Attra - Sustainable Agriculture

This week's episode of Voices from the Field takes a look at solar grazing, the practice of using livestock to manage the vegetation under solar panels. Sheep are widely considered the best animal for solar grazing, and they are being used in many countries with great success.National Center for Appropriate Technology Livestock Specialist Linda Coffey talks with Lexie Hain, a co-founder of the American Solar Grazing Association. Lexie, who began grazing sheep at solar arrays in 2016, talks about how she began solar grazing and offers practical tips for anyone who is considering the practice.With agricultural land in high demand and requirements to expand renewable energy, using land for agriculture and energy at the same time is better for the environment, the solar company, the farmers, and the sheep.Related ATTRA Resources:Sheep and GoatsOther Resources:American Solar Grazing AssociationAgrivoltaic SolutionsContact Linda Coffey via email at lindac@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know

In this episode of Voices from the Field, we travel to Jackson, Mississippi, for a discussion of urban agriculture with NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Felicia Bell and Otis Wright, an urban farm manager and consultant. Otis talks about his experience with urban agriculture, as well as the ways he has found that urban agriculture can benefit communities beyond providing nutritious food.Related ATTRA Resources:Urban and Community AgricultureOther Resources:100 Black Men of AmericaTougaloo CollegeContact Felicia Bell via email at feliciab@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-346-9140 or e-mail us at askanag@ncat.org. Our two dozen specialists can help you with a vast array of topics, everything from farm planning to pest management, from produce to livestock, and soils to aquaculture.You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find our other exten

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Mike Lewis sits down with Dr. Tom Webster from Kentucky State University Cooperative Extension Services to talk about the role pollinators play in farm ecosystems, how to attract more pollinators, and how to protect them when they arrive. It all comes down to planning, and Dr. Webster offers some great strategies for increasing pollinator health and diversity on your farm.Related ATTRA Resources:A Pictorial Guide to Hedgerow Plants for Beneficial InsectsAlternative Pollinators: Native BeesContact Mike Lewis via email at mikel@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-346-9140 or e-mail us at askanag@ncat.org. Our two dozen specialists can help you with a vast array of topics, everything from farm planning to pest management, from produce to livestock, and soils to aquaculture.You can ge

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Colin Mitchell talks with Matt Kutugata about using drones in agriculture. Before Matt started pursuing his Ph.D. in Agronomy from Texas A&M, he worked with Colin and the rest of NCAT's Southwest Regional office team on the Subtropical Soil Health Initiative as a graduate researcher at the University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley.Much of Matt's research has been driven by data gathered by drones. He and Colin discuss ways drones increasingly are being used in agriculture, including scouting agricultural operations and using multispectral cameras to monitor cover crops.This podcast was produced by the National Center for Appropriate Technology through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program, under a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Development. This podcast was also made possible in part by funding from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Conservation Innovation Grant #69-3A75-17-281. ATTRA.NCAT.O

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Asha Tillman shares the story of James Burch, who left Carroll County, Mississippi, for the military and other pursuits some 40 years ago. Now, he has returned to pursue his dream of starting Coleman's Farm. As a beginning farmer, Mr. Burch is full of plans and advice for other beginning farmer veterans.Related ATTRA Resources:Armed to Farm: Sustainable Agriculture Training for Military VeteransFarm Start-UpBeginning Farmer TutorialsA Beginning Farmer Tells Her StoryOther Resources:AgPlanUsing an Excel Sheet for Farm Financial RecordsUSDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Environmental Quality Incentives (EQUIP) ProgramUSDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Wildlife Habitat ProgramUSDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Conservation Work for Honey BeesHow NRCS is Helping PollinatorsContact Asha Tillman via email at ashat@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of

