Last Tool Wiki Updatesort ascending Short description Stage Tool type # of Topics # of Wiki Edits
05/11/2013 FarmHack.net FarmHack.net is hosted and built by Farm Hack community volunteers. Feel free to jump in and help out! DIY "Smart Farm" tools 60 14
05/10/2013 "Folding Farm" Bike driven mobile produce trailer and display module "Folding Farm" is a bike towable and deployable produce delivery trailer. It was developed by the Sustainable Student Farm (SSF) and the Small Studio at the University of Illinois Urbana-Illinois. It has a tounge weight capacity of 500 lbs, which means a total towable payload of 300 lbs. It is used by the SSF to haul produce to a farm stand on the quad, an approximately 6 mile round trip. It folds down in transport, and then is deployable to look like the picture provided. Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools, Harvesting, Post Harvest, Energy 1
05/08/2013 IFARM (Imaging For Agricultural Research and Management) Using low cost balloons, kites, UAVs etc. to create overhead, NDVI images, and spectroscopy for practical agricultural applications. IFARM (Imaging For Agricultural Research and Management) was coined by Chris Fastie http://publiclaboratory.org/people/cfastie DIY "Smart Farm" tools, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 2 19
04/24/2013 Resource List of Useful Apps for Farmers Having noticed a proliferation of farm/ foodie apps and services in the online space, a couple of us farmers got together to review the goods, and sort out the junk from the SUPER. Here's an interpreted survey of the scene. As farmers and activists who are deeply committed to both sustainability and innovation, we are happy to find some useful tools on the shelf, and ultimately urge developers to get grounded in the needs of the farmers and eaters, before making another fancy whirly gig. Concept "Smart Farm" tools 2 16
04/21/2013 Mechanical Garlic / Cultivar Planter As a garlic farmer, we all know it is a very time consuming hands on type of planting and harvesting. It's difficult to find specific equipment since this farming industry is small. I knew there had to be a better way and I needed to bring this industry into the 21st century. Commercial Product Harvesting, Planting, "Smart Farm" tools 2
04/21/2013 Mechanical Garlic Breaker One of the hardest tasks in the garlic farming business is separating or breaking the garlic bulbs into plantable cloves. Labor costs are high and most hired help quits before you have all the cloves you need to be planted and to be honest I don’t blame people for quitting. Just like any crop, the more you plant, the higher the potential for profits. Most garlic farms are small because it’s very time consuming from planting to harvest. Commercial Product "Smart Farm" tools 2
04/09/2013 Self Contained Mobile Biodiesel Processing Trailer The farm based self contained mobile biodiesel plant constructed by GreenStart is based on a common aluminum beverage trailer platform. The heat and power is provided by a 3 phase diesel generator coupled with a 10hp air compressor. Each functional component is designed to fit the standard beverage skid of 36" square which enables swapping of components. The shutter sides provide secure weatherproof environment for storage and transport. The low deck height also facilitates operation and maintenance from the ground level. Functional Prototype Energy 8
04/05/2013 Shave Horse This is an heirloom technology so wood shaping. Used to make tool handles, chair legs, paddles, etc. DIY Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 3
03/26/2013 Low cost pedalpower rootwasher Low cost root washer that can be pedal powered. It should be easily constructed on-farm. This is suitable for carrots, potatoes, etc. Can handle how many pounds/bushles per hour? This rootwasher was demonstrated at red planet vegetables 3/10/2012: Commercial Product Post Harvest 2 11
03/20/2013 Temperature Data Logger This is a very basic temperature data logger built off of an Arduino microcontroller. This will be the basis for expanded projects around measuring and logging temperature Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools 1 9
03/16/2013 Prone Farm Mobility Vehicle To improve farm mobility and harvest ease, especially for wheelchair farmers. A prone harvest/ planting/ weeding vehicle Concept Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Harvesting 1 2
03/12/2013 Solar Powered Greenhouse Ventilation This is the first phase of a project to build a solar-powered automated greenhouse ventilation system. Farmhack NYC will also host a meet-up design session for this project. Concept "Smart Farm" tools, Season extension, Energy 2 7
