Podcast
Podcast: AMPed for Grazing!
Over the years of establishing and fine-tuning their management systems, grazing has become absolutely key in both Jared Luhman’s and Doug Voss’ cattle and dairy operations. Beyond rotational grazing, Adaptive Multi-Paddock grazing (or AMP) has improved the ecology of their farms–not to mention saved the time, energy, and expense of hauling around feed and other…
Read MorePodcast: Integrative Nutrition; Animal Proteins
Sara Keough MS, CNS, LDN is an Integrative Eco-Nutritionist specializing in clinical nutrition and regenerative agriculture to restore both human and ecological health. “Eating is an agricultural act,” are words from Wendell Berry that have stuck with Keough through her career and help illustrate the nature of her work. Her goal is to teach her patients…
Read MorePodcast: Restoring Oak Savanna
Tyler Carlson and Stephen Thomforde pick up their conversation on oak savanna from our last episode: How do we restore oak savanna? What does it take? Where have we been and what’s been missed in prior restoration attempts? According to Stephen, “restoration is restoring the processes that maintain the desirable vegetation.” He dives into a…
Read MorePodcast: “It’s like Tinder for cows.”
“I think the future of farming looks more collaborative. It looks like working together, and it’s about stacking enterprises.” Meghan Filbert of Practical Farmers of Iowa (and a beginning farmer to boot) joins Dirt Rich to talk about an online tool facilitating just that. Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI) is a nonprofit in Ames, Iowa…
Read MorePodcast: Dirt Rich Season 2 Starts with Seeds
As we begin a new year and a new season of Dirt Rich, we thought it would be fitting to start with seeds. Zachary Paige farms and operates North Circle Seeds in Otter Tail County, Minnesota. North Circle Seeds is newly certified organic and is committed to creating an ecologically diverse, equitable, and inclusive food…
Read MorePastured Turkeys on a Values-Driven Farm
Kathy Zeman pasture-raises a veritable menagerie: goats, sheep, pigs, ducks, geese, turkeys, broilers, hens, meat rabbits, and honeybees graze her twenty acres at Simple Harvest Farm Organics. She grew up farming, and first got started on poultry with her brother for a 4-H project. “Nick’s Eggs” continues today, available at the Just Food Co-op in…
Read MoreDirt Rich: The Value of Pasture Plant Diversity
“We want a vast array of solar collectors out there.” Kent Solberg and Doug Voss are striving to get as much plant diversity in their pastures as possible. The benefits for animal performance, soil microbes, profitability, resiliency, and the function of the ecosystem as a whole are exponential. In fact, “increase diversity” is the third…
Read MorePasture Renovation Ideas from Kent & Doug
When Kent Solberg and his wife first got started where they farm today, the soil biology had been so degraded that there were corn stalks on the ground from six years before, unable to decompose. You might say he has a bit of first-hand experience with land renovation! Kent and Doug Voss give an overview…
Read MoreBolstering Farm-to-Table with Food Safety
Sarah Lindblom and Josh Reinitz join Dirt Rich to talk about how they’ve been growing food for their communities with food safety in mind–through the pandemic, and always. With more of an eye on health this growing season, farmers have been “bringing their food safety A-game” to ensure that they continue to keep their customers…
Read MoreNew Dirt Rich Episode: Herbalism for Everybody!
Basil, parsley, cilantro–Sarah Lindblom started out growing these classic favorites for her CSA shares at Solar Fresh Produce. An SFA workshop with herbalist Connie Karstens soon sparked an interest in medicinal herbs. She began cultivating holy basil, marshmallow, calendula, and lemon balm–just to name a few. Now Sarah sells both fresh and dried herbs at…
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