Allan Savory (1935-) a wildlife and land steward as well as a livestock manager, suggests that traditional methods of cattle grazing have turned broad swaths of grasslands throughout the world into deserts. His innovative solution to this problem is what he calls "holistic grazing" and what other people call AMP, or Adaptive Multi-Paddock grazing. This is the holistic grazing method used by Pomponio Ranch (listen to Episode 019).

Savory's basic idea is that cattle are herd animals, and they do well grazing in relatively close groups. Their considerable weight on top of their hooves loosens the soil around the grasses on which they graze -- IF they move onto a new area quickly. The cattle waste fertilizes the soil. Seeds that fall to the partially tilled ground then have a chance to germinate. And the grasses that the cattle trample down act as mulch, helping the soil to retain moisture. Grass will regrow when the cattle move on to a new contained grazing area.

The benefits of holistic grazing sound alluring: replenish the soil and it will hold more nutrients and moisture while feeding the meat animals that carnivores among us crave to eat. Moister soil means less topsoil blows away -- it will remain to nurture future generations. And more grassy ground cover that holds moisture will also sequester carbon, helping to reduce global warming.

Savory certainly has people's attention. A TED talk he gave on this subject in 2010 so far has garnered 5,198,605 views on YouTube. But Savory's evidence of the success of holistic grazing endeavors is highly anecdotal, and skeptics abound. Where is the scientific proof afforded by carefully controlled experiments with discrete variable while other factors are held constant?

Can we wait for unassailable scientific proof? Because we are talking about biological and seasonal cycles, and widely dispersed geographical locales, such proof could take a generation or more to develop. Do we have so much time? Or is a new paradigm of agricultural land management at hand?