The Urban Farm

What The Urban Farm does

The Urban Farm is a private, founder-led e-learning platform founded in 2001 by Greg Peterson in Phoenix, Arizona that delivers food-growing education to urban and suburban home growers, aspiring homesteaders, and community educators, with a particular specialization in low-desert, permaculture-based cultivation. Its product surface spans a flagship podcast with 975+ episodes, the Root Camp online learning platform, paid courses (Permaculture Design Course, Seed Saving School Online), an annual Fruit Tree Education Program that pre-orders and distributes over 5,000 fruit trees per year into the Phoenix market, free monthly Seed Saving Chats and Garden Chats on Zoom, 1:1 phone/Zoom garden consultations, and an online store (store.urbanfarm.org) selling trees and supplies. The Fruit Tree Program's online+in-person classes are anchored in Phoenix, while the podcast, courses, and consultations serve a global audience spanning 15+ countries including the USA, Australia, and Barbados.

The business operates a multi-stream revenue model: subscription/recurring revenue from online courses, Root Camp membership, and podcast patronage (ad-free access for paying members); transactional hardware revenue from annual fruit tree pre-orders and online store supply sales; affiliate commissions via the Amazon Services Associates Program from products recommended on the podcast and blog; and professional services revenue from phone/Zoom consultations with Greg Peterson, Janis Norton, or Raymond Jess. Go-to-market is product-led and direct-to-consumer, with the podcast functioning as the primary top-of-funnel content vehicle and the free monthly chats serving as recurring community engagement and conversion events.

The underlying technology is a content/education platform rather than proprietary software: customer access runs through a third-party customer hub (theurbanfarm.customerhub.com), LeadPages-hosted landing pages for free events, and a standard e-commerce storefront. There is no mobile app, no public API, no disclosed AI/ML capabilities, and no proprietary model or training pipeline. The company is privately held with no institutional investors or funding rounds disclosed; founder Greg Peterson relocated to North Carolina in 2022, with Janis Norton (ASU Sustainability, PDC-trained Master Gardener) assuming the General Manager role and the headquarters effectively moved to Alexander, NC while the Fruit Tree Program office remains in Glendale, AZ. Operating geographies are nominally global via digital, but the commercial fruit tree business is geographically constrained to the Phoenix metropolitan area.

Name

The Urban Farm

Legal name

The Urban Farm

Website

https://urbanfarm.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Urban Farm is a private e-learning platform that delivers food-growing education through online courses, a 975+ episode podcast, monthly Zoom chats, and an annual fruit tree distribution program, serving urban and suburban home growers, aspiring homesteaders, and community educators with a specialization in low-desert permaculture.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Education and Urban Farming Resources

NAICS

Nursery, Garden Center, and Farm Supply Retailers (444240), Soil Preparation, Planting, and Cultivating (115112)

SIC

Retail-Building Materials, Hardware, Garden Supply (5200), Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Plants, Seeds & Nursery Retail (Garden Centers) (CRAIAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Nutrient Management Planning & Fertility Programs (AFACABAB)

Keywords

• Online food-growing education
• Urban farming courses
• Permaculture education
• Fruit tree program
• Seed saving classes

Headquarters

HQ city

Phoenix

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Online Courses and Education: Paid online courses covering permaculture, seed saving, and urban farming topics. Includes Seed Saving School Online, Permaculture Design Course, and various specialty courses taught by key educators.
2. Root Camp Subscription: Subscription-based access to the Root Camp online learning platform and educational content portal for ongoing urban farming education.
3. Podcast Patron Program: Podcast patron/patronage program providing ad-free access to 850+ episodes and exclusive content for paying members.
4. Fruit Tree Sales: Annual pre-order and sales of fruit trees through the Fruit Tree Program, with over 5000 trees delivered per year into the Phoenix market.
5. Online Store - Supplies: E-commerce sales of gardening supplies, tools, and related products through the online store.
6. Affiliate Marketing: Amazon Services Associates Program and affiliate commissions from recommending products, courses, and services mentioned on podcast and blog. Commission earned at no cost to purchaser.
7. Garden Consultations: Phone or Zoom consultation services with Greg Peterson, Janis, or Raymond providing personalized permaculture-based garden and orchard analysis and feedback.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Urban Farm is an online education platform that teaches individuals how to grow their own food through courses, podcasts, monthly webinars, and consultations focused on urban farming, permaculture, seed saving, and fruit tree cultivation. The company also runs an annual Fruit Tree Program delivering over 5,000 fruit trees per year into the Phoenix, Arizona market and sells gardening supplies through its online store.

Product overview

The Urban Farm is an educational platform offering online food-growing education through multiple interconnected products: a flagship podcast with 975+ episodes, online courses covering permaculture and seed saving, the annual Fruit Tree Program delivering 5,000+ trees, Root Camp membership for in-depth lessons, and free monthly Seed Saving and Garden Chat webinars. The ecosystem is complemented by in-person consults and an online store for supplies. The company operates primarily as a content and education platform rather than a software product, providing knowledge resources for urban farming enthusiasts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Urban Farm Podcast: Podcast focused on food-growing education featuring interviews with experts and practitioners
• Fruit Tree Program
• Root Camp

Products and services

• The Urban Farm Podcast

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 5000 fruit trees delivered annually through the Fruit Tree Program
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Johnny's Selected Seeds: Johnny's Selected Seeds is a broad incumbent seed and supply retailer with extensive educational content for growers, comparable in combining commerce with structured grower education.

Direct peers

• Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds: Baker Creek is a heirloom seed retailer and content publisher that combines seed sales with educational storytelling and community events, paralleling The Urban Farm's blend of e-commerce, education, and event-driven community engagement.
• Botanical Interests: Botanical Interests sells seeds and gardening supplies through retail and direct-to-consumer channels and emphasizes educational seed packaging and content, overlapping with The Urban Farm's education-first commerce model.
• Seed Savers Exchange: Seed Savers Exchange is a seed-saving focused organization offering courses, a catalog of heirloom seeds, and educational programming; it overlaps with The Urban Farm's Seed Saving School, monthly Seed Saving Chats, and permaculture curriculum.
• Epic Gardening: Epic Gardening is a content-led urban gardening education brand (podcast, YouTube, courses, and seed/supply commerce) that directly mirrors The Urban Farm's combination of free content marketing and paid educational products for home growers.
• True Leaf Market: True Leaf Market is a direct-to-consumer seed, growing supply, and microgreens retailer with a strong education and how-to content presence, comparable to The Urban Farm's online store plus educational content approach.
• Grow Organic (Peaceful Valley): Grow Organic / Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply is a retailer of organic gardening supplies, seeds, and trees with educational how-to content, comparable to The Urban Farm's fruit tree plus supply commerce combined with education.
• Gardenerd: Gardenerd is a small urban gardening education brand offering podcasts, blog content, and workshops for hobbyist food growers, directly comparable to The Urban Farm's audience and content-driven education model.

Emerging players

• High Mowing Organic Seeds: High Mowing is an organic seed retailer with grower education content and a focus on sustainable home and small-farm production, comparable to The Urban Farm's focus on food-growing education and supplies.
• Permaculture Institute of North America: Permaculture Institute of North America is an education and certification body for permaculture design, comparable to The Urban Farm's annual Permaculture Design Course in the Phoenix area.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TheUrbanFarm
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/greg-peterson-urban-farm
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheUrbanFarm

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Urban Farm