Native plants bring both beauty and resilience to the farmscape. In this episode of Voices from the Field, Eric Fuselier, an environmental project manager at the Arkansas and Oklahoma civil engineering firm Crafton Tull, tells the story of native plants and the benefits they offer in a conversation with NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Nina Prater.Native plants bring both beauty and resilience to the farmscape. In this episode of Voices from the Field, Eric Fuselier, an environmental project manager at the Arkansas and Oklahoma civil engineering firm Crafton Tull, tells the story of native plants and the benefits they offer in a conversation with NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Nina Prater.Farmers can use native plants in many creative ways to provide such benefits as biological pest control, bioremediation, and erosion control. Eric and Nina also talk about different ways farmers can create profitable enterprises with native plants, such as native forage species for livestock, native food crop

Not all superheroes wear capes, that includes worms. In this episode of Voices from the Field, Nina Prater, sustainable agriculture specialist in the NCAT Southeast office in Fayetteville, Arkansas, talks with Matt Casteel, owner of Wurmworks, a composting business in Jackson, Mississippi.The two take a closer look at worms as composting superheroes. Casteel explains how to identify "good" compost, the ins-and-outs of worm composting, why compost is so good for soil health, and how composting can put food waste to good use.Related ATTRA Resources:Worms for Bait or Waste ProcessingVermicomposting: The BasicsManaging Soils for Water: How Five Principles of Soil Health Support Water Infiltration and StorageWorms for Bait of Waste Processing (Vermicomposting)Other Resources:wurmworksTeaming with MicrobesTexas Worm RanchThe Worm Farmer's HandbookDr. Norman Arancon, University HawaiiSoil Food WebChris Trump (Korean) Natural FarmingThe Good Food RevolutionaWorms Eat My GarbageLabs that perform compost

In this episode, you can make the acquaintance of NCAT's new Regenerative Grazing Specialist, Linda Poole. Linda's love of working wildlands began with riding horseback at her family's Eastern Washington ranch and led to a Master of Science degree in wildlife ecology from Oregon State University. She managed The Nature Conservancy's 60,000-acre Matador Grassbank in Montana and raises sheep her own homestead in Malta, Montana. Linda has developed a wealth of experience that will be a great contribution to NCAT's sustainable-agriculture resources. Linda's NCAT colleague, the other Linda - Linda Coffey of NCAT's Arkansas office – welcomes her new co-worker. They talk about the work Linda will be doing for NCAT, as well as her perspectives on adaptive grazing management, learning from mistakes, and the resilience in natural systems.Related ATTRA Resources:Linda Poole Biography Soil for Water ATTRA Grazing Planning Manual and Workbook Managed Grazing TutorialMaking the Most of F

Regenerative Livestock Specialist Justin Morris may be new to the National Center for Appropriate Technology, but he's no stranger to using grazing as a tool to improve pasture quality and soil health. In this interview with NCAT Program Specialist Tracy Mumma, Justin explains how he first became interested in managing grazing to improve the land resource and discusses how livestock producers can start using grazing as a tool. He goes on to describe what regenerative agriculture means to him and the positive effect that it can have on soil health, environmental health, and producer well-being.Related ATTRA Resources:Justin Morris BiographyATTRA Grazing Planning Manual and WorkbookManaged Grazing TutorialContact Justin Morris and Tracy Mumma directly via email at justinm@ncat.org and tracym@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-346-9140 or e-mail us at askana

In this episode of Voices from the Field, National Center for Appropriate Technology Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Martin Guerena speaks with Robert Ramming to learn more about Robert's U-pick operation near Woodland, California. Robert's Pacific Star Gardens raises apricots, berries, melons, tomatoes, and eggs. It sells from a roadside stand and U-pick fields.Robert explains his crop choices for U-pick and why blackberries are great, and vegetables are not-so-good. He and Martin dive into pricing, insurance, choosing a location, and the importance of building customer loyalty. Plus, Robert discusses the effect the COVID-19 pandemic had on folks' attitude toward their food.Related ATTRA Resources:Tips for Selling with: Agrotourism and 'Pick Your Own'Tips for Selling at: Roadside StandsFruitsOther ResourcesPacific Star GardensHow to Make $100,000 Farming 25 AcresContact Martin Guerena directly via email at marting@ncat.org and Margo Hale at margoh@ncat.org.Please complete a brief

