The Real Cost of Subsidies: Your Freedom to Farm
Editor’s note: Understanding Ag’s Gabe Brown recently received the following email from a college student who posed some intriguing questions about why he shunned farm subsidies. Following is Megan’s note and Gabe’s reply, along with a couple of additional points he added specifically for this post. Gabe, you mentioned briefly in the documentary (Kiss the …
The Real Cost of Subsidies: Your Freedom to Farm Read More »
Regenerative Brush Management: Part II
We introduced brush management tactics in part one of this series and now we will explore your best options for effective brush management and control. The first thing we must consider is why brushy and woody species dominate to begin with. Brush encroachment almost always happens because of several factors: • We have created patches …
Regenerative Brush Management: Part I
During the past 100 years, we have been taught to eradicate plants that we perceive as a threat to what we term “desirable species.” It is true there are invasive plants that were introduced from some other place in the world-species that can overwhelm plants that we believe we want in our ecosystem. These plant …
The Heat is On
Without Education, the Promise of Climate-Smart Farm Practices Will Wilt on the Vine By Allen Williams, Ph.D. The digital screen displayed 162 F. I pointed my infrared thermometer and squeezed the trigger again. No change. The readout showed 162 F, which just happens to be the safe food preparation temperature for ground beef and sausage. …
My Mother Could’ve Been Right, or How to Beat a Drought
When I was growing up, my mother had a lot of “sayings.” One was, “You would be presented with a lesson until you learned it.” At that point, she’d give me another lesson. When I was considering subjects for this article, I realized with a sense of weariness, that this particular saying was especially relevant …
My Mother Could’ve Been Right, or How to Beat a Drought Read More »
The Future of Food
Part of my role as a partner in Understanding Ag is to keeping up to date on the trends in agriculture, staying abreast of what is “new” in agriculture-and what the industry and investors are focused on. I spend a lot of my time talking to the boards of directors of food and agriculture companies, …
Changing the Way You See Things – Part 2
I concluded my last post by asking if we can overdo our nurturing management (“all things in moderation”), so that it then becomes an overwhelming disturbance which outpaces the current capability of the soil to tolerate the impact? And instead of enhancing the soil biology, it then becomes deadly to it? That’s the very thing …
Changing the Way You See Things – Part 1
As farmers and ranchers, we tend to be a bit stubborn and set in our ways. This leads us to operating our farms and ranches in basically the same way year after year. We use the same crop rotation, we graze the same pasture at the same time each year, and so on. I used …
The Beauty of Working With Creation, Not Against It
One of the true joys of getting to work with so many farmers and ranchers as they move down the regenerative path is watching as they learn how to work in synchrony with nature. It’s especially gratifying when they send along letters that describe their regenerative experiences, like the one I recently received from Daniel …
The Beauty of Working With Creation, Not Against It Read More »
How Does Your Garden Grow?
Understanding Ag works with a significant number of gardening operations around the U.S. and has developed several helpful tips for regenerative gardening that you and your garden can benefit from, too. I hope you’ll consider incorporating many of these regenerative principles and practices in your garden this year. When you do so on a planned, …