The headline in The Washington Post article, published August 25, 2024, proclaimed “Scientists may have found a radical solution for making your hamburger less bad for the planet.” The article, written by Shannon Osaka and Emily Wright, examined research currently being conducted at the University of California-Davis using gene editing techniques on rumen microbes to […]
Read More
In part one, I outlined some of the societal challenges linked to soil erosion and poor soil function. Now let’s take a look at some of the economic costs and benefits of addressing erosion on farms and ranches. To determine the cost of erosion, first we must assign a value to soil. In truth, topsoil […]
Read More
Soil erosion has been one of the most persistent challenges humanity has faced since the advent of agriculture over 10,000 years ago. Loss of productive capacity of the supporting land base contributed to the collapse of numerous civilizations during that time. Poor grazing practices and tillage were the main causes of land degradation historically and […]
Read More
Life is short so embrace change.” That’s the “distilled” philosophy Rodrigo Mestas brings to his tequila business, his regenerative agriculture management style and his outlook on life. In the acres he’s transitioned to regenerative agriculture, Mestas allows naturally occurring cover crops to emerge between the rows of the agave, and then grazes livestock- including […]
Read More
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 […]
Read More
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 […]
Read More
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” […]
Read More
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 […]
Read More
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 […]
Read More
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 […]
Read More
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 […]
Read More
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 […]
Read More
by Gabe Brown, Understanding Ag, LLC Partner So here we are, in a situation that most of us have never been in: spending the majority of our time “in lockdown.” We are used to the frantic pace that is life. While the kids eat a quick breakfast of processed cereal, we make sure they have […]
Read More
Allen R Williams, Ph.D., Understanding Ag, LLC Partner We often think of ourselves as a single organism called a person. However, we are actually made up of a dazzling array of parts (arms, legs, ears, nose, eyes, etc.) and pieces (heart, liver, kidneys, pancreas, stomach, intestines, etc.). Somehow all these parts and pieces function as […]
Read More
By Gabe Brown and Shane New, Understanding Ag LLC With the chaos occurring in our country at present, we need to slow down, gather our thoughts and “touch bottom.” This story, shared with me by a former Navy SEAL, illustrates this point. In one training exercise, the SEAL candidates’ hands are tied together, as well as […]
Read More
Allen R Williams, Ph.D., Understanding Ag, LLC As I described in my preceding blog, it is getting crazy out there and the panic buying is not subsiding. What is occurring in our nation, and around the world, only serves to substantiate why we need regenerative agriculture now more than ever. It is no longer just about […]
Read More
By Gabe Brown and Shane New, Understanding Ag, LLC The continuing downward slide in the cattle market has left many with knots in their stomachs. Should one “jump ship” and sell at what is most likely a loss, or does one hang on for a while longer? Instead of making a quick decision based on […]
Read More
Allen R Williams, Ph.D., Understanding Ag We are now experiencing times that many alive today have never been exposed to. We are witnessing our own human condition and our response to something that seems overwhelming and possibly insurmountable. The tangible result is being manifested in widespread panic and fear. Fear that we will run out of […]
Read MoreGabe Brown and Shane New A trip to the local grocery store today turns up many empty shelves—a sight that most Americans have not seen before. This is just one of a myriad of ramifications of the coronavirus outbreak. Without a doubt, this will affect us for months to come. But we feel this puts […]
Read MoreAllen R Williams, Ph.D.Understanding Ag, LLC Continuing the discussion around unintended consequences, all we have to do is look around us and the evidence is staring us in the face. We simply have to recognize and acknowledge the facts before us. In the process of doing that though, we also have to admit that we […]
Read More
By Ron Nichols, SHA/UA Communications Consultant Under the heading of “In case you needed even more reasons to switch to regenerative farming,” a recent poll conducted by South Dakota State University indicates that a significantly higher percentage of farmers who are using soil health-improving practices in their operations experience less stress, are more satisfied with farming and […]
Read More
Allen R Williams, Ph.D., SHA Instructor & Co-Founder Consumers are currently being bombarded with commercials and ads for various forms of what I term “fake meat.” Curiously, many who are manufacturing and selling these products, as well as their supporters, prefer to call them “clean proteins.” The ads appear to be almost everywhere—on the TV, […]
Read More
By Allen R Williams, Ph.D.Understanding Ag, Partner & Consultant The Year 2019 presented numerous challenges to farmers and grazers, and consumers. Among them were significant flooding, dust storms, cyanobacteria (algal) blooms, prevent planting, glyphosate residue issues, and fake meats. Any one of these challenges is a serious enough issue to deal with, but all of […]
Read MoreBy Allen R Williams, Ph.D.Understanding Ag, Partner & Consultant Farming and food production have become hot-button issues today and can be a very confusing subject for consumers to sort out. Farming practices and food production have been linked to a number of things that consumers are concerned about including climate change, harmful runoff, animal welfare, […]
Read More