In this episode of Voices from the Field, National Center for Appropriate Technology Southeast Regional Director Margo Hale talks with Mike Lewis, a new NCAT sustainable agriculture specialist. From his Kentucky farm, Mike explains that farming is part of his DNA. Mike is a military veteran who founded Growing Warriors, a veteran-oriented food security project. In addition, Mike became the first federally permitted hemp farmer in the U.S. since Prohibition. Listen to his conversation with Margo Hale to learn more about his background, what brought him to NCAT, and the expertise he'll bring to the sustainable farmers and ranchers we serve.Related ATTRA Resources:Mike Lewis BiographyArmed to FarmOther ResourcesCommunity Farm AllianceYou can contact Mike Lewis directly via email at mikel@ncat.org and Margo Hale at margoh@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-3

In this episode, Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Colin Mitchell who works out of NCAT's Southwest Regional Office in San Antonio, Texas, sits down with Stephanie Kasper, a biology research associate at University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley, to discuss ways to ensure successful nodulation of legume cover crops. In a crop rotation, legume cover crops have the potential to add bioavailable nitrogen to the soil for the next crop and to reduce the need for chemical fertilizers.Colin and Stephanie discuss how to inoculate cover crops, legume cover crop planting tips, and troubleshooting potential causes of nodulation failure in leguminous cover crops.This podcast is produced through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program under a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Development. Colin has worked with Stephanie on NCAT's Subtropical Soil Health Initiative, funded by a USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Conservation Innovation Grant.Related ATTRA Resources:Cover Crop Options for Hot and Hu

In this episode of Voices from the Field, Tammy Howard, a National Center for Appropriate Technology sustainable agriculture specialist at NCAT's Rocky Mountain West Regional Office, talks with Alison Patrick of the Feed our Future initiative, based in northeast Ohio.Tammy and Alison talk about the Feed our Future Farm to School pilot program, which led to the development of a school purchasing cooperative and a wide expansion of local produce purchasing. She also discusses the important role that food hubs have played in providing the quantity and consistency that school require.This podcast is produced by the National Center for Appropriate Technology through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program, under a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Development. ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.This podcast episode is one of a number of case studies featuring farmers successfully navigating school sales as part of Bringing the Farm to School, a training program developed as a cooperative agreement between NCAT, the Nationa

In this episode, Maura Henn, a community food system specialist with the National Center for Appropriate Technology's Western Regional Office in Butte, Montana, talks with representatives of the Oregon Farmers Market Association.They are Kelly Crane, OFMA's executive director; Amanda Cross, OFMA's programs manager; and Mallory Rahe, PhD, assistant extension professor of Agriculture and Applied Economics at the University of Missouri.The discussion centers on OFMA's beginning vendor support network and the ways OFMA aids beginning vendors.Related ATTRA Resources:Tips for Selling at Farmers MarketsFarmers Markets: Marketing and Business GuideLow-Income Local Food Access – PodcastCelebrating Farmers MarketsOther ResourcesOregon Farmers Markets AssociationFarmers Market CoalitionFor more information on this topic, you can contact Kara Kroeger directly via email at karak@ncat.org.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA wi

This episode is the second of a two-part discussion with Kara Kroeger, a sustainable agriculture specialist with the National Center for Appropriate Technology's Southwest Regional Office in San Antonio, Texas, and Dr. Chris Grotegut of Hereford, Texas, which is located in the Texas Panhandle.Chris is a veterinarian, farmer, and stockman, as well as a cutting-edge producer of organic crops and livestock. Hereford has rich agricultural history that is fueled by the waters of Ogallala Aquifer, which has been in perilous decline over the past hundred years as land has been plowed for row cropping and cattle feedlots. This decline is a serious threat to the longevity of many producers in the Texas Panhandle and beyond.In this podcast series, Chris and Kara discuss the success he has had in shifting his management and marketing strategies to protect the playas that recharge the Ogallala Aquifer and the water future of the region for the next generation of agriculture producers.This episode focuses on the obst

