ATTRA - Sustainable Agriculture

In this episode, National Center for Appropriate Technology Livestock Specialist Dave Scott talks about the factors that led him to transition his own lambing operation to regenerative grazing. He covers fertilizer costs, soil organic matter effects, how the system affects barber pole worms in his flock and more.

Dave also mentions a number of related ATTRA resources, including:

Nutrient Cycling in Pastures:https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/summary.php?pub=240 ATTRA Soil Health Tutorial:https://attra.ncat.org/tutorials/ ATTRA Managed Grazing Tutorial:https://attra.ncat.org/tutorials/

The ATTRA website includes a wide variety of free sustainable-agriculture information, including the popular Ask an Ag Expert feature: www.attra.ncat.org

In this episode NCAT’s Rich Myers has a conversation about Whole Farm Revenue Protection Insurance with Jeff Schahczenki, an agricultural and natural resource economist with NCAT’s ATTRA - the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service.Jeff has more than 30 years of experience working on issues related to sustainable and organic agriculture, with a recent interest in risk management and federal policy.He wrote and help developed a national Organic Research and Education Initiative project entitled, Is Organic Farming Risky? Overcoming and Understanding Crop Insurance Barriers to Expanding Organic Food Production and Markets. He previously worked on a four-year national research project to develop a Microsoft Windows-based and a Web-based interactive crop insurance decision support tool for farmers and ranchers.In this podcast, he and Rich talk about how Whole Farm Revenue Protection works, including some examples; identify challenges to Whole Farm Revenue Protection; and provide some insight into ways it could work better for famers.You can get in touch directly with Jeff Schahczenski via email at [email protected] ATTRA Crop Insurance resource directory mentioned in the podcast:Crop InsurancePlease call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 1-800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. 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-agriculture publications, webinars, videos and other resources at NCAT/ATTRA’s Website.You also can stay in touch with NCAT at its Facebook page.Be sure to check out NCAT’s SIFT (Small Intensive Farm Training) Farm Website.Also check out NCAT’s Regional Offices’ websites and Facebook Pages!Southwest Regional Office: Website and Facebook page.Western Regional Office: Website and Facebook page.Rocky Mountain West Regional Office: Facebook page.Gulf States Regional Office: Website and Facebook page.Southeast Regional Office: Website and Facebook page.Northeast Regional Office: Website  and Facebook page.

In this episode, Lee Rinehart, a specialist with NCAT’s ATTRA - the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service - talks with Brian Filipowich of Anacostia Aquaponics in Washington, D.C. Lee works out of NCAT’s Northeast Regional Office in Keene, New Hampshire.

Brian has extensive experience with aquaponics systems. He and Lee discuss the history of aquaponics and its integrated production system, as well as the economic factors affecting it. Brian also has some advice about how to explore whether aquaponics is right for you without diving in head first.

You can get in touch directly with Lee Rinehart via email at [email protected]

Other links mentioned in the podcast:

Anacostia Aquaponics

Aquaponics Association

Superior Fresh

Here are some related ATTRA resources:

Aquaponics - Integration of Hydroponics and Aquaponics (Be sure to watch the website for an updated version of this publication.)

Ocean Farming: An Interview with Bren Smith

Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 1-800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. 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-agriculture publications, webinars, videos and other resources at our website https://attra.ncat.org/ or ATTRA’s Facebook page.

Stay in touch with NCAT at its website or NCAT’s Facebook page

Be sure to check out NCAT’s SIFT (Small Intensive Farm Training) Farm website.

In this episode, Justin Duncan, a specialist with NCAT’s ATTRA - the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service - talks with Noah McDonald, the Hamer-Hayes Fellow at the Southeastern African American Farmers’ Organic Network (SAAFON), about efforts to preserve the heritage and lands associated with farmers in the southern regions of the country. Justin works out of NCAT’s Southwest Regional Office in San Antonio, Texas. Justin and Noah’s informal conversation took place between presentations during the recent Black Farmers & Urban Gardeners National Conference in Durham, North Carolina. You can get in touch directly with Justin Duncan via email at [email protected] SAAFON’s website

Finding Land to Farm: Six Ways to Secure Farmland Financing Your Farm: Guidance for Beginning Farmers Tips for Farm Leases and Contracts: Creating Smart, Effective Documents

