Regenerative Agriculture Podcast
John Kempf
Subscribe
This is a show for professional growers and agronomists who want to learn about the science and principles of regenerative agriculture systems to increase quality, yield, and profitability.
Available episodes
Newest first
Oldest first
6 days ago
Episode #64: Ben Taylor-Davies
Ben Taylor-Davies is a farmer and regenerative agriculture consultant from the United Kingdom. Ben was a conventional agronomist until his wife persuaded him to apply for an award through the Nuffield Farming Scholarship Trust which enables farmers to travel and learn agricultural methods from around the globe. This ignited Ben’s passion for regenerative agriculture and discovering better ways to treat soils, crops, and livestock. Ben currently shares his stories, both personal and professional, on his website RegenBen.com. He is also currently finalizing his first book, “MORE-ON: How to get off the UK agriculture’s treadmill of input farming.”
Throughout their conversation, Ben and John discuss:
* How the Nuffield scholarship program allowed Ben to broaden his views on successful ways to farm from around the globe.
* The current management practices being implemented on Ben’s 500-acre farm in the UK and how these practices have evolved over the years.
* Ben’s “three free things” (sunlight/energy, precipitation, and carbon dioxide) and why they should be priority number one for all growers.
* Perspectives on carbon dioxide delivery and how farmers can improve their CO2 supply.
* The vast diversity of soil types and climates found within the UK.
* The UK’s current mainstream agricultural methods and financial shortcomings of managing an ecosystem through high input costs.
* John and Ben discuss their recommended reading lists for growers.
Check out Ben’s website at www.regenben.com!
For more information on his latest book, go to https://www.regenben.com/about/the-book/
Jan 29, 2021
Episode #63: Cannon Michael
Cannon Michael is a 6th generation family farmer in California’s Central Valley. When Cannon first started working at the Bowles Farming Company, it was a broad-acre row crop operation, focused on cotton, barley, and alfalfa. After 15 years of overhauling the farm’s management practices, Bowles now incorporates both organic and conventional methods as he raises a vast array of vegetable crops: tomatoes; watermelons; garlic; onions; herbs; and many more.
Throughout their conversation John and Cannon discuss:
* The major changes over the 160-year history of Cannon’s family farm, as well as the current scope and scale of his growing operation.
* What it means to be a grower in California: The culture of innovation, interacting with a rigorous business climate, strict regulations, and interest in promoting fair practices for people and the environment.
* A prediction around agriculture’s decentralized, technology-driven future and how it will impact growers.
* The power of branding partners, communication, and the advantages of telling your story to end consumers.
* How bandwidth and a fluctuating environment can lead to significant limitations on operational efficiencies.
Dec 8, 2020
Taking Charge Of Your Farm’s Future With Jay Hill
Jay Hill is a conventional farmer and agricultural visionary from the American Southwest. Jay is a new breed of American farmer, focused on reinvigorating the industry through a new perspective on what is possible for large-scale growers. Through his social media presence and weekly podcast, Jay is calling on farmers across the globe to abandon their old ways of operating and take back the role of “business owner” from outdated intermediaries.
Throughout their conversation, John and Jay discuss:
* How Jay’s growing operation has evolved over the years to be less resource exhaustive.
* Why farmers need to position themselves as both marketers and business owners
* Jay’s transition from “Price Taker” to “Price Maker,” and how partnerships in processing give growers more control over their operation.
* The public perception of American farmers and what needs to be done change the narrative.
* Strategies to incentivize growing a more nutritious and agronomically beneficial product, and the role of the federal government in this process.
Nov 3, 2020
Reversing Soil Degradation with Dwayne Beck
Dr. Dwayne Beck is well known for being one of the pioneers of no-till agriculture in central South Dakota and across the High Plains. For more than three decades, Dr. Beck has been creating comprehensive systems for both irrigated and dryland crop production throughout the region, educating growers on the power of crop rotation, diversity, and other regenerative practices. He currently serves as the Research Manager at the Dakota Lakes Research Farm, a non-profit made up of farmers committed to sustainable land practices.
On today’s episode, John and Dwayne discuss:
* Dwayne’s background and his earlier work assisting local growers with their irrigation systems
* The continuing decline of the Ogallala Aquifer and how water infiltration can be improved by implementing no-till agricultural practices.
* Addressing the often-overlooked aspects of irrigation, such as percolation and water delivery, and how it affects soil health.
* Dwayne’s observations on lake bottom soils, the power of macropores, and the prevalence of summer fallowing in the High Plains.
* Utilizing de-percolation strategies to maintain proper nutrient levels in your soil.
* Using competition, sanitation, and rotation to control weeds, diseases and insects.
* Dwayne’s historical research on nutrient cycling and fertilizer placement.
* Dwayne offers up a broader historical perspective on how agriculture, human nature, and mother nature work together.
* A discussion on why moving to no-till options for all crops including potatoes, carrots and sugar beets are engineering and genetics problems.
* The shared vision, but much different methods, between regenerative agriculture vs. organic agriculture.
Oct 6, 2020
Updating Soil Analysis to Consider Microbial Influence with Rick Haney
Rick Haney is a renowned researcher at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the creator of the Haney Soil Analysis, an innovative extraction procedure to assess overall soil health and plant mineral availability. Today, John sits down with Rick to hear his story and discuss a future of agriculture centered around agronomic realities and biological processes.
Throughout the episode, John and Rick cover a wide array of topics:
* The journey Rick took to discover an improved system for analyzing soil health, eventually leading to the development of his namesake soil assay.
* How Rick’s work and an emphasis on data can help growers save an average of $20 per acre in nitrogen applications.
* Over-fertilization and what soil respiration says about the fertility of a field.
* Rick’s battle with calibrations and the industry’s collective leaps in agronomic understanding since the 60’s.
* The work of Dr. Richard Mulvaney, namely the Illinois Soil Test, and how it compares to Haney’s soil nitrogen report.
* The shortcomings of mainstream agronomic research and the power of “listening to nature.”
* The importance of using water and biological activity as the gauge of soil mineral release rather than acids and extractants to judge soil mineral content.
* Why many growers are routinely able to reduce Nitrogen and Phosphorus inputs.
* The importance of looking at real yields rather than soil test data as the sign of a well-functioning fertility program.
* The power of embracing new developments in ag research and the future of in-field sensors.
Sep 15, 2020
Rebuilding Rural Economies with Ancient Grain and Regenerative Practices with Bob Quinn
Bob Quinn is a 30-plus year veteran of Regenerative Organic practices and founder of Kamut International, an organization devoted to high quality Khorasan wheat and sustainable agricultural practices.
After receiving his PhD in plant biochemistry from UC-Davis, Bob returned home to work on his family’s wheat and cattle ranch just outside of Big Sandy, Montana. In the mid 80’s, the farm became his “laboratory” as Bob began implementing regenerative organic systems long before they rose to prominence. The Quinn’s began planting a Khorasan wheat they would call “Kamut”—an ancient Egyptian word for “wheat”—which would end up seeing a lot of success with whole grain bakeries in Southern California.
“My business philosophy is start small and build on your success. I don't have a big pile of money, so I can't go out and just try big experiments, so I try small experiments. If they're successful, then I build on those. And that's what we did, we started with a half an acre [of Kamut®] which was all that seed that we had in 1988—30 years later, we are contracting with 250 organic regenerative farmers in Montana, Alberta, and Saskatchewan for over 100,000 acres of this stuff.”
Kamut® is a distant relative to the modern wheat crop that is known for its unique flavor and health benefits. Ancient Grains like Kamut® see much lower yield potential than modern wheat, which over time lead some manufacturers to mix Kamut® with lower quality grains. In an attempt to protect the quality of the grain and the end consumer, Bob decided to trademark the grain, guaranteeing an unhybridized, unmodified, and organic product for their growing list of customers—in fact today, a staggering 75% of their grain goes to Italy.
During the episode, Bob goes into detail about how improved testing equipment led to a surprising discovery about minute glyphosate levels in their crops. Kamut International has been organic since its inception, but at one point almost a third of their farmers were sending grain that tested slightly higher than ten parts per billion in glyphosate. Bob was astounded when he discovered that glyphosate is so prevalent in American agriculture that trace amounts can be found in the rain during the growing season. Since this discovery, Kamut International has overhauled their testing protocols and mitigated trace glyphosate levels whenever possible.