03/11/2013 Black Soldier Fly as a Feed Alternative for Aquaculture Main Street Farms received a SARE Farmer grant for on-farm research of Black Soldier Flies larvae (BSFL) as an alternative food-source for aquaculture and livestock. We plan to raise and breed BSFL in a heated green house year-round to find the ratio of pounds of larvae to pounds of food waste can be produced in a given month. The larvae will be fed cafeteria food waste, coffee grounds, and compost from other areas of the farm. Functional Prototype Fencing and livestock management 1
03/09/2013 small axial flow combine harvester This tool is for documenting small scale axial flow threshing systems, harvest heads, and grain/bean separating approaches that could be used to retrofit existing combines and facilitate local manufacture of parts or even whole combines suitable for research and harvesting small plots of grains and oilseeds. Concept Harvesting 6
02/27/2013 Crop Planning Software Crop Planning Software helps to manage crop planning on intensive market farms. Create planting schedules, estimate yields, calculate seed needed and more. It is a free and open source software project for Mac, Windows and Linux started in 2007 and currently in a beta stage of development. Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 1 3
02/24/2013 Encyclopedia of Practical Farm Knowledge FARM KNOWLEDGE WIKI Based on a Complete Manual of Successful Farming Written by Recognized Authorities in All Parts of the Country; Based on Sound Principles and the Actual Experience of Real Farmers—“The Farmers Own Cyclopedia” Starting text for the wiki was published in 1922. The text was digitized and posted to https://archive.org/details/Farm1 for download for all who would like to contribute. Concept Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, "Smart Farm" tools 3 27
02/21/2013 Draft Horse Loggin Scoot (sled) A simple logging scoot(aka sled) for taking trees out of a woodlot with draft horses. Functional Prototype 4
02/18/2013 FarmHack Event Tool Farmhack events are a solutions driven social approach to identify gaps, skills, opportunities to improve your local enterprises and have fun building the creative commons. This tool provides an outline of the "bill of materials" and operating recommendations for hosting FarmHack events; from promotion, to recruiting partners and recommended skills, to appropriate location and creation of culture, to food, organization, critiques and documentation. Functional Prototype Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 1 11
02/11/2013 Horse Drawn Snowplow This is a snowplow built by Donn Hewes at the Northland Sheep Dairy. Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 1
02/03/2013 Tool Template Use this as a template for creating your tool wiki. ** Remember that documentation is the technology's DNA that enables it to be reproduced and adapt, evolve and hybridize with other technology. Concept Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 5 14
01/28/2013 Cooler Inventory Tags quickly and easily inventory contents of walk-in cooler and identify harvest date for all produce in cooler. Crop storage, Post Harvest 2
01/28/2013 Rebar Hangers U-shaped rebar hangers and install on both sides of the high- tunnel to hold the rebar when it isn't in use. DIY Season extension 2
01/28/2013 Transplanter Mount hydraulically offsettable 3pt hitch mount for the transplanter so that 1, 2 or 3 row beds can be easily planted with a single row transplanter Functional Prototype Planting 2
01/28/2013 Drip tape winder/cleaner a drip tape winder that can rewind up to 500’ of drip tape onto a plastic core. The winder should be easily mounted on a harvest cart or loader. Install brushes on the winder to clean the tape as it is wound. DIY Irrigation and Water Management 2
01/28/2013 HDPE Tote Lids for Walk-in Cooler Produce Totes 1/8” sheets of HDPE (a smooth easily cleanable plastic used for cutting boards and tabletops in food service) were cut to size and are used to cover the top tote in each stack of totes in the cooler. DIY 2
01/28/2013 Bed Flamer (Hand pulled) 18” wide 4 burner bed flamer with backpack mounted propane tank that can be pulled down the bed. Functional Prototype Soil management 1 2
01/22/2013 culticycle A pedal powered tractor for cultivation and seeding, built from lawn tractor, ATV, and bicycle parts. Does the job of a Cub or a G in about twice the time; better for operator's body, less soil compaction, no fuel use, cheaper and easily adaptable to specific needs. Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools 2 6
