Cover crops blanket the soil from the time you harvest one crop until you plant the next. And there’s a long list of benefits they provide: they can replenish soil in between planting, prevent soil erosion, slow water down, pull moisture deeper into the soil, and increase soil organic matter over time. For Doug Adams, an Iowa farmer and soil conservation technician at USDA-NRCS, cover crops also provide a way to recycle his nutrient dollars. In this episode, he tells Zach and Mitchell about how much he hates seeing valuable fertilizer leak out of his system, as it’s never coming back. “If I can get a good cover crop established,” he says, “it will help sequester some of those nitrates and other fertilizer and keep it from getting flushed out of my system.” Also in this episode: Mitchell explains what it means to “keep it squatchy,” and Zach weighs in on how to speak Minnesotan to earthworms.

Farmers collect a lot of data on fields, inputs, and yields. But many questions remain about how to use the data and who to share it with. Zach and Mitchell talk to Charles Baron of Farmers Business Network and John McGuire of Simplified Technology Services about what farmers have to gain or lose in sharing their data, especially when it relates to sustainable ag practices.

Farmers collect a lot of data on fields, inputs, and yields. But many questions remain about how to use the data and who to share it with. Zach and Mitchell talk to Charles Baron of Farmers Business Network and John McGuire of Simplified Technology Services about what farmers have to gain or lose in sharing their data, especially when it relates to sustainable ag practices.

Many farmers have heard the alarming statistic that we’re losing topsoil to erosion about 10 times faster than it can be replenished. We want to keep our soil healthy and intact so we can continue farming and be more resilient in the face of increased severe weather events. In this episode, Zach and Mitchell talk to Jim Isermann of the Soil Health Partnership, an initiative of the National Corn Growers Association. Jim tells the guys that building soil health takes time, but it’s something every farmer can improve, whether they’re starting with high quality or poor quality ground.

Resources:

Soil Health Partnership

Many farmers have heard the alarming statistic that we’re losing topsoil to erosion about 10 times faster than it can be replenished. We want to keep our soil healthy and intact so we can continue farming and be more resilient in the face of increased severe weather events. In this episode, Zach and Mitchell talk to Jim Isermann of the Soil Health Partnership, an initiative of the National Corn Growers Association. Jim tells the guys that building soil health takes time, but it’s something every farmer can improve, whether they’re starting with high quality or poor quality ground.

Resources:

Soil Health Partnership

Nutrient management is an art as much as it is a science. And nitrogen, in particular, can be a difficult nutrient to manage. Understanding how it behaves in soil systems can help farmers increase its uptake and minimize nitrogen loss to the environment, where it can pollute water. University of Minnesota extension specialist Brad Carlson and Minnesota farmer Mark Bauer have been working together for years to figure out the best plan for nutrient stewardship on Mark’s farm. They share their insights with Zach and Mitchell and get nerdy about nitrogen.

Resources:

Nitrogen Smart

Nutrient management is an art as much as it is a science. And nitrogen, in particular, can be a difficult nutrient to manage. Understanding how it behaves in soil systems can help farmers increase its uptake and minimize nitrogen loss to the environment, where it can pollute water. University of Minnesota extension specialist Brad Carlson and Minnesota farmer Mark Bauer have been working together for years to figure out the best plan for nutrient stewardship on Mark’s farm. They share their insights with Zach and Mitchell and get nerdy about nitrogen.

Resources:

Nitrogen Smart

Sometimes the hurdles to sustainable practices come from people right in a farmer’s network: family, landowners, neighbors, seed dealers, and lenders. Bryan and Lauren Biegler, farmers in Minnesota, join Zach and Mitchell to discuss how they fought back the image of being “hippie farmers” as they started strip tilling and planting cover crops. Mollie Aronowitz, a land manager at the People’s Company in Iowa, and Randy Dell from the Nature Conservancy also offer helpful insights into landlord/farmer dynamics around conservation.

Resources:

Bryan and Lauren Biegler

People’s Company

Collaboration is Key for Farmers and Landowners

Sometimes the hurdles to sustainable practices come from people right in a farmer’s network: family, landowners, neighbors, seed dealers, and lenders. Bryan and Lauren Biegler, farmers in Minnesota, join Zach and Mitchell to discuss how they fought back the image of being “hippie farmers” as they started strip tilling and planting cover crops. Mollie Aronowitz, a land manager at the People’s Company in Iowa, and Randy Dell from the Nature Conservancy also offer helpful insights into landlord/farmer dynamics around conservation.

Resources:

Bryan and Lauren Biegler

People’s Company

Collaboration is Key for Farmers and Landowners

There are a lot of big questions to consider for farmers interested in trying out cover crops. Perhaps the most important one, according to cover crop coach Steve Groff, is this: what do you want to accomplish? Zach and Mitchell talk with Steve about the benefits of cover crops, the roadblocks to their adoption, and why he thinks farmers need cover crop mentors.