Whether you are the buyer, the manufacturer, or the consumer, Bob believes in a “everybody wins” approach to business. He believes his impact and scale was achieved by paying farmers more, so he prides himself in the ability to implement economic incentives anywhere he can. Bob recalls in his conversation with John that almost 30 years ago, he began offering three times the amount of the commodity wheat price for Kamut® wheat, which proved to be a very effective business move. Today, that incentive has grown to five times the commodity price.
Bob’s expertise goes way beyond wheat, for a farmer located in the Upper Great Plains he has an unlikely variety of successfully growing dryland produce. Throughout the episode, Bob goes into detail about how this production came to be and how regenerative organic practices allow him to grow things like watermelon and summer squash in Montana. Bob and John also discuss nutritional value of ancient grains, how the western diet has led to a jump in autoimmune disorders, and the concerning rise of glyphosate levels in our food. Bob also tells the story of how his company accidentally came upon creating cooking oil in the search to create a better diesel fuel.
Sep 2, 2020
Facilitating Large Scale Transitions to Regenerative Agriculture with Terry McCosker
In our latest episode, John sits down with one of Australia’s most recognized thought leaders in Regenerative Agriculture, Dr. Terry McCosker. Over the course of three decades, Terry has worked with about 10,000 Australian farmers—a staggering 10% of all farmland on the continent—coaching them through an agricultural approach that emphasizes both soil nutrition & pasture ecology.
Terry currently serves as the director of RCS, an Australian agriculture consulting firm, but his career started at an early age when he had the opportunity to work on an Australian cattle station. Driven by a fearless pursuit of excellence, Terry found that most of the problems that faced the cattle station, as well as other operations across the country, stemmed from an outdated reductionist view of farming. As he continued his research, which included traveling to farms across the globe, he saw firsthand the power of holistic practices and their effects on livestock. Terry began challenging the paradigms of conventional farming and what he observed were results like an increase in livestock reproduction and mortality rates.
Throughout the episode, John and Terry discuss the work of Stan Parsons and Allan Savory, the importance of cell grazing alongside other regenerative practices, the proper strategies farmers use to approach succession planning, and the fascinating future potential of carbon sequestration.
“A client of mine once said that he thought he was a livestock producer. And then he came to one of our programs and went away thinking that he was a grass producer. And then over time, as he's learned more and more, he now believes he's a soil manager. If you understand that you're a soil manager, the production and the economics of your farm will actually look after itself…to be truly regenerative, a farmer needs to understand that they are a part of the ecosystem, not apart from it.” -Dr. Terry McCosker
Aug 11, 2020
In Defense of Biological Systems with Robert Linderman
In our latest episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews plant pathology veteran & agricultural visionary, Dr. Robert Linderman, discussing the benefits of mycorrhizal fungi and other bio-control agents that protect crops from soil-borne pathogens.
After receiving his Ph.D. in Plant Pathology from U.C. Berkley in 1967, Robert would spend the next 40-plus years contributing pivotal research findings to the USDA and other agricultural organizations. During his time with the USDA, Robert was introduced to a colleague who was fascinated by the power of mycorrhizal fungi and their ability to keep pathogens at bay. Their conversation ignited Robert’s pursuit to understand mycorrhizae symbiosis.
Throughout the episode, John and Robert discuss the benefits of building up antagonistic organisms in the soil to create a disease suppressive environment, allowing crops to thrive. In addition to other educated approaches to battling pathogens in your soil, Robert also takes listeners into a deep dive of the Ashburner System, telling the story of how one Australian avocado grower utilized a mycorrhizal fungi strategy—without even knowing it—to suppress phytophthora outbreak across his orchard.
“Farms, whether they're seeding or transplanting or planting bulbs or whatever, need to treat that material where the infection is going to happen…to have something there waiting for the pathogen when it tries to get into the plant is the best chance. It's like immunizing a child for infections that might come. You build up some kind of resistance and the resistance is in a biological form.” -Linderman
Robert and John also discuss the thoughtful inoculation of propagules, mycorrhizal fungi’s effect on photosynthesis, concerns about single factor analysis found in agricultural research, and the true price of the “instant gratification” chemical fix.
Aug 4, 2020
Building Soil While Cash Cropping with Loran Steinlage
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Loran Steinlage of Flolo Farms in Iowa. They discuss his experience in relay cropping, interseeding, cover crops, and controlled traffic farming. Loran grows grain crops for seed, has implemented youth programs on the farm, and has experimented with 60-inch corn. Listen for practical advice from a current grain farmer.
Loran grew up planning to be a livestock farmer like his father, but was hit by a semi at the age of 14, causing him to change his plans. Today Loran grows corn, beans, wheat, rye, barley, buckwheat, sunflowers, and oats. Typically, they do relay cropping and interseeding, though this year they have not been able to do relay cropping due to a freeze in May of their cereal crops.
In 2006 Loran began interseeding while his whole farm was corn on corn. Through interseeding, he found his way into cover crops and relay cropping. In the fall there are cereal crops such as winter wheat, rye, spring malt barley, or oats. Loran watches for stand quality, sometimes rolling over into corn if the stands aren’t good enough. Otherwise, he sows soybeans at the normal time. Loran uses a 30-inch planter to give more room for the combine. In July winter wheat is harvested, then cereal rye, then malt barley. If there is a window with good weather, they add buckwheat and harvest it and the soybean crop together.
Loran’s method has long been to focus on seed quality for economic viability. Uniform emergence is the key that ensures all the heads mature at the same time for a high-quality harvest. Once cereal crops dry and re-wet, germination quality goes down, so they try to harvest the cereal as it dries. For a few years, they were making $7-$8 per bushel on malt barley. Food grade wheat can earn a $2-$3 premium, but with grain cleaners the value can be almost doubled. Loran receives a minimum of $10 for cereal rye seed. He utilizes controlled traffic and stays on the tramlines to avoid creating compaction or driving on the crop.
Controlled traffic has great results in a field, but it requires more forethought and careful management to be successful so it has not been widely adopted. Even if there’s a small yield loss, Loran avoids straying from the tramlines as much as possible. About 5 or 10 farmers participated in a tramline study with Bob Recker, with only Loran interseeding cover crops. The extra biomass in the tramlines was very valuable, and a 60-inch gap provided extremely high quality cover crops. Bob Recker did further testing of his “barcode plot” and saw that the 60-inch gap was significantly better than the 30-inch gap for cover crop production. This year, he plans to relay cereal crops into standing 60-inch corn, which in his experience has yielded equivalent or better to 30-inch corn. He attributes some of that to having a precise planter. He also questions if yield should be the ultimate goal. Loran believes growers around him who sacrifice some yield for grazing days can attain 2-3 months of grazing instead of one, which can substantially lower feed costs.
Loran believes kids belong in agriculture today, and that it isn’t happening enough. He believes in self-education and the importance of allowing kids to learn on-farm, rather than going off to college. In pursuit of this goal, Loran’s started a 4-H program on his farm and increased field days. Having the children working with soil scientists can inspire them so they want to enter the field, and he’s seen some success stories already. He thinks that more people need to step out of the way and let young people take their place.
Loran sees the future of agriculture being focused on niche markets. He wants people to build an operation to fill voids in the market, rather than taking other people’s ideas and trying to make them fit their operation. He would change government intervention in agriculture if he could. If inherent risk was returned to farming, he believes competition and innovation would return. He also wants people to learn more about practices used after the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression and to combine those with current knowledge to improve fertility and soil health.
Resources:
The Steinlage Way
Loran Steinlage on Twitter
Growing Crops 365 Days a Year - Loran Steinlage
Corn Maverick: Cracking the Mystery of 60-Inch Rows
Jill Clapperton, Rhizoterra
Jul 14, 2020
The Fallacy of Mainstream Potassium and Nitrogen Fertilization with Richard Mulvaney
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Professor Richard Mulvaney from the University of Illinois. Dr. Mulvaney is a prolific soil fertility scientist and researcher with many published papers relating to nitrogen and potassium uptake in crops. His work with Dr. Saeed Khan led to the development of the Illinois Soil Nitrogen Test (ISNT). John and Dr. Mulvaney discuss nitrogen uptake in crops, how soil should provide most of the needed nitrogen, and the fallacy that applying nitrogen builds soil organic matter. He also describes the “potassium paradox”, how significant amounts of potassium are available from the soil, and the damaging cycle that is created when applying potash.