01/20/2013 Commercial Scale Rocket Oven A fuel efficient, low cost, biomass fueled 24 loaf baking oven. Combustion technology is based on the rocket stove design, which uses an insulated flue and efficient combustion chamber to achieve high levels of fuel efficiency and low emissions. DIY Post Harvest 1 6
01/12/2013 Rover - Remote Electric Fence Switch by Text Message Turn your electric fence on or off with a text message. Get text alerts of power failures (and thus fence outages). Find a short or a broken section of fence way out in the pasture? No need to walk all the way back to the barn to turn the fence off to fix it (nor to "grin and bear it" while you fix it); just a send a text and in a few seconds the fence will be safe to work on. Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools, Fencing and livestock management 1 6
01/10/2013 Sub-irrigated raised planter This concept is meant to provide consistent soil moisture levels to gardens with spotty or insufficient access to water. It take the idea of a sub-irrigated planter and applies it to an entire raised bed. Concept Irrigation and Water Management, Water 2
01/10/2013 electronic flame weeder ignition/electronic LP solenoid on/off A 12 volt electronic solenoid valve will be used to turn LP gas on and deliver fuel to the flame weeder burner. Flipping the same switch will also activate a circuit which checks the temperature at the burner using a thermocouple. If no flame is detected (temperature reading is under a measurable threshold) an ignition spark is sent through a ceramic coated ignition wire to the burner. If the flame blows out during use, a spark is sent to the burner. To turn off the fuel at the end of a bed, the switch is flipped to the "off" position closing the solenoid valve. Functional Prototype 4 11
12/27/2012 small scale egg washing A summary of exisiting egg washing technologies and some discussion of merits/goals of small scale egg washing, hopefully some designs and prototypes to follow... Concept Fencing and livestock management, Harvesting, Water, Post Harvest 4
12/26/2012 Triangle quick-attach to 3 point hitch This quick attach system enables more rapid and safer changing of implements than a standard three point hitch. The design also enables use of a standard three point hitch if the tractor side portion of the quick attach system is not installed. DIY Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Harvesting, Planting, Soil management 2 9
12/22/2012 Skidsteer quick attach standards SAE J2513 The SAE J2513 known also as the bobcat skidsteer quick attach has become a common standard for other tractor and implement manufacturers. This post provides standards and approaches to compliment commercial adapters already available. Commercial Product Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 4
12/15/2012 Multi rack Heavy duty cargo rack for bicycles and electricity generation. Functional Prototype Energy, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 6
12/12/2012 Garlic Clove Separator A mechanical garlic bulb breaker/clove separator. Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Planting 1 15
12/12/2012 Roostmobile A mobile roost for poultry production. Keep those Turklers happy. DIY Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Fencing and livestock management 4
12/12/2012 DIY Farm/Bike Trailer A bulletproof, versatile, inexpensive bike trailer. For $20. DIY "Smart Farm" tools, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Post Harvest, Harvesting, Fencing and livestock management, Energy 4
12/10/2012 Electric tractor conversion There is already fantastic documentation of how to convert an Allis Chalmers model "G" tractor to run on an electric motor at http://www.flyingbeet.com/electricg/. This Farm Hack page serves as a repository for new information, modifications, add-ons, and useful advice on these conversions. DIY Soil management, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Planting 1 17
11/26/2012 Mobile Wash Station Low-cost DIY, mobile wash station for increasing efficiency in post-harvest processing. Needs exterior hose or spigot to use. The partnership was Elise McMahon, Liam Turkle, Fay Strongin and Tess Brown-Lavoie (both from Sidewalk Ends Farm in Providence, RI). We started working on it at FarmHack RISD and then finished it on 12 May in Providence. Functional Prototype Post Harvest, Water 2
11/16/2012 Fido - Greenhouse Monitoring with Text Message Alerts A farmer-built electronic tool that can monitor greenhouse temperature, record greenhouse data, and alert the farmer to problems in the greenhouse via cell phone text message. This tool will be much more affordable and useful than commercially available greenhouse alarms (which rely on landline connections or internet connections, which usually aren’t available in the greenhouse). Functional Prototype "Smart Farm" tools 20 71
