This blog is a shortlist of my favourite farming stars on YouTube. There is such a plentiful wealth of information and expertise between this dozen of experts — you will find all the solutions to you urban farming questions with these free, accessible resources.
I’m shining the spotlight on channels that focus on educating the audience and that ensure all aspects of urban farming are covered. Sadly, most of farming YouTube is male-dominant, and I myself have trouble finding women YouTubers creating content on urban farming. If you know of any other exemplars out there — especially women farming YouTubers — please comment below, and I’ll add them to the list.
🌾 Growing Your Greens
John Kohler of Growing Your Greens makes videos on all different aspects of growing food, with a special focus on organic gardening. As he travels the world, Kohler sets up his tripod and films what he knows. For those looking to improve their lifestyle as well, he offers plant-based recipes and wellness tips on his channel. Kohler is a passionate farmer and sincerely shares knowledge on every video.
🌾 Justin Rhodes
Justin Rhodes is a farmer who shows viewers the trade secrets to growing food, including an annual 100 Days of Growing Food series. He also documents his animal husbandry, raising different types of livestock on his farm, including poultry and cattle. With new videos every weekday, Rhode’s channel is comprehensive and engaging, taking you on the journey of homesteading on a small-scale farm.
🌾 MIgardener
MIgardener covers everything you need to know about organic gardening, self-sustainability, and how to incorporate healthy recipes into your diet. He also helps you troubleshoot common pitfalls in urban gardening. “Learn how to grow more, live healthier lives, and have fun doing it!” he writes in his channel description. The biggest beefsteak tomato MIgardener has ever grown weighed a whopping 2lbs, 3oz!
🌾 Urban Farmer Curtis Stone
To Canadian farmer Curtis Stone, urban farming isn’t just a hobby, but how he earns his keep. He owns and operates Green City Acres, a commercial urban farm based out of Kelowna, BC. On his channel, he chronicles his work on the farm and demonstrates the best practices in commercial agriculture. Stone also released a book, The Urban Farmer, a manual on home farming and business strategies to generate revenue from your backyard harvest.
🌾 GrowVeg
GrowVeg’s YouTube channel offers easy-to-follow tutorials on horticultural basics and practical hacks to streamline your organic farming experience. It is also the creator of Garden Planner, a software to visualize the layout of your vegetable garden. The app is a subscription-based, but GrowVeg offers a free trial.
🌾 ZipGrow
Dr. Nate Storey of ZipGrow is a great teacher of aquaponics, explaining the ins and outs of the technique in an engaging and memorable manner. His videos go into detail on how to set up and manage a water-based growing system. If you like the numbers and science behind it all, Storey — who has a background in science — is your man.
🌾 Rob Bob’s Aquaponics & Backyard Farm
Queensland-based Rob Bob breaks down his farming operations in many ways, so you can learn from his own endeavours. He covers an array of topics, including backyard farming, aquaponics, water saving, wicking beds, raising chickens, and composting.
🌾 Epic Garden
Kevin Espiritu has one goal: to teach 10 million people how to grow their own food, no matter where they live. With an infectious positive energy, he makes simple but engaging videos about gardening and recipes to cook the veggies you grew. Espiritu’s Pinterest also has an incredible catalogue of images for vegetable gardening to help you “grow your green thumb.”
🌾 Diego Footer
Business owner and farm journalist Diego Footer makes handy how-to videos on permaculture and how to make a profit from vegetable gardening. He has a special interest in building soil, cover crops, biochar, and long-term passive composting. Footer also hosts a podcast, Farm Small, Farm Smart on which he teaches listeners how to grow vegetables and make a living doing so.
🌾 The School of Aquaponics
Brooklyn Saint Mickell is the high-energy headmaster of The School of Aquaponics, which also offers online courses, including a free introductory module. He believes that the aquaponics system stands at the vanguard of the future of agriculture and it’s crucial that folks are properly educated on how to use the technique. Mickell’s videos are informative, having learned so much on his journey, and he shares it in a wonderful way.
🌾 Home Farm Ideas
Last but not least, Home Farm Ideas is a treasure trove of organic farming tips for the home gardener. All about organic farming ideas for the home farmer/gardener! The channel offers a range of information on organic fertilizing, pest control, and even how to integrate 3D-printing technology to up your gardening game.
Updated July 22, 2021. Originally published March 31, 2019.