Nitrogen Fertilization (00:00:53)
Dr. Mulvaney began working in soil fertility in the 1980s with a focus on minimizing nitrogen fertilizer loss to increase crop uptake, specifically in regard to the isotope N-15. In collaboration with Dr. Saeed Khan in the 1990s, he found evidence that in some cases, fertilizer nitrogen on corn has no statistically significant response. At the time, most soil scientists were operating with the assumption that the optimal amount of fertilizer nitrogen is found by multiplying 1.2 times an expected yield goal, then deducting nitrogen credits such as a previous legume. In a project in Illinois studying on-farm plots, around 33 of 75 studied sites showed no significant response to fertilizer nitrogen, a finding inconsistent with the 1.2 method. The unfertilized yields, or check yields, were very high and not significantly increased with an application of nitrogen. Thus, Dr. Mulvaney hypothesized that the 1.2 calculation might not be as reliable as previously thought. Dr. Khan and Dr. Mulvaney conducted research to determine the difference between plots used in that study that were responsive and those that were unresponsive to fertilizer nitrogen applications. His wife noted that while soil scientists understand how carbon in plants is heterogeneous and decomposes at different rates, they assume that nitrogen is all the same. Examining the differences within nitrogen forms made clear that the plants at the non-responsive sites had sufficient levels of nitrogen available from the soil and so did not need nitrogen fertilizer applications. Using diffusion on the soil samples from the same study, they found that non-responsive soils were consistently testing higher in amino sugar nitrogen.
The prevailing thought at the time was that fertilizer is the primary source of nitrogen for crop uptake, especially for corn. However, Mulvaney’s and Khan’s data shows that at least two thirds of the nitrogen in the crop at harvest is supplied from the soils, rather than from applied fertilizer nitrogen. In soils with higher amounts of amino sugar nitrogen, applications of fertilizer nitrogen are a waste of money because most or all of the nitrogen is supplied by the soil. It follows that measured soil nitrogen is only correlated with crop response to applied nitrogen when soil tests measure amino sugar nitrogen.
The 1.2 method was developed from research trials on static plots. These corn plots received the same fertilizer treatments each year. On the unfertilized plots, corn used the nutrients from the soil with no nitrogen fertilizer added. Microbes will also use nitrogen from the soil to break down crop residues, depleting the following crop of nitrogen and depressing yields. The depletion of nitrogen resulting in depressed yields on the unfertilized plots makes the fertilizer effect appear more dramatic in comparison. Because the 1.2 method is based on static plots, it and its related assumptions are invalid when applied to farmer fields. Similarly, the assumption that one-third of the nitrogen will come from the soil is incorrect. In reality, two-thirds of the nitrogen is supplied from soils and only one third or less comes from fertilizer. These misconceptions have misled growers on the importance of nitrogen applications.
Because soil is the primary source of nitrogen for crop uptake, soils should be tested to determine how much nitrogen fertilizer should be applied. Dr. Mulvaney and Dr. Khan developed the Illinois Soil Nitrogen Test (ISNT) to estimate the amino sugar fraction for variable-rate nitrogen application recommendations. A former student of Dr. Mulvaney runs the lab at Cropsmith, where the Illinois Soil Nitrogen Test is available.
Expansion on Amino Sugar Nitrogen (00:24:15)
Amino sugars are an organic form of nitrogen produced by microbial activity. They occur in microbial cell walls, spores, and in chitin. The bacterial cell walls are more decomposable. Nitrogen shows up in asparagine and glutamine, essential amino acids, which contain one nitrogen atom each in the amino group and the amide group, which is prone to break down. It is estimated that 5-10% of soil organic nitrogen is in the form of amino sugars, but Dr. Mulvaney believes it is likely higher. Amino sugar nitrogen, more specifically referred to as alkali hydrolyzable nitrogen, will also increase with more soil biological activity. Manured soils have higher levels of it, and thus have a diminished need for synthetic fertilizer nitrogen. Although his lab has not studied cover crops directly, he believes having active plants in the soil will increase microbial activity and thus the amino sugar nitrogen.
The Morrow Plots, located at the University of Illinois and established in 1876, are the oldest continuous research plots in North America. They are static plots with three rotations, continuous corn, corn-soybean, and corn-oats-hay. In his research, Dr. Khan noticed that the continuous corn plots were not as healthy and had lower yields than the corn-oats-hay plots, even though the continuous corn plots received significantly more nitrogen fertilizer. The results of the Illinois Soil Nitrogen Test were lower on the continuous corn plots, which shows that synthetic nitrogen fertilizer is not necessarily building soil organic matter. Research comparing samples from 1955, 1967, and 2005 showed decreases in organic matter on the fertilized subplots. Dr. Mulvaney explains that the fertilizer actually “burned” organic matter. Carbon metabolism requires nitrogen, in a ratio of about 7 carbon to 1 nitrogen, so microbes can only access carbon from crop residue with nitrogen availability. When the microbes have too much nitrogen, they burn off the excess carbon as carbon dioxide rather than building soil organic matter. Additionally, conventional fertilizers have an oxidizing effect on soil microbial communities and stimulate respiration, which releases carbon from the soil as carbon dioxide.
Dr. Mulvaney notes that William Albrecht published a paper in 1938 in a handbook from the USDA where he stated that adequate nitrogen is needed to build organic matter. Later that year, Albrecht published an article in the Soil Science Society of America Proceedings based on results which showed that unfertilized plots had gained organic matter while fertilized plots had lost it. Albrecht never again said adequate nitrogen is needed.
Potassium Paradox (0:43:40)
Dr. Mulvaney worked with Dr. Khan, an expert on potassium, to write papers on the potassium paradox. He was doing soil testing for potassium on the South Farm at Illinois, testing from the surface plow layer to about seven inches into the soil. The unfertilized plots increased in their average potassium levels, leading to the realization that the soil was releasing potassium. There are about 40,000 pounds of potassium per acre in just the top six inches of many Midwestern soils. A review of numerous potassium studies showed that there is no significant yield increase from potash fertilization. Clay layers, mostly found in the subsoil rather than the plow layer, hold significant quantities of potassium. When the plant roots reach those lower levels, they find large quantities of potassium that…
Jun 29, 2020
Microbial Communities for Carbon Sequestration with David Johnson
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Dr. David Johnson, a New Mexico State University research scientist, Adjunct Professor for the College of Agriculture at Chico State, and Faculty Affiliate for the Center for Regenerative Agriculture. His research clearly outlines the importance of managing the ratio between fungal and bacterial populations in the soil for plant productivity and carbon sequestration. During his research on the salinity of manure compost, Dr. Johnson and his wife, Hui-Chun Su, developed the BEAM Soil Compost Bioreactor which develops compost with high fungal populations. John and Dr. Johnson discuss carbon cycling and the capacity of biology to sequester carbon and build soil organic matter. The conversation provides a fascinating look at the role of carbon dioxide in agriculture and the environment, how the ratio of fungal to bacterial populations in the soil are key to carbon cycling, and the methodology growers can employ to act…
Jun 16, 2020
Embracing the Connection Between Agriculture and Health with Zach Bush
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Zach Bush MD, an educator and a triple board-certified physician who specializes in internal medicine, endocrinology, and hospice care. Zach brings his understanding of the systemic challenges in pharmaceuticals and farming to non-profits such as Farmer’s Footprint and Non-Toxic Neighborhoods, where he works to create collaborative communities to solve these human and environmental problems. In this episode, John and Zach discuss the challenging problem of glyphosate. Zach describes the research showing the ramifications of this phosphonate compound and provides clear insights into the science of the problem before returning to an optimistic vision of regenerative agriculture as a solution.
