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A Satellite Image Exposes the ‘Bare Facts’ About Conventional Ag
I pulled this image up on GoogleEarth yesterday. The photo below shows an area 12.5 miles wide, by 6.5 miles vertically, much of it in Rock Dell Township, Minnesota where our farm is. Hayfield is in the upper left-hand corner. The green area in the middle is along Hwy 30, and at the top is […]
From Symptoms to Solutions: Addressing the Underlying Causes of Water Quality Degradation – Part 5
In Part Four, I discussed the importance of keeping living roots in the soil and avoiding overapplication of nutrients at the wrong time. In this final post I will examine nitrogen sourcing options and how plants acquire nutrients in a healthy soil. To understand what the ‘right source’ of nitrogen is, we first need to […]
Will I Really Benefit from Grazing My Cover Crop?
God designed the world to function as a perpetual motion machine. If done right, it should always be building fertility, not extracting it. But you have to understand the principles of soil health, and the four ecosystem processes, in order to achieve that outcome. While many individuals are content with simply “growing a cover crop” […]
From Symptoms to Solutions: Addressing the Underlying Causes of Water Quality Degradation – Part 4
In Part Three, I reviewed the concept of using marginal nitrogen use efficiency and zero N check strips as tools to evaluate application rates. Now I will shift the focus to problems with overapplication, how to determine the right timing for application, and the consequences of not doing so. The fastest way to diminish the […]
From Symptoms to Solutions: Addressing the Underlying Causes of Water Quality Degradation – Part 3
In business, it all comes down to profit. In farming, profit comes down to things we can’t control like the weather and the markets, and the things we can control like our management decisions. One of those key management decisions is determining how much nitrogen to apply to our crops. In part two of this […]
From Symptoms to Solutions: Addressing the Underlying Causes of Water Quality Degradation – Part 2
In part one of this series, I briefly discussed the importance of education for understanding how soil function and ecosystem processes play a critical role for water quality. Now let’s turn our attention to determining the “right rate” for nitrogen. Nutrient management plans focus heavily on nitrogen because it is critical for plant growth and […]
From Symptoms to Solutions: Addressing the Underlying Causes of Water Quality Degradation – Part 1
Poor water quality has been a persistent challenge in agriculture, particularly due to sediment and nutrient loss from farmland. It is considered a “wicked problem” with conflicting social, political, economic, and environmental aspects that prevent solutions. In this blog series I will challenge the notion that degraded water is something we all have to live […]
WEATHER OR NOT?
Most of us have heard the old sayings regarding weather and farming including, “Don’t plant until the barn swallows return,” and “Wait until the oak leaves are as big as a squirrel’s ear.” These, and many other sayings, were tied to observations and farming in sync with what Mother Nature was telling us in terms […]
The Carbon Chronicles – Part 3
The first two parts of this series examined the critical role of carbon in powering plant and soil life (all terrestrial life) and the cyclic outflow from an average corn field. Now let’s look at inflows. Unsurprisingly, the lack of photosynthesizing plant cover throughout the growing season makes the carbon inflows smaller. Maintaining living cover […]
The Carbon Chronicles – Part 2
I’m a traveler unseen, in cycles I flow, From the air to the earth, far down below. Plants welcome me in their leafy grace, As part of a process, essential to embrace. I dance with the sun, in the atmosphere high, Yet in oceans and soil, you’ll find me nearby. Roots release me when they […]
The Carbon Chronicles – Part 1
In soil I lie, a secret unseen, A cornerstone of life, in every green. With humble microbes, a dance serene, In Earth’s embrace, my role is keen. In the ground I dwell, unseen but grand, A vital link in life’s command. With microbes and roots, a partnership planned, In the soil I’m hidden, yet readily […]
Creating Living Landscapes
When I began studying ornamental horticulture and landscape design over 25 years ago, regenerative agriculture was just a twinkle in Gabe Brown’s eye and a glimpse of the future in the eyes of Allen Williams’, Ph.D. For me, well, I was taking an introductory soil science class in a two-year horticulture degree program at Farmingdale […]