Ever wonder why a field that looks “messy” in the fall can be the most valuable ground on the farm? We sit down with Paul, a third‑generation North Dakota producer, to unpack how no‑till, cover crops, and salinity management rebuilt soil structure, improved infiltration, and quietly raised the long‑term value of his land. His story starts with crop diversity after the Freedom to Farm Act and moves through the hard early years of saturated topsoil, compaction layers, and skeptical neighbors before the biology caught up.

Paul explains his simple definition of regenerative agriculture—regenerating the soil—and shows what that looks like on the ground: residue armor, living roots as long as the lawn is green, and tools like arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi working below the surface. He details how satellite‑based zone maps revealed hidden salinity halos, why he keeps steel out of those areas, and how buffers seeded to tolerant grasses and alfalfa, supported by CSP, both protected soil and paid their way through haying. Along the way, wildlife returned; tall stubble sheltered sharp‑tailed grouse and boosted habitat across wetlands and pasture edges.

We also dig into cover crop strategy for short seasons: load the drill by August, prioritize roots over showy biomass, and keep mixes simple and cheap with oats, peas, and radish. For those curious about interseeding, Paul shares timing windows around wheat’s growth stages and lessons learned from dry and wet years. Finally, we translate soil health into dollars. Drawing on his graduate research, Paul quantifies the annual nutrient value tied to each percent of soil organic matter and how that knowledge shifts what farmers are willing to pay in rent or purchases. Add in NRCS programs like EQIP and CSP to de‑risk adoption, and regenerative practices start to look less like a gamble and more like a long‑term investment.

If this conversation sparks ideas for your fields, tap follow, share it with a neighbor who’s “cover‑curious,” and leave a review with your biggest soil challenge—we’ll bring back Paul for a Q&A.

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