Glyphosate/Roundup (around 00:02)
With Zach’s background in chemotherapy and cancer research, he was on the front lines in 2005 when it was discovered that the gut microbiome, made up of fungi and bacteria, has a significa…
May 26, 2020
Resilient Agriculture Models for The Future with Joel Salatin
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Joel Salatin, a well-known lecturer and author and the co-owner of Polyface Farms in Swoope, Virginia. Polyface Farms is a “diversified, grass-based, beyond organic, direct marketing farm”. Joel is well-known for his highly engaging public speaking style and is the author of twelve books relating his experience as a self-described ‘lunatic farmer’. In this episode of the podcast, we visit the challenges of mainstream, conventional agriculture through Joel’s paradigm-shifting lens, and learn why farmers are beginning to shift to a regenerative model. Joel also describes how farmers can learn the skills of marketing, communications, and public speaking, and broaches the uncomfortable topic of planning for farm inheritance and succession.
Joel’s worldview, informed by both real-world experience and immersion in a broad range of literature from philosophy, history, and religion, to current events and busi…
May 11, 2020
The Role of Carbon in the Soil with Rattan Lal
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Dr. Rattan Lal, an acclaimed soil scientist, researcher, and author. Dr. Lal has published hundreds of journal articles on soil ecosystems, effects of tillage, global food security, sequestering carbon in the soil, and more. In the early 1990s, Dr. Lal was a pioneer of the now mainstream idea that healthy soils are a defense against rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, leading groundbreaking research in Africa and later in South America. After a long and storied career, he is currently the Director of the CFAES Carbon Management and Sequestration Center, where he works with graduate students to research soil carbon sequestration and climate change. In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Lal provides an in-depth description of the function of carbon.
Carbon is the determinant of healthy soil. As Dr. Lal describes, the reason that soil life is much more diverse in healthy soil is because organic carbon i…
Apr 28, 2020
Collaboration, Spirit and Change, Perspectives from Ray Archuleta
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John Kempf interviews Ray Archuleta, an outspoken proponent of healthy soil systems and the founder of Understanding Ag and the Soil Health Academy. Ray has spent decades working in conservation agriculture and, in this episode, he describes his journey from seeing nature as a competitive entity, in which all else should be killed in order for the desired crop to survive, to his understanding today that nature thrives on diversity and collaboration.
Ray describes how new science and technology have identified many examples of collaboration in agroecology, like arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, which share water resources and transport energy and nutrients from organism to organism. Even under stress conditions, these microbes provide water to the plant, an example of nature sharing resources rather than competing. He provides examples of research that illustrate fields with a diversity of species showing greater resilience and yield…
Apr 13, 2020
Biophysics of Soil Plant Systems with Arden Andersen
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Dr. Arden Andersen, who holds a Ph.D. in Agriculture and Biophysics. In this conversation on biophysics, John and Dr. Andersen explore topics such as the role of calcium, soil compaction, pest pressure, and more from the perspective of biophysics and energy.
Dr. Andersen’s career in agriculture started in childhood on his family’s holistically managed dairy farm. This experience provided him with the daring to question accepted science and to forge new paths. While earning a bachelor’s degree in agriculture, Dr. Andersen noted that his father’s herd suffered from none of the dairy diseases he was studying, allowing him to draw a correlation between disease immunity and herd health. Through further study, he determined that immunity is influenced by nutrition and that this principle is the same for plants and mammals, including humans. Dr. Andersen dove into the world of biophysics, learning from pioneers…
Mar 31, 2020
Developing Disease Suppressive Soil with Jill Clapperton
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John Kempf interviews Dr. Jill Clapperton, a plant physiologist with an intuitive understanding of the workings of the rhizosphere and an abundance of metaphors that clearly explain these mechanisms. Dr. Clapperton worked as the Rhizosphere Ecologist at AgriFood Canada and more recently started her own company, Rhizoterra, where she researches agronomic practices and develops technologies for scientific on-farm decision making.
John and Dr. Clapperton delve into the science of the rhizosphere, discussing how the plant drives and controls the actions that transpire there. Each plant species exudes its own signature of carbon compounds, including sugars, amino acids, lipids, nucleic acids, and other compounds, which Dr. Clapperton refers to as ‘carbon skeletons’. The plant then works with the rhizosphere to add the ‘meat’ of mineral nutrients, oxygen, hydroxyl groups, and more to make the long or short carbon chain ‘skel…
Mar 16, 2020
Achieving Genetic Potential of 2-3 X Higher Grain Yield with Norman Uphoff
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Dr. Norman Uphoff, who was the director of the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development from 1990 to 2005, and is currently Professor Emeritus of Government and International Agriculture at Cornell University.
In this episode, Dr. Uphoff relates how he learned about the System of Rice Intensification in 1993 when he was sent to Madagascar as part of an initiative led by Cornell University to develop a program to increase rice yields and help rural development. There Dr. Uphoff learned about the System of Rice Intensification, a method of growing rice that was claimed to increase yields dramatically that had been developed by a French Jesuit priest named Father Henri de Laulanié. Dr. Uphoff was skeptical that the full extent of the reported yields was true but thought the method merited further investigation and developed a plan for the Cornell program to run trials.
The System of Ri…
Feb 24, 2020
Relay Cropping Grain with Jason Mauck
In this episode of The Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Jason Mauck, an Indiana corn, soybean, wheat, and hog producer who thinks outside the borders of convention and who has pioneered a number of innovative practices.
Jason describes the guiding force behind his experiments and innovation as the desire to gain as much control over the variables in farming as possible. Rather than embracing traditional planting and application methods, Jason experiments with new approaches to farming, measuring whether they give him more resilience and control over his inputs and yields.
Jason is passionate about relay cropping, the practice of having a second crop growing before the first crop is harvested. An example of this is a cool grass cereal such as wheat or rye planted with a summer annual of corn or soybeans. He describes his experimentation with this approach, from the original plan of planting two crops together and doing all of the same things he would do for each crop…
Feb 11, 2020
Redox: The Driver of Soil Microbial Interactions and Nutrient Availability with Olivier Husson
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews French agronomist, Olivier Husson, whose pioneering work on soil pH and redox potential provides a groundbreaking look at what goes on within the soil.
Olivier has focused a large part of his research on the study of reduction-oxidation (redox) in rice production, where the crop is grown in paddies in anaerobic conditions. These conditions are ideal for the study of Eh.
Eh, the short notation for redox potential, is a measurement of the availability of electrons, whereas pH is a measurement of the availability of protons. In order to gain a full picture of the soil’s nutrient profile, we need to assess both the pH and the redox potential at the same time.
In this interview, Olivier details:
* the difference between Eh and pH
* how the Eh profile changes based on photosynthetic activity
* how electrons in the soil are key to reversing oxidation and absorbing nutrition from soil mineral reserves
* how…
Jan 28, 2020
High Quality Wheat Production with Claudia Carter
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John Kempf interviews Claudia Carter, Executive Director of the California Wheat Commission. Originally from Ecuador, Claudia leads research around the marketability of California wheat and helps to develop and maintain domestic and international markets for this commodity. Through a partnership with the University of California Davis, the California Wheat Commission tests in-field performance of wheat yields and quality. With their in-house research lab, the Commission also develops pasta, bread, and other products to test wheat varieties for performance.
In this episode, Claudia describes her educational journey in cereal sciences, and her focus on the durum quality parameters that processors need to develop a good pasta. John and Claudia discuss biofortification, the process of breeding wheat varieties for a specific nutritional profile. For years, bakers have demanded wheat varieties with lower mineral content, since the pre…
Jan 14, 2020
How Plants Absorb Living Microbes and Convert Soil Pathogens into Beneficials with James White
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John Kempf interviews plant pathologist Dr. James White of Rutgers University, whose work provides a new perspective on plant pathology, susceptibility to soil-borne pathogens, and plant absorption of nutrients. Dr. White explains how endophytes, non-pathogenic fungal and bacterial organisms present in all plants, are a mechanism by which plants can absorb complete molecules, internalize and propagate soil-borne microbes, and nullify pathogenic organisms.
In the interview, Dr. White describes how plants cultivate microbes at the meristem, or root tip, where exudates are created. In this zone, these endophytes further attract and cultivate microbes from the soil in the rhizophagy cycle, from rhizo- meaning ‘root’ and -phagy meaning ‘eating’. Through this process, plants attract and internalize soil-borne microbes. The microbes are then internalized by the plant and deliver nutrients from the soil directly to the roots.