In this episode, Rock Woods, director of the National Center for Appropriate Technology’s Gulf States Office in Jackson, Mississippi, talks with Dr. William Evans concerning Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) standards. Dr. Evans is the director of horticulture with Up in Farms LLC. Up in Farms is a food hub located in Jackson. Up in Farms coordinates production schedules with farmers based upon the demand by regional buyers, such as grocery stores, restaurants, schools, and commercial distributors. Up in Farms also provides support and training necessary to deliver high-quality products on time and at a sustainable price. Additionally, the hub aggregates produce directly from farmers in Mississippi to its warehouse in Jackson. The warehouse is designed to wash, grade, pack, cool, and store fresh produce - activities that can be prohibitively expensive for many individual farms. Rock and Dr. Evans talk about the history of GAP, its purpose, and its relationship to other agricultural standards such as the Food Safety Management Act (FSMA) and the USDA National Organic Program (NOP). Rock also has a conversation with Calvin Head, director of Mileston Cooperative in Tchula, Mississippi. Mr. Head talks about the factors that led the agricultural cooperative to adopt GAP standards. You can get in touch directly with Rock Woods via email at [email protected]. Up in Farms LLC website.

On-Farm Food Safety and FSMA Produce Safety Tutorial Farm-Based Food Safety. A Six-Part Video Series Farm-Based Approach to Food Safety—The Internal GAP Audit Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 1-800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. 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 them and find our other extensive, and free, sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos and other resources at our website. or ATTRA’s Facebook page

Stay in touch with NCAT at its website or NCAT’s Facebook page

Be sure to check out NCAT’s SIFT (Small Intensive Farm Training) Farm website

Southwest Regional Office: Website, Facebook

Western Regional Office: Website, Facebook

Rocky Mountain West Regional Office: Facebook

Gulf States Regional Office: Website, Facebook

Southeast Regional Office: Website, Facebook

Northeast Regional Office: Website, Facebook

In this episode Robert Maggiani, a sustainable agriculture specialist with NCAT's ATTRA - the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service - who works out of NCAT's Southwest Regional Office in San Antonio, Texas, has a conversation with Thea O’Carroll, the founder and CEO of YieldOrganic.

YieldOrganic is an online marketplace based in San Antonio for organic and non-GMO crops.

Thea is a fourth-generation farmer, who along with her family, transitioned their northeast Nebraska grain farm to organic about 10 years ago. She and Robert talk about YieldOrganic - how it works and how it came about.

You can get in touch directly with Robert Maggiani via email at [email protected].

Here are some related ATTRA resources:

Marketing Organic Grains

Organic Small Grain Production

Nutrient Management in Organic Small Grains

Disease and Insect Management in Organic Small Grains

Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 1-800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. 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 them and find our other extensive, and free, sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos and other resources on our homepage or ATTRA's Facebook page.

Stay in touch with NCAT at its website or NCAT's Facebook page.

NCAT's SIFT (Small Intensive Farm Training) Farm website

Also check out NCAT's Regional Offices' websites and Facebook Pages!

Southwest Regional Office.SW Facebook page/.

Western Regional Office Website.CA Facebook page.

Rocky Mountain West Regional Facebook Page.

Gulf States Regional Office Website.GS Facebook page:

Southeast Regional Office Website.SE Facebook page.

Northeast Regional Office Website.NE Facebook page.

In this episode, Tammy Howard, a horticulture specialist with NCAT’s ATTRA program, the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, who works out of NCAT’s headquarters in Butte, Montana, sits down with Lawrence Rhone of Farm Retreat Rhone in Flaxville, Montana.

Lawrence is a graduate of NCAT’s 2017 Armed to Farm training for veterans interested in sustainable agriculture as a career. NCAT has offered numerous Armed to Farm trainings, and the one Lawrence took part in was held in Montana’s Mission Valley.

Since then, he has made significant progress towards his farm-based retreat center for veterans. In the podcast, he talks about using his skills as a veteran to approach the often intimidating process of working USDA programs like the National Resources Conservation Service Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and Farm Service Agency loan programs.

He also describes his farm retreat goals and how his military experience has helped shape them.

Related Resources:

• NCAT Armed to Farm
• ATTRA: Voices from the Field: High Tunnels and the NRCS
• ATTRA Business Start-Up Resources
• Veteran Resources

You can get in touch directly with Tammy Howard via email at [email protected].

Stay in touch with NCAT headquarters at its website or NCAT’s Facebook page.

