Celebrating 15 Years in Agriculture!

Celebrating milestones at Fields Without Fences! This season marks Johann’s 15th year of farming. For those of you who don’t know Johann, he is one half of Fields Without Fences, an organic farmer, educator, permaculture designer, ecological consultant, plant lover, and herb enthusiast. For those of you that do know Johann, you’ve probably seen him standing in a field with a laser level, planting trees, or showing up at your potluck with seasonal microbrews.
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Johann began farming at Rutgers Student Organic Farm in 2004 and went on to work on several small farms before starting a 10 acre annual vegetable operation in Princeton, NJ. He began formally studying & cultivating medicinal herbs in 2005. Johann has worked with organizations developing regional food systems, and with farmers throughout the Americas on agrarian rights and land reclamation. He has presented at conferences and taught on permaculture, ecological restoration, and civic engagement.
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In 2012 he started Fields Without Fences, creating a forest garden farm design by layering and modifying traditional orchard plans and installing earthworks, including an interconnected four-pond water system using little more than the bucket loader of a farm tractor. He now consults locally and regionally on permaculture design, water catchment systems, agroforestry, and regenerative agriculture. For the last few years he has been working alongside Mark Shepard as a lead ecological designer with Restoration Agriculture Development.
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He is a radical thinker, first generation American, cultivator of patience, alchemist, and the realest dude I know.
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Happy farming anniversary Johann!
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(pictured here fulfilling a longtime dream of visiting Sepp Holzer’s farm in Austria, 2018)