D…
Dec 16, 2019
Intercropping and Regenerative Soil Management with Derek Axten
In this podcast interview, host John Kempf and Canadian farmer Derek Axten discuss Derek’s path to profitable farming practices. This journey started in 2007 when Derek made a trip to Dakota Lakes Research Farm where he witnessed soil health and water infiltration levels beyond which he knew were possible. In subsequent trips to Dakota Lakes and visits to Gabe Brown’s ranch, Derek learned soil and crop management principles which he’s adapted to his own farm. In this episode, learn about the methods and systems Derek has applied and how they’ve changed the trajectory of his farm from soil health and economic perspectives.
Derek describes his system of inter-cropping and the management practices he employs to increase soil infiltration. He and John also discuss controlled traffic farming, Derek’s liquid fertilizer regimen, and decreasing the use of applied nitrogen and other synthetic inputs.
Listen to learn how Derek approaches:
* Soil management tactics and results
*…
Nov 5, 2019
Measuring Nutrient Density with Dan Kittredge
Before we present our newest episode, we have a request for you. As we complete our second season of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, we have a supporting base of over 5,000 listeners who engage with our episodes shortly after we post them. We now ask for your feedback on the podcast, whether there are topics you’d like to hear more about, and what suggestions you have for improvement. We’ve put together a survey that allows you to tell us what you think. Here’s the link: advancingecoag.com/podcast. We are appreciative of your feedback and we look forward to implementing it to make the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast ever better!
Thank you for permitting the interruption…now, on to the show notes!
In this episode of the podcast, John interviews Dan Kittredge, the Executive Director of the Bionutrient Food Association, whose development of sustainable agriculture techniques has connected him to farmers worldwide.
In this interview, John and Dan delve into the science of…
Oct 15, 2019
Rebuilding The Soil Carbon Sponge, and Cooling the Climate Fast with Walter Jehne
In this episode of The Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John Kempf interviews Walter Jehne, an Australian soil microbiologist and the Director of Healthy Soils Australia. Walter has written and taught extensively about the earth’s soil carbon sponge and hydrology as they relate to climate change.
Walter provides context for the extreme weather events we are experiencing, and clearly identifies the role that water plays as a climate regulator. He describes how we can manage water to safely and naturally cool the planet and regulate climate change.
Walter has developed a perspective on the impact that farmers can have on the climate that is different than the dominant narrative on carbon sequestration. While carbon sequestration is an important piece of the puzzle, Walter explains how managing the way our soils retain and hold water has a much bigger impact due to the way the hydrological system functions as a regulator for the planet. Walter describes how specific tactics in the ma…
Sep 17, 2019
Providing Affordable Food as Medicine At Scale with Pierre Weill
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews French agronomist, Pierre Weill, who created a feed company in 1992 in French Brittany with the intention of producing health-oriented animal nutrition. He then went on to co-found a nonprofit association called Bleu-Blanc-Cœur, which connects all the actors involved in the food chain to help producers and consumers connect the dots between reduction in disease and the quality of food production.
Pierre’s fascinating research trials examine the differences in human health when animal products from animals fed high-quality forage-based diets are consumed versus products from conventionally fed animals. In one group of six trials, conventionally fed animals were fed a diet of corn and soybeans, and the animals with a healthy diet were fed high-quality forages and seeds. Consumers in the trials were divided into control groups who ate milk, eggs, and other animal products from the conventionally fed animals, and…
Aug 27, 2019
Encouraging Achievement on the Farm with Vernon Peterson
John Kempf and Vernon Peterson take the stage for a live-recorded conversation at the inaugural Acres U.S.A. Healthy Soil Summit, held at the University of California Davis Conference Center on August 21, 2019, for this Regenerative Agriculture Podcast episode.
Vernon’s experiences from 30 years of growing tree fruit and other crops on both conventional and organic acreage in California’s water, weather, and labor-challenged environment inform the wisdom he posits here.
Peterson was the recipient of the Grower of the Year Award from the California Certified Organic Farmers Association and the Organic Produce Network in 2017. He farms 300 acres of stone fruit, including peaches, plums, nectarines, and apricots. Vernon’s operation also packs fruit for almost 80 neighbors, including stone fruit, pomegranates, and citrus.
Listen to hear Vern’s strategies for activating employees to achieve their fullest potential, his knowledge of organic fruit production and marketing, and a ca…
Jul 17, 2019
Weather Resilience Through Cover Cropping - A Panel Discussion
Record rainfall has resulted in an unprecedented number of unplanted acres in 2019. Farmers must now consider how best to manage these fields for the remainder of the season. In an otherwise fallow year, cover cropping options abound during a unique summer planting window.
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John Kempf hosts a panel of American Midwestern agronomists and farmers, Steve Groff, David Kleinschmidt, Brad Hobrock, and David Chance, to discuss wet weather, the inability to plant in sodden areas and the options to sow cover crops in empty fields.
David Kleinschmidt, a midwestern agronomist, and owner of Progressive Agronomy Consulting Services, consults with growers across the Midwest where his in-depth knowledge of soils and soil health helps farmers realize better yields.
Brad Hobrock is the owner of AgriBio Systems in Illinois where he farms several thousand acres of corn and soybeans. His voice and experience show the issues of cover cropping and w…
Jun 11, 2019
The Carbon Capture Business with Jerry Hatfield
In this episode of the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, John interviews Dr. Jerry Hatfield, Ph.D., a plant physiologist who runs the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment in Ames, Iowa. Jerry has done extensive research on the interactions between soils, plants, and the environment. Jerry describes his findings from some of these tests which track interactions among different types of cover crops with different soil and plant variables. Jerry also studies agriculture as a molecular geneticist, testing which genes are activated in plants during drought versus flood conditions and other environmental factors.
John and Jerry also discuss the differences between the terms sustainable agriculture and regenerative agriculture, and answer the questions: What are the steps to regenerative agriculture? What is the return on this type of system?
To quote Jerry, “If you go down this road of improving your soil, you increase your…
May 15, 2019
A Geological Perspective On Regenerative Agriculture with David Montgomery
In this episode, John interviews David Montgomery, Professor of Geomorphology at the University of Washington. John and David discuss soil regeneration at length, pulling from David’s experience developing new topsoil in dead, stony ground and his deep dive into the science behind it.
David came to the field of regenerative agriculture from a unique position. As a geologist studying erosion, he became curious about agricultural impacts on soils.
When David set out to write his first book, Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations, he imagined it would tie the subject of landscape formation over millennia to how soil erosion affected ancient civilizations. He ended up writing about the history of farming, because that's where soil erosion and degradation connects back to human societies. Spending more than a decade looking at how agriculture has influenced soil loss resulted in an epiphany that led him to see regenerative agriculture as the solution to historically degenerative agricultura…
Apr 16, 2019
The Regenerative Orchard: Cherry Success with Mike Omeg
Mike Omeg is a 3rd generation cherry grower who has spent the last few decades farming 350 acres of cherries in The Dalles, Oregon. Mike is an innovator with the vision for new approaches and the analytical mind to measure results. He’s tested myriad techniques in his quest for the best and most profitable methods of growing cherries, and was awarded the Good Fruit Grower award by the Fruit Grower News in 2017.
In this conversation, John and Mike delve into the type of bio-intensive system Mike has developed and the data he has collected in his trials. Mike has shown that profitable large-scale agriculture and regenerative practices are entirely compatible and speaks to how his operation has scaled regenerative practices. He also thinks deeply about return on investment, the economic growth of his operation, and discusses the positive impact that regenerative methods have had.
Believing that one of the fastest ways to improve soils is to grow a healthy crop, Mike explains his view…
Mar 12, 2019
A Conversation With Plants & Pascal Fafard
Pascal Fafard is a consultant and crop advisor in Quebec, Canada, working primarily with fruit and vegetable growers.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in agronomy and has been supporting and mentoring fruit and vegetable growers for more than 25 years. While working in IPM, nutrition and vitality advising, and the typical agronomic considerations, he realized that taking care of growers is as important as the grower taking care of plants.
This shift in focus led to his unique take on agriculture that has inspired advisors and growers to adopt more intuitive farming practices in the hopes of fostering greater peace of mind, increased clarity and enjoyment, better plant vitality and improved business productivity.
