support. 

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Organizational & Community Highlights

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San Jose and San Martin are within driving distance of some of California’s most well-known national parks. The local food scene includes restaurants providing a large diversity of cuisines, several farmers markets, and farm stands selling fresh produce. Santa Clara County’s proximity to Pinnacles National Park and several State Parks is a highlight. Backpacking and other recreational opportunities on the central California coast are within 1-hr driving distance. Eighty-eight percent of the 2125 farms in the region were small farms in the 2017 USDA agricultural census. Many of these farms are operated by farmers of color and are highly diversified both in their crops and marketing strategies, selling to farmers markets and niche markets as well as to wholesale produce buyers. 

 

The GrizzlyCorps member will gain unique experience by working with small-scale farmers from a diversity of cultures who grow many different types of specialty Asian vegetables. The small farms team strives to provide a collaborative and supportive work environment, with individual team members working both independently and on joint activities. We prioritize cross-cultural relationships with immigrant and other historically underserved farmers and design our programs to support their farming operations. Bilingual outreach and training for Asian farmers relies on over 25 years of trusted relationships in the Southeast Asian community. We have offices in San Jose (1553 Berger Drive, Building 1 2nd Floor, San Jose, CA 95112) and San Martin (80 W. Highland Avenue, Building K, San Martin, CA 95046; proximity to Asian farming community and where all program staff are based). 
 

The Member will have multiple opportunities to gain professional experience through ongoing projects in field research, conservation incentives programs, policy analysis and communication, and marketing and small business development. Partnerships with community-based organizations will provide opportunities for cross-cultural learning and community engagement. The location of this position within the UCANR land grant research and extension system will also provide interaction with UC academics and staff with expertise in a variety of disciplines.​

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