This episode is the first of a two-part discussion with Kara Kroeger, a sustainable agriculture specialist with the National Center for Appropriate Technology's Southwest Regional Office in San Antonio, Texas, and Dr. Chris Grotegut of Hereford, Texas, which is located in the Texas Panhandle.Chris is a veterinarian, farmer, and stockman, as well as a cutting-edge producer of organic crops and livestock. Hereford has rich agricultural history that is fueled by the waters of Ogallala Aquifer, which has been in perilous decline over the past hundred years as land has been plowed for row cropping and cattle feedlots. This decline is a serious threat to the longevity of many producers in the Texas Panhandle and beyond.In this podcast series, Chris and Kara discuss the success he has had in shifting his management and marketing strategies to protect the playas that recharge the Ogallala Aquifer and the water future of the region for the next generation of agriculture producers.This episode focuses on the histo

Entrevista en Radio Bilingüe del especialista en agricultura sostenible Martin Guerena del Centro Nacional de Tecnología Apropiada sobre algunas prácticas que promueven la salud y fertilidad del suelo.Recursos de ATTRARecursos en EspañolEl Manejo Sostenible del SueloLos Cinco Principios de la Salud del SueloSuelos Salinos y SódicosSolarización y Biosolarización del SueloHojas de Datos: CompostPara obtener más información sobre este tema, puede ponerse en contacto con Martin Guerena directamente en marting@ncat.orgPlease complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.NCAT FacebookGranja SIFT de NCAT SITIO WebsiteOficina del suroeste: Website / FacebookOficina occidental: Website / FacebookOficina de Rocky Mountain West: Website / FacebookOficina de los Estados del Golfo: Website / FacebookOficina sureste: Website / FacebookOficina del noreste: Website / Facebook

This episode of Voices from the Field is a the second part of a discussion between Ben Thomas of California Alliance of Family Farms, Hope Sippola of Fiery Ginger Farm in West Sacramento, California, and Vince Caguin of the Natomas, California, Unified School District.The conversation begins with Vince asking Hope and Vince what inspires them to be involved in farm-to-school markets.In the first part of the discussion, Hope and Vince talk about ways the relationship between Fiery Ginger Farm and the school district has evolved and how the farm set about maintaining school sales through the COVID 19 pandemic.The link to that discussion is in the notes accompanying this podcast.This podcast is produced by the National Center for Appropriate Technology through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program, under a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Development. ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.This podcast episode is one of a number of case studies featuring farmers successfully navigating school sales as part of Bringing the Farm

This episode is a the first part of a discussion between Ben Thomas of California Alliance of Family Farms, Hope Sippola of Fiery Ginger Farm in West Sacramento, California, and Vince Caguin of the Natomas, California, Unified School District. Hope and Vince discuss how the relationship between Fiery Ginger Farm and the school district has evolved and how the farm set about maintaining school sales through the COVID 19 pandemic. Let's listen.This is a panel discussion in the Bringing the Farm to School pilot facilitator workshop. In this panel, Ben Thomas of CA Alliance of Family Farms talks with Hope Sippola of Fiery Ginger Farms and Vince Caguin, of Natomas Unified School District to ask them about how their relationship has evolved and how Fiery Ginger is trying to maintain school sales through the pandemic.Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-346-9140 or e-mail

In this episode, Andrew Coggins, director of NCAT's Rocky Mountain West Regional Office in Butte, Montana, talks with Cora Helm, owner and operator of LC Compost Solutions. The business, located near Helena, Montana, includes what is called "mortality composting," which Cora sees as method for organic waste reduction and a sustainable alternative to land-filling, burial, and cremation for livestock and other deceased animal companions.Related ATTRA ResourcesSoils and CompostOther ResourcesLC Compost SolutionsPlease complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 800-346-9140 or e-mail us at askanag@ncat.org. Our two dozen specialists can help you with a vast array of topics, everything from farm planning to pest management, from produce to livestock, and soils to aquaculture.You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find our other extensive, and free, sustainable-agr