As you will hear, Pascal is committed to life in all its many forms and brings a perspective that stresses the importance of a close partnership between man and nature. His innovative approach encourages advisors and growers to unlock their full potential and to strive to real…
Feb 15, 2019
Season 2 Kickoff with Don Huber
Hi Friends!
Welcome to Season 2 of The Regenerative Agriculture Podcast!
Thank you for listening, spreading the word, and helping to make this show such a hit, while expanding our community in the fast-growing regenerative agriculture movement.
It is my honor to be part of this community along with you as we launch Season 2 of this show.
For this season-opening episode, we are immeasurably pleased to bring Dr. Don Huber back again, sharing more of his wealth of accumulated knowledge. Don was our first guest on the show in Season 1, and you can listen to the first-ever Regenerative Agriculture Podcast episode with Don, here.
Dr. Don Huber is a leading plant pathologist, Professor Emeritus at Purdue University, and prolific author, contributor, or editor of more than 300 published academic writings and three books.
For more than 50 years, Don has been a renowned researcher and principal voice in the field of crop-plant pathology, especially as it relates to the overlapping spheres…
Dec 7, 2018
LIVE at ACRES 2018 with Ed Curry
John Kempf and Ed Curry take the stage in Louisville, KY at the ACRES Conference 2018 — a hotbed for regenerative agriculture practitioners for the last 30 years — to record the Regenerative Agriculture Podcast’s first ever LIVE show.
The Acres Conference isn’t just another trade show or conference; this is a gathering of passionate and purposeful people working to share information and tools, and challenge the status quo in agriculture for the greater good. This is why we chose Acres 2018 for our first ever Podcast LIVE and why John and Ed make such a great pair to co-create this inaugural episode at this event.
Ed is an old-school breeder and grower with a new-school mentality. More than 90% of the green chiles grown in the US and Mexico are from Ed’s breeding program. He is now the only breeder of his kind in the world.
Even if you don’t grow chiles, you can certainly learn something from this discussion.
The show covers important topics such as:
* The art of vis…
Nov 29, 2018
Biocontrols for the future, with Pam Marrone
"It's a very exciting time to be in agriculture, and a really great time to be a farmer, I think, and a great time to be an entrepreneur." ~Pam Marrone
Pam is the founder and CEO of Marrone Bio Innovations, a leader in bio-pesticide research and manufacturing. She is a Ph.D. entomologist, turned entrepreneur. Pam is an inspiration to not only the next generation of microbial Ag researchers but to women in science and business. In addition, her work has helped farmers who are looking for more benign ways to address pest challenges.
Marrone’s career has taken her from Monsanto and Novo Nordisk to entrepreneurial ventures such as Agraquest Inc. and MBI.
Her research screening for microbes and their products has yielded a library of tens of thousands of potentially useful microbes, and has given the world several of it's most widely used Bio-Pesticides.Pam also co-founded the Biological Products Industry Alliance to help growers understand HOW to make the best use of these materials i…
Nov 26, 2018
Practice of Biological Farming with Gary Zimmer
This week, we present a follow-up to the interview I conducted last week, in Episode 27, with Gary Zimmer. I hope you enjoy the chance to dive deeper into some of the topics raised in the previous episode.
Gary has been a key figure in the development of regenerative agriculture in America, is a sought-after speaker, and is the author of both The Biological Farmer (now available as an updated and expanded second edition), and Advancing Biological Farming. He is the founder of Midwestern BioAg, a consulting and fertility provision company headquartered in Madison Wisconsin.
Gary's consulting has largely been in broad-acre crops and dairy, but the powerful information he offers can be universally transferred to any crop. Gary's analogies between ruminant digestion and soil mineralization helps us understand concepts in biological farming. This talk is sprinkled with fast-paced wisdom, anecdotes, research, and philosophy.
The conversation centered on three topics which are critical…
Nov 9, 2018
Concepts of Biological Farming with Gary Zimmer
Gary Zimmer’s impact on modern regenerative agriculture technique and proliferation is hard to overestimate -- with an enthusiasm and zeal that are positively infectious -- we are privileged to have him as a guest on the podcast.
Zimmer is the founder of Midwestern BioAg, a company which advocates similar principals to Advancing Eco Agriculture, while focusing on dry soil amendments.
He farms with his family in Sauk County, Wisconsin and is the author of two seminal books on biological agriculture, which I highly recommend: The Biological Farmer (now available as an updated and expanded second edition), and Advancing Biological Farming.
In this episode, Gary:
* Provides stories and insights from his decades-long career
* Clarifies the distinction between soil-correction and crop-fertilizer
* Reiterates the need to focus on biology in our soils and to use crop variation
* Warns against simply replacing fertilizer sources point-for-point when transitioning to organic p…
Nov 2, 2018
From Dirt To Soil with Gabe Brown
Gabe Brown is a clear, collected, and inspired voice for regenerative agriculture, having implemented and seen great changes on his family's ranch in North Dakota over time. In fact, Gabe’s A-Horizon (topsoil) is 27 in, and the soils on surrounding farms only have 4-6 in of topsoil!
Gabe is the author of the recently published and highly-acclaimed book, Dirt To Soil, from Chelsea Green. I highly recommend reading this truly inspiring and informative book.
Speaking and teaching about the practical steps for soil regeneration and farm profitability for more than 15 years, Gabe is also a partner with Soil Health Consultants LLC, an all-star group of ag thinkers and doers engaged in challenging the status-quo of agriculture.
In this episode Gabe and I speak about:
* The time when Dr. Norman put a 4 ft long probe into the ground and the soil would collapse with only 2 ft in the probe because of tremendous pore space.
* The reception of his book and the increased adoption of regene…
Oct 25, 2018
Traits of Exceptional Farm Managers
In this episode, I explore the characteristics shared by farm managers whose operations are exceptionally successful, and consistently outperform similar farms in the region.
In my experience as a field consultant and working with AEA's growers, I’ve observed a set of distinctive managerial patterns in the more successful growing operations. These traits bring outstanding results when farmers apply them over time. Listen to this episode for insights on these characteristics, and how they make growers more successful on their operations.
This podcast episode was originally recorded an exclusive webinar and received such fantastic feedback, I wanted to share it with you. Because this was a webinar, the audio quality is a somewhat lower than usual.
The concepts I cover include:
* Focusing personal energy on increasing revenue, while delegating responsibility for decreasing costs to managers
* Developing an intimate understanding of the agronomic science needed to increase revenu…
Oct 17, 2018
Fungi Matters with Peter McCoy
Peter McCoy speaks for the fungi.
His mission is to increase awareness, appreciation and the practical use of all manner of mushroom and mycelia. Peter is a co-founder of the grassroots advocacy group, Radical Mycology. He is also the author of a book by the same name which I’ve found to be the most thorough, current, and inspiring mycological reference available.
For those of you new to the wonderful world of Fungi and regenerative agriculture, mycology is the study of fungi (mushrooms, lichens, molds, etc.) and is a fundamental element of building soil health and profitable regenerative systems.
Peter is in high demand -- appearing in publications, speaking, and recently starting the world’s first mycology school (Mycologos), dedicated to the practical arts and science of working with fungi and, after much fanfare, being successfully funded on Kickstarter.
Peter is well-versed in fungal impacts on agriculture systems on which this podcast episode focuses. His advocacy also c…
Aug 31, 2018
How Nutrition Impacts Dairy Performance with Silvia Abel-Caines
Dr. Silvia Abel-Caines is a Veterinarian with a Ph.D. in Ruminant Nutrition, who is currently working as the Staff Ruminant Nutritionist for Organic Valley. She has researched neonatal immunity and colostrum supplementation in dairy calves and has also performed research on improving the fatty acid profile of milk through nutrition.
Combining the knowledge from her experience with ruminants and her technical training and research, Dr. Silvia Abel-Caines provides grazing insights and key information on maximizing dairy production by managing all aspects of cow health.
On this episode of the podcast, Silvia and I talk about
* The roles of key trace minerals in plant health and performance
* The science behind immunity with nutrition
* How the lack of key mineral access leads to plants being largely comprised of nitrogen
* Animal behavior and the feeding sequence
* How farmers can change what ruminants graze for by what they are fed prior to letting them out to pasture
Suppo…
Aug 10, 2018
How To Prevent Nitrogen and Phosphorous Leaching
In this episode, John discusses specific methods for the management of nitrogen and phosphorous for maximum benefit while reducing leaching, runoff, and pollution. Learn how to address nitrogen and phosphorus from both organic and conventional approaches. This episode contains effective, actionable information geared towards responsible and regenerative fertilizer management.