Also check out NCAT’s Rocky Mountain West Facebook page for the latest in the region!

Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 1-800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. 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 them and find our other extensive, and free, sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos and other resources by starting out on the ATTRA Home Page.

In this episode NCAT Southeast Regional Director Margo Hale and Linda Coffey, a livestock specialist with NCAT’s ATTRA the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, discuss fall and winter production considerations for sheep and goat producers. Their conversation includes preparing your herd/flock for breeding, ewe and ram management, kidding/lambing management, and winter feeding considerations.

Related ATTRA resources:

Sheep and Goat FAQ’shttps://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/summary.php?pub=579

Small Ruminant Toolboxhttps://attra.ncat.org/ruminant/

Illustrated Guide to Sheep and Goat Production https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/summary.php?pub=218

ATTRA Sheep and Goat Publicationshttps://attra.ncat.org/livestock/#sheep_goat

Intensive Grazing: One Farm’s Set Up https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDu0ElBiEy9w4vhL87vWjzCtyazcvPYGx

Managed Grazing Tutorialhttps://tutorials.ncat.org/

Small Ruminant Coursehttps://attra.ncat.org/oasdfr/

You can get in touch directly with Margo and Linda via email at [email protected] and [email protected]. Stay in touch with the NCAT Southeast Regional Office at its website https://www.ncat.org/ncat-southeast-regional-office/ or Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/NCATSoutheast/.

Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 1-800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. 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 them and find our other extensive, and free, sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos and other resources at our website: www.attra.ncat.org.

In this episode, Daniel Prial, an agricultural specialist for NCAT’s ATTRA, the National Sustainable Information Service at the NCAT Northeast Office in Keene, New Hampshire, travels to Five College Farms in Hadley, Massachusetts, (www.fivecollegefarms.com to learn about growing organic crops in greenhouse systems.

Five College Farms grows heirloom tomatoes and Persian cucumbers in a series of greenhouses.

Daniel speaks with Arthur Mulyono, the business manager of Five College Farms, about how the greenhouse operators maintain soil fertility and control pests. They also discuss the unique marketing considerations that go along with selling greenhouse vegetables directly to groceries.

You can find photos of the greenhouses Daniel and Arthur are visiting and the other materials they refer to at https://attra.ncat.org/organic-greenhouses-soil-fertility-pests-marketing-and-more/

The interview was part of Daniel’s research for an update of an ATTRA publication, Organic Greenhouse Vegetable Production, which will be available on the ATTRA website, www.attra.ncat.org before the end of 2018.

Other related ATTRA resources available on the website include:

High Tunnels in Urban Agriculture: https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/summary.php?pub=552

High Tunnel Fruit and Grape Production for Eastern Growers https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/download.php?id=542

 Organic Greenhouse Tomato Production https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/summary.php?pub=54

Organic Greenhouse Vegetable Production https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/summary.php?pub=45

You can get in touch with Daniel at [email protected].

Stay in touch with the NCAT Northeast Office at its website https://www.ncat.org/northeast/ or its Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/NCATNortheast/.

Please call ATTRA with any and all of your sustainable agriculture questions at 1-800-346-9140 or e-mail us at [email protected]. and find all of our other extensive, and free, sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos and other resources at www.attra.ncat.org.

In this episode, Andrew Coggins of the National Center for Appropriate Technology’s Rocky Mountain Region office in Butte, Montana, talks about the process NCAT followed to build two new high tunnels on its SIFT Demonstration farm at the Butte office. The high tunnels were supported in part by a grant from the USDA NRCS’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQUIP). Anyone with questions about applying for the EQUIP program can contact Andrew through the toll free hotline (800-346-9140 or the Spanish language hotline 800-411-3222) or email [email protected]. The ATTRA website, www.attra.ncat.org, where you can find a wide range of resources on free sustainable-agriculture resources. While you’re there, sign up for the Weekly Harvest sustainable-agriculture newsletter.

Andrew mentioned the SIFT Farm website and NCAT Rocky Mountain Region Facebook page, where photos of NCAT’s high tunnel project can be found. You can access both at NCAT’s website www.ncat.org.

Here are links to some related ATTRA resources: High Tunnels in Urban Agriculture High Tunnel Fruit and Grape Production for Eastern Growers High Tunnels for Vegetable Production in Warm Season Climates Information on Moveable High Tunnels