11/04/2012 Solar powered inflation blower An easy-to-build solar powered inflation blower useful for greenhouses that use two layers of covering and no power is available. DIY Season extension 6
10/23/2012 Prone Position Weeder/Harvester Workstation Field tool used for ergonomic harvest and weeding. Could be used also for transplanting or any ground-level "stoopwork" Concept Harvesting, "Smart Farm" tools 5
10/21/2012 Open Irrigation Controller System The goal of this project is to create a wireless and networked irrigation control system for greenhouses. The end goal is to provide a user-interface (UI) from which a farmer could see a map of their nodes, monitor their sensor readings, actuate valves in real-time, develop a schedule, and implement logic in response to sensor readings. Concept "Smart Farm" tools, Irrigation and Water Management 2 3
10/20/2012 Garlic planting implement Garlic is labor intensive to plant as the cloves should ideally be planted with the clove base down, so that the plant does not need to waste energy growing around the clove in order to reach the surface. Our Farm Hack Ithaca conversation explored ideas to mechanize this hand-selection and planting process. Not sure if this description is properly placed in this location on website. Apologies from a new user. Concept Planting 5
10/07/2012 Cover Crop Roller This tool is used to roll standing annual cover crops and crimp the stem to prevent regrowth and create a heavy mulch in place that can be planted through using no-till drills, planters and transplanters. This tool entry is based on the Rodale Institute's open source design and is currently being manufactured by I&J equipment in Gap, PA. Planting, Soil management 2 12
09/03/2012 Farm Item Locator Locates and tracks items in a defined area (several acres). Uses 3 or more "anchor points" to locate the position of any tag within the area defined by the anchor points. Tags must be low cost, but the anchor points can be $100+ each. Concept "Smart Farm" tools, Fencing and livestock management, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop 9 2
09/03/2012 Books This is a list of books that people have found useful in running a farm. Typically How-To or books explaining tools and techniques. Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Crop storage, Pollinators / Honey, Fencing and livestock management, Harvesting, Energy, Irrigation and Water Management, Planting, Post Harvest, Season extension, Water, Soil management, "Smart Farm" tools 1 1
09/02/2012 Multi-purpose cultivation implement A multi-purpose implement for use with a single draft animal or smaller team. Known as "Anny's All-in-One" by the original creator www.siriholmberg.weebly.com Functional Prototype Soil management 1 12
08/07/2012 Vegetable Washing Station As a part of the Morven Summer Institute, a group of students from the University of Virginia created this Vegetable Washing Station in order to aid small farmers in harvest efficiency. The station is meant to be in or near the field in order to streamline the harvest-to-market process and help with the negative affects of vegetables wilting due to field heat. The Vegetable Washing Station and How-To Guide were created by Jenna Godfrey, Doug Beach, and Cristina Maldonado at the Morven Summer Institute in 2011. DIY Post Harvest 2
06/21/2012 Modified Berry Picker/path weeder A modified berry picking design where the user lays in a prone position hovering over a row crop and weeding or harvesting. The wheels sit in the pathways as the user moves through the row. The cultivator blade removes weeds from pathways. Concept Harvesting 1
06/11/2012 Simple Top Bar Bee Hive This low cost and simple bee hive is designed to mimic nature as much as possible. Unlike commercial hives, it does not have frames, foundation or excluders. It is a perfect beginners backyard hive. This content has an instructables entry called "The Honey Cow" DIY Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Pollinators / Honey 11
05/16/2012 Pedal-Powered Power Tools A stationary human powered generator that provides a power take off to run various other tools 8
05/01/2012 Micro Hydro Basics and Case Study Small scale hydropower is an inexpensive and relatively simple way to produce reliable energy. Here are some resources and case studies as an introduction to DIY hydro. Concept Energy, Universal farm infrastructure/farm shop, Water 2