This episode is sourced from a previously recorded AEA webinar and contains specific AEA product recommendations -- which means, you can also tap into visual versions of this information, here:
Recorded Webinar presentation (video)
Webinar Slide deck
Preventing Nitrogen and Phosphorous Leaching - Episode Highlights
Key Points:
*
Plant nutrients should be available without being water soluble
*
Nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers can be stabilized to prevent them from leaching
*
We can maintain and increase yields while reducing nutrient runoff when the right technology is used
Phosphorus exists…
Jul 31, 2018
3 Things To Do When Plants Don't Respond to Nutrient Applications
Sometimes growers apply fertilizers to crops that don’t respond to the applications like they're expecting. When plant health and vigor is in a decline, and nutrient applications don’t move the needle, how can we reclaim the situation?
Through our consulting experience, we have learned that when nutrient applications bring little response and plants are going downhill, applying the right biology will reverse the direction of a declining crop with a speed and effectiveness that is almost magical. I discuss the three steps we take to flip directions in short order.
Enjoy!
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Feedback & Booking
Please send your feedback, requests for topics or guests, or booking…
Jul 27, 2018
The Job of a Farmer is to Feed the Soil with Sarah Singla
Sarah Singla is a farmer, agronomist, and educator from Southern France. Her family farm has been in no-till production since 1980. When she took the reigns in 2010 she additionally pursued a wonderfully complex diversified cover-cropping, mixed species, multi-income-stream approach that is highly thought-out, yet fluid.
Sarah has visited growers the world over in direct communication about their production systems. Her experience is broad, yet she consistently finds the most successful producers reducing erosion, increasing soil microbiology and working with nature. She has since become a champion of regenerative agriculture.
In this episode, you will find particularly useful information on cover/crop/animal/bee systems in grain-based production. Sarah expands on her compelling vision for the regenerative future in agriculture with multiple examples and options to fit any farm.
We discuss:
* How learning and education for farmers is linked to farm profitability
* Goal-based th…
Jul 20, 2018
Ecosystem Diversity Prevents Insect Pressure with Jonathan Lundgren
Jonathan Lundgren is an agroecologist, Director of the ECDYSIS Foundation, and CEO of Blue Dasher Farm. He received his Ph.D. in Entomology from the University of Illinois in 2004 and was a professional pesticide evaluator with USDA-ARS for 11 years.
Jonathan's research and education programs focus on assessing the ecological risk of pest management strategies and developing long-term solutions for sustainable food systems. His ecological research focuses heavily on conserving healthy biological communities within agroecosystems by reducing disturbance and increasing biodiversity within cropland.
In this episode, Jonathan and I discuss
* How diversity in insect populations decreases pest problems
* Why the term "pesticide safety" is meaningless, and the ecological implications and risk assessment of pesticides
* How to develop agroecosystems that reduce the need for insect management products and other agrochemicals
* How to design a proactive pest management system
* Beek…
Jul 16, 2018
The Fallacy of Perfect Soil Reports
Soil analysis should be used as a milestone to monitor progress towards growing healthy crops; they should not be used as a goal. Every nutrient and soil amendment application needs to produce a strong crop response, not just a soil analysis response. When we apply this understanding properly it means that we will not apply uneconomical quantities of soil amendments to balance a soil analysis that do not first provide a benefit to the crop.
On the mini-episode this week, I talk about
* where soil tests are needed for optimal farm performance
* how a soil test can be a detriment
* what to look for in a soil report
* what the numbers aren’t telling you
* why you can decrease your annual fertilizer inputs and get a better crop response
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or cal…
Jul 13, 2018
Microbial Influences on Crop Quality with Greg Pennyroyal
Greg Pennyroyal is the Viticulture and Enology Coordinator at Wilson Creek Winery & Vineyards in Temecula, California. He is also the Professor of Viticulture for Mt. San Jacinto Community College. Greg has worked in many industries including medicinal organic herb production, traditional eastern medicine, and botanical medicine research and development. Greg has been active in researching neurodegenerative diseases in conjunction with the University of California, Santa Barbara and has a breadth of knowledge about plant health that is a true delight.
In this episode, Greg and I discuss
* How the microbiome determines ‘terroir’ and influences flavor and quality,
* Using plant sap analysis, and how well it correlates with field observation
* Can you produce fruit with more flavor and metabolites in a stressed environment, or in an optimal environment?
* Plus many more highlights
Support For This Show
This episode is brought to you by AEA - Advancing Eco Agriculture - lea…
Jul 10, 2018
Vegetative and Reproductive Nutrients with John Kempf
I’ve been asked a lot recently about how to manage vegetative growth versus reproductive growth. On the mini-episode this week, I talk about which nutrients drive strong vegetative growth, and which drive strong reproductive growth and development, along with the hormonal interactions which drive plant dominance. Nutrients in both categories interact with and synergize or antagonize certain plant hormones. These interactions shape how trees and plants develop reproductive buds and fruitwood versus shoot growth. On this episode, I talk about which nutrients are vegetative, which are reproductive, and how to switch plant dominance between vegetative and reproductive stages.
4 Vegetative Growth nutrients:
* Nitrate Nitrogen (not ammonium or urea)
* Potassium
* Chloride
* Calcium
Reproductive nutrients:
All other nutrients will bring a slight reproductive response but the below 3 drive the strongest reproductive growth.
* Manganese
* Phosphorus
* Ammonium
Support For…
Jun 29, 2018
Rethinking Plant Physiology and Absorption of Nutrients from the Soil with Gerald Pollack
Dr. Jerry Pollack is a pioneering water researcher whose work in structured water and cell biology has been described as being some of the most important research that will be conducted in the 21st century. His research creates a completely new paradigm of cell biology and nutrient absorption. He is recognized worldwide as a dynamic speaker and author, whose passion lies in plumbing the depths of natural truths.
Dr. Pollack received the 1st Emoto Peace Prize and is a recipient of the University of Washington's highest honor, the Annual Faculty Lecturer Award. He is founding Editor-in-Chief of the research journal WATER and Director of the Institute for Venture Science. Dr. Pollack's (award-winning) books include The Fourth Phase of Water (2013), and Cells, Gels, and the Engines of Life (2001). Dr. Jerry Pollack maintains an active laboratory at the University of Washington in Seattle.
In this episode, Jerry and I discuss
* How water moves to the top of a 100-yard tall redwood
*…
Jun 26, 2018
Why Regenerative Agriculture with John Kempf
On the mini-episode this week, I focus on why we should develop regenerative agriculture, how it is different, and why it is important. In the past 10 or 12 years, a lot of conversation has been had on sustainable agriculture. In this episode, I explore what it is that we want to sustain, why regeneration is important, and how regenerative farming systems impact the bottom line in a way that sustainability cannot.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Feedback & Booking
Please send your feedback, requests for topics or guests, or booking request have a Podcast episode recorded LIVE at your event -- to production@regenerativeagriculturepodcast.com. You can email John directly at John@regenerativeagricu…
Jun 22, 2018
BioEnergetics in Agriculture with Steve Diver
Steve Diver has earned B.S. and M.S. degrees in Horticulture and has conducted research on fruit and nut production, and seasonal changes in elemental concentration in pecan fruit and leaves. He has served as the Extension Horticulture Agent in Muskogee County, Oklahoma, and has also worked as an Agriculture Specialist with the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service. In 2010, he established an independent firm, Agri-Horticultural Consulting, which provided soil analysis and consultancy services in eco-agriculture, organic and sustainable farming, and environmental sciences.
