On Life and Land

Tucked away along the northern edge of Iowa is the town of Mason City...agricultural hub and home to the Historic Park Inn Hotel, the only remaining hotel designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Like so many buildings of its era, the Hotel fell into a state of disrepair before a massive renovation effort began in 2009; the Hotel reopened to the public in 2011. In this episode, we speak with designer Scott Borcherding, current president of Wright on the Park, Inc., partner at Bergland + Cram Architects, and member of the Historic Park Inn Hotel restoration team.

In our latest episode, we chat with Ben Harshyne, agent and land specialist with Whitetail Properties. Ben makes his living helping recreational and agricultural clients find the right piece of ground to fit their needs, whether it's deer hunting or crop production. In this episode, Ben talks about land use, creating wildlife habitat, his love of maps, and his time with the National Counter-Terrorism Center.

Join us for our conversation with Patrick Montgomery, former U.S. Army Ranger and founder of KC Cattle Company in Weston, Missouri. KCCC is one of Missouri's largest producers of Wagyu and Wagyu-cross beef, and was recently honored by Food & Wine magazine for...wait for it...Best Hot Dog! In this episode, Patrick speaks openly about the challenges of running a start-up, niche-market business, and of transitioning to civilian life after serving in combat.

In central Illinois, you'll find corn, soybeans...and bison, if you're anywhere near Grand Detour and the Nachusa Grasslands Preserve. Established in 1986, Nachusa began as an effort to preserve remnant tracts of native prairie. In 2014, Nachusa released their first bison onto the preserve. Today, Nachusa is home to over 100 bison and is a model of cooperation between agriculture and conservation. In this episode, we speak with Nachusa's Cody Considine and Dr. Elizabeth Bach about the challenges of establishing and maintaining their bison herd.

"New Farmers," a recently-released book and photography exhibit from the University of Kansas, "combines stories and photography to illustrate the future of farming with an honest eye and a raw spirit." In this episode, we sit down with Tim Hossler and Paul Stock of KU, along with Phil Holman-Hebert of Sweetlove Farm, to talk about the exhibit, and about the challenges and rewards of becoming a "mid-career" farmer.

The book "New Farmers 2014/2018," is available here. The exhibit will be on display at The Commons at the University of Kansas beginning October 3 and continuing throughout November; more information is available here.

With the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill last December, hemp once again became a legal crop for US producers. For the last episode of our "Nashville Road Trip" series, the team from On Life & Land speaks with Brent Cornett of London, Kentucky, about his transition from tobacco production to hemp, and about the challenges potential hemp producers might face.

Barely 20 minutes from downtown Nashville, you'll find the historic Bells Bend Conservation Corridor, an area whose residents are determined to preserve not only its natural beauty, but also its agricultural heritage. Join the On Life & Land team as we speak with Brenda Butka, one of Bells Bend's long-time residents, and conservationist Sara Trunzo about what makes this area so special.

In part 2 of our "Nashville Road Trip" series, the team from On Life & Land visits Nashville Craft Distillery to learn how founder Bruce Boeko uses locally sourced grains and specialty ingredients to create spirits like "Crane City Gin" and "Naked Biscuit Sorghum Spirit.

Join the On Life & Land team as we take a road trip through and around Nashville, Tennessee. For the first of our four Nashville episodes, we sit down with musician Dale Watson for a conversation about music and land, about his adopted second home in Tennessee, and about how a farmer named David Buxkemper became the subject of a song on his latest album, "Call Me Lucky."

What do a craft distiller, a hemp producer, a land conservator, and a honky-tonk musician have in common? They're all guests on upcoming episodes of On Life & Land. Join us for a preview of our Nashville Road Trip series, beginning July 2.