04/16/2012 Oat and Grain Dehuller REHULLER AND SEED SCARIFIER Designed for hulling and scarifying seed, such as Sweet Clover, Alfalfa, Timothy, etc. It is a very fast working machine, combining simplicity of operation with efficiency and durability. It also does excellent work hulling oats. Its capacity is up to 100 bushels per hour on average run of Sweet Clover Seed. It can be used for breaking dirt or clay lumps so that the dust can be removed by screens. DIY Post Harvest 5 9
04/16/2012 Solar-powered Chicken Tractor Solar-Powered Auto-Driving Chicken Tractor. DIY "Smart Farm" tools, Energy, Fencing and livestock management 1 2
04/13/2012 Small Scale Thresher This small thresher was built mostly from scrap lumber and metal stock I could obtain in my local hardware store. I do not have a welder so used a threaded rod, lock washers, and nuts to assemble the threshing bars. Functional Prototype Post Harvest 2 2
03/21/2012 Low-cost mobile hoop house Moveable 16' X 48' Hoop house compatible with year-round vegetable growing rotations as described in "The Four Season Harvest" and elsewhere that is large enough to be useful but small enough to be constructed on farm with basic tools and easily sourced materials. Hoop house uses multiple independent wheel assemblies during moves that enable one or two persons to move the house manually. Functional Prototype Season extension 3 13
03/16/2012 Farmhack Starter Sometimes one person doesn't have the resources or see the need to develop a tool on their own. If only they could get funding or some kind of hourly compensation for their development efforts. They could take it to Kickstarter, but what's the point when less than 1% of Americans farm? Farmhack Starter is a forum for developers to seek funds from farmers and other end users. Simply create topic in the forum explaining your project, your budget, and see how the community responds. Perhaps they can pledge their own funds or can help you find a grant that will get you where you want to go. This is also a place for the reverse process: create a bounty for a tool that you'd like to see. Perhaps you can pledge $x or find grants that would apply to this tool but need to find somebody with the time, skills, and/or knowledge to develop it. Concept 2 1
03/01/2012 The 72 Plant Vertical Garden The vertical garden is a space saving way to grow up to 72 small plants (such as lettuce, spinach, strawberries and lots of different herbs) all with the plant health benefits of hydroponics. The Vertical Garden is designed with modularity in mind, to be brought into the greenhouse and installed as a single unit, with only connection to the existing plumbing required before you're ready to grow. The installation of additional Vertical Garden units should be quick and easy. Functional Prototype Season extension 2
03/01/2012 Underground Rainwater Storage in an IBC with Pumped Supply Budget pumped rainwater storage. Commercial rainwater storage can be several thousand pounds. To save money I wondered if you could bury an IBC and it turns out you can ! Here's a complete pumped rain water system for about GBP 100. DIY Irrigation and Water Management 2
03/01/2012 A (Mostly) Self-conatained Condensate Recycler If you have a cooler, whether it's a compressor/condenser style or an evaporative, or swamp cooler, there is always going to be some waste water involved. During the 100+ season, this is especially true, and it can create problems like unwanted weed growth around your machine and possibly damage to your foundation. In addition, the tap water here is piped in from remote locations and it's finite. Waste is dumb when you can prevent it easily, so I looked around for materials to create a solution. This tool could be useful for farms that use a Coolbot system to run their cold storage. Or, any other uses you can think of! DIY Irrigation and Water Management 2
03/01/2012 Small DIY Aquaponics System This is a small aquaponics system I built so I could experiment with the concept. If it works out well for me I'd love to build a large version of this system but before I do want some working knowledge of how it works and any problems i might encounter before I invest a lot of time, effort, and most importantly $$$ into it. This way was a cheap and easy way to gain that knowledge as well as a fun little project. I also want to see what will grow well in the grow bed. DIY Season extension 2
02/29/2012 Geodetic Greenhouse 30 ft. diameter dome greenhouse Functional Prototype Season extension 3
02/23/2012 Garden Swing Powered Water Pump Pump water using a regular garden swing! This model currently pumps about 3 litres/minute. Functional Prototype Irrigation and Water Management 3