In this episode, Steve and I discuss rock powders, biology, and bioenergetics, the oxidation/reduction potential in soils, the use of liquid biological agents in soil health and crop success, and the value of bioenergetics in agriculture. Steve has some really great knowledge from his many years of experience in the lab and in the field.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought…
Jun 20, 2018
How Soil Health Impacts Performance of Cherry Varieties with Lynn Long
Professor Lynn Long has worked in sweet cherry research and Extension at Oregon State University since 1988. At that time, the main cherry variety being grown was Bing on a Mazzard rootstock, leading to disease and susceptibility to weather pressure. Lynn has been an advocate for diversity in varieties and rootstocks, maintaining a cherry variety trial since 1996, and evaluating nearly 100 varieties and selections for potential adoption by the sweet cherry industry in the Pacific Northwest. He has been instrumental in progressing the use of dwarfing rootstocks and new training systems in commercial orchards. Long has authored many publications and has spoken in grower oriented meetings in 16 countries around the world.
In this episode, Lynn and I discuss the future of sweet cherry production. Lynn believes the future development of tree fruit will emerge when we begin better managing ‘the other half of the tree' - the root system.
* How soil health and compost applications contri…
Jun 15, 2018
Eliminating the Need For Synthetic Fertilizers with Kris Nichols
Dr. Kris Nichols has conducted innovative research on soil biology, understanding how to regenerate soil health quickly. She is the founder and principal scientist of KRIS (Knowledge for Regeneration In Soils) Systems Education & Consulting Services. Dr. Nichols has also been the Chief Scientist at Rodale Institute and a Research Soil Microbiologist with the USDA.
In this episode, Kris and I discuss how to harness the power of fungi to decrease the use of synthetic fertilizers, the symbiosis between bacteria and water retention, and climate-resilient crops.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Resources
* David Montgomery
* Judith Schwartz (Cows Save the Planet, Water in Plain Sight)
* Krist…
May 29, 2018
Jerry Hatfield on Why Should We Care About Soil Health
Dr. Hatfield is the laboratory director for the USDA’s National Laboratory for Agriculture and The Environment. He has also served on the faculty of the University of California-Davis and is a Past President of the American Society of Agronomy.
In this short but very powerful episode, Jerry and I discuss the mechanics of improving plant efficiency in capturing water, nutrients, and light and put that into productivity. We talk about the role that the soil-plant continuum plays in not only developing the productivity but also the quality of the products that plant is harvested for. Jerry and I discuss the fundamental functions of the soil aggregate structure and the value of gas exchange and water infiltration.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be…
May 18, 2018
Plant and Insect Communications in Biological Cropping Systems with Larry Phelan
This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Larry Phelan, a professor at Ohio State University where he heads research programs studying the role of soil communities in plant health and susceptibility to disease and insect pests in biological farming systems. Larry also heads programs researching the identification and behaviors of plant secondary compounds and insect pheromones that affect host finding and other behaviors.
In this episode, Larry and I discuss plant and insect communications, soil communities, and the concept of biological buffering - the capacity of biology in the soil to absorb large amounts of nutrients that are applied and contain those in their cells and release them over a period of time. We also talk about Larry’s new initiatives in the city of Cleveland to incorporate urban agricultural systems. I had a lot of fun with this episode - some of the topics Larry touches on are absolutely fascinating.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is…
May 11, 2018
Winning the Weed Control Challenge on Organic Crops with Klaas Martens
This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing a great farmer and friend of mine, Klaas Martens. Klaas has been farming for more than 30 years and has driven the adoption of sustainable farming practices through his work with numerous national organizations and advisory committees. This episode contains some really great information from Klaas’s many years of experience developing sustainable farming systems.
In this episode, we talk about the cultural practices that form the basis of weed control, how Klaas thought he had discovered a pathogen that could become a new herbicide, and what it turned out to be, how to see and monitor field variables, crop rotations, and how Klaas has managed the weed control on his farm in upstate New York for the past 30 years.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancinge…
May 5, 2018
Erosion, Soil Balance, and Cover Crops with Steve Groff
This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Steve Groff, a farmer and cover crop pioneer who has also worked with the University of Maryland on extensive cover crop research. Steve founded Cover Crop Coaching in 2016 and has spoken to audiences across North America, Europe, Australia, Japan, and many other parts of the world on the use of cover crops across the full range of agricultural applications.
In this episode, we talk about important management tools to incorporate with cover crops, the causes of erosion in a soil system, and how farmers can supply consumer demand for nutritional value. We also discuss farm economics, the books Steve read that started him in cover cropping and a step by step guide for growers who want to start developing healthy soil.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancing…
Apr 28, 2018
Symbiotic Relationships in Ecology with Don Huber
In this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Don Huber, a leading plant pathologist and Professor Emeritus at Purdue University. We discuss how to manage soil-borne diseases by managing crop rotations, and the management needed to grow 500 hundred bushels corn.
Don shared intriguing observations on how soil-borne disease pathogen populations remain present in the soil constantly and are actually ‘beneficial’ saprophytic fungi until the right environment is present. Root diseases are a result of the soil environment, not a result of the presence or absence of the organism.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Related Resources
* Mineral Nutrition and Plant Disease by Lawrence E. D…
Apr 20, 2018
The Value of Nutrient Density with Matt Kleinhenz
In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Matt Kleinhenz, a professor at the Ohio State University in vegetable crop physiology who has done research in many areas of horticulture and crop sciences. We talk about high quality food production, how growers and consumers view nutrient density, how farmers can influence the market, Matt’s views on nutritional yield, and how growers can stay up-to-date on the latest crop breakthroughs.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Episode 5 - Dr. Matt Kleinhenz - Highlights
[0:03:20] - Matt’s memorable moments that have brought him to where he is today
* Matt’s interactions with growers bringing him questions, especially focusing on “how to produce more of a b…
Apr 17, 2018
How Insect Pests Identify Unhealthy Plants with Tom Dykstra
This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Tom Dykstra, the founder and laboratory director at Dykstra Labs, who also has advanced degrees in entomology and has worked with Dr. Phil Callahan.
In this episode, we talk about plant and insect communications, and how plants can only see and feed on plants who are unhealthy (insects are only attracted to unhealthy plants). We also discuss Dr. Dykstra’s current day work in bioelectromagnetics, entomology, and agriculture. This episode is a truly amazing glimpse into these very fascinating areas and how they relate to plant physiology.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Episode 4 - Dr. Dykstra - Highlights
3:00 - What memorable moments lead Tom…
Apr 14, 2018
Disease Resistance and Regenerating Soil with Michael McNeill
In this episode, I had an awesome time interviewing Dr. Michael McNeill, who is an agronomic consultant with several degrees in soil fertility, plant physiology, and quantitative genetics. We discuss how fertility and genetics impact plant response to disease invasion, what causes the suppression of soil health, Michael’s experience quickly regenerating soil, how farming has changed since the green revolution, and how to develop a plant profile that protects against disease.
Mentioned In This Episode:
N. A. Krasil'nikov SOIL MICROORGANISMS AND HIGHER PLANTS
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, Episode 3 Timestamps:
4:10 - Michael’s background
* Michael’s s…
Apr 14, 2018
Social Impacts of Regenerative Agriculture with Gabe Brown
In this episode, I interviewed Gabe Brown, a rancher who is a veteran no-tiller and the owner of Brown’s Ranch in Bismarck, N.D..
We discussed Gabe’s experience farming without applying any fertilizers, the ability to feed more people with regenerative agriculture than with the current system, the economics of grazing beef, and the tremendous opportunity of growing non-commodity crops. This episode is a great look at the practical applications of regenerative agriculture systems.
Gabe's new book, Dirt to Soil, will be available in fall 2018 from Chelsea Green and Amazon.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Episode 2 - Gabe Brown - Highlights
0:02:40 - What moments have lead Gabe to where he is…
Apr 13, 2018
Increasing Biological Populations with Robert Kremer
In this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Robert Kremer, a microbiology scientist for the USDA who also works as a professor in plant sciences at the University of Missouri. In this episode, we discuss Robert's project with the USDA decomposing weed seeds in soil, native soil microorganisms and microbial interactions, and the implications of AMPA and glyphosate on soil biology. We also discuss Robert's thoughts on the challenge of manganese availability, how growing GMO's impacts soil health, building soil carbon, how to choose soil inoculants and many more fascinating insights from a highly respected soil scientist.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow
This show is brought to you by AEA, leaders in regenerative agriculture since 2006.
If you are a large-scale grower looking to increase crop revenue and quality, email hello@advancingecoag.com or call 800-495-6603 extension 344 to be connected with a dedicated AEA crop consultant.
Episode 1 - Dr. Kremer - Highlight…