Clay Bottom Farm

Clay Bottom Farm We are a CSA farm in Goshen, Indiana. Home of the The Lean Farm. WWW.CLAYBOTTOMFARM.COM WWW. The farm has twice won Edible Michiana’s Reader’s Choice award.
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Lean Book: https://www.amazon.com/Lean-Farm-Minimize-Increase-Efficiency/dp/1603585923 Ben Hartman and Rachel Hershberger own and operate Clay Bottom Farm in Goshen, Indiana, where they make their living growing and selling specialty crops on less than one acre. Their food is sold locally to restaurants and cafeterias, at a farmers market, and through a community-supported-agriculture (CSA) progra

m. The Lean Farm, Ben’s first book, won the Shingo Institute’s prestigious Research and Professional Publication Award. Link to Lean Farm Book: https://www.amazon.com/Lean-Farm-Minimize-Increase-Efficiency/dp/1603585923/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_img_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=2DXZY6EGVAFEH3XZHYT2

05/22/2026

Gardening without Plastic. Instead of plastic netting, this year we used a jute net for cucumbers. At season’s end, the cucumber plants and the net will both go into the compost heap. No wrangling vines free from the plastic. That’s a burlap roll on the ground, as a w**d barrier. 🙂 Our goal this year is reduce plastic as much as we can.

05/06/2026

Living mulch update: We grew a “green” carpet between tomatoes this year, using low-growing cover crops, instead of using plastic or landscaping fabric. We tried three approaches.

Clover (New Zealand white).
Cereal rye.
Clover-rye mixed.

All are now established. Our favorite is the clover rye mix. Rye established fast and the clover is forming a nice mat underneath it. We mow it once a week and use clippings to mulch. If you haven’t used living mulches, I encourage you to give them a try.

05/05/2026

Here are scenes from Lean Farm Start-up 2026, our 8th annual 2-day new farmer training on the 20th anniversary of Clay Bottom Farm.

I’m always at ease in a room full of small farmers. It was great to see you all.

This is a hands-on IRL event where participants try out my favorite tools and learn lean techniques for operating a profitable micro farm.

Tool in the first clip is Terrateck’s torsion w**der. Tines separate as they reach the base of each plant for super close w**ding. Also showed the eOx, wheel w**ders, Sumi soakers, Paperpot, lots more.

We talked shop about living mulches—clover and cereal rye—under tomatoes, seen at the end.

If you’re interested in attending a future event, and receiving lots of discount codes for tools and supplies, sign up in the website.

04/30/2026

Understory cropping! Here are scenes from the tomato greenhouse today. The tomatoes will grow tall, casting a nice shade for the short crops.

Understory crops are onions, radishes, lettuce, beets, Bak Choi, basil, turnips, cilantro, spinach.

I water tomatoes with drip tape.

I use sumi soakers to water the understory crops.

I typically seed or transplant understory crops on the same day that I plant the tomatoes.

The spring garden.
04/22/2026

The spring garden.

04/21/2026

Living mulch! I’m replacing plastic mulch this season with alternatives. Here are clover and cereal rye living mulches between tomatoes. So far both are performing equally well. Irrigating with Sumi soaker. Sign up for the mailing list on the website for those who want more details and upcoming events.

04/08/2026

Swift blocker! Here’s a montage showing how I start plants with soil blocks. No plastic flats this year or likely ever again. I love Swift Blockers, the tool for making the blocks. They’re fast, low-effort, produce great starts, reasonably priced. Tomatoes are 3 weeks old at transplanting time. Details for growers:
….
—Key to good soil blocks is super wet potting mix. Think wet mud.
—I’m using perforated trays from Small Farm Works and solid bottom trays from same as my paper pot set up.
—I start almost everything in the 72 cell Swift blocker, to economize on space. I usually indent holes in each a bit with my fingers before pressing.
—Cover is fine vermiculite.
—Potting mix is Fort Light

04/07/2026

Paper pot magic! We are transplanting lettuce alongside tomatoes. The paper potter makes it easy. Tips for growers:
—For lettuce we leave the press wheels up to avoid covering leaves.
—I recommend replacing the furrower (on bottom) with a deep furrower attachment from Small Farm Works.
—Important: soak the tray before transplanting.
Happy gardening and growing!
—These are h**p paper chains from Small Farm Works.

03/24/2026

Wheel w**der! One of my most-used tools. My weekly ritual is to cultivate pathways with this wheel w**der. A cutter slices under w**ds and disrupts pre-sprouted seeds; the wheel dislodges roots from the soil. Very effective. My favorite time to w**d is before I see w**ds, but doesn’t always happen. 🙂 I added bicycle handlebar tape for comfort. Made by . I’ve compiled discount codes for favorite tools on the website. Also, this is the final week for 40% off the masterclass. Check it out. Happy spring growing 🌱.

03/21/2026

Sumi Soaker Mark 2. I’ve found this to be an awesome solution for irrigating tight spots and special situations. Here I’m watering clover mulch between tomatoes, dialing in the width precisely so I don’t spray the young tomatoes. I raised up the Sumi with conduit over mustard, at the end of the reel.

Address

340 Hackett Road
Goshen, IN
46528

Telephone

+15745388741

Website

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