Surviving Hard Times

The more scientists study traditional agriculture, the less sustainable it seems. Instead, experts are pivoting toward regenerative farming practices, which puts soil health and stewardship first. What are the benefits of regenerative agriculture? Michelle M. Wander, a soil scientist with more than 30 years of experience, joins the podcast to explain…

Michelle is the Director of the Agroecology and Sustainable Agriculture Program and Associate Professor of Soil Fertility/Ecology at the University of Illinois. Additionally, she is the Director of the Wander Soil Ecology Lab. As a specialist in agroecology and agricultural sustainability research, she is committed to better understanding the science behind organic farming and ecological soil management.  

In this conversation, we explore:

• What regenerative farming is, and how it can balance productivity and sustainability. 
• How to develop nutrient-rich soil.
• Why soil degradation occurs, and how to mitigate it. 
• How water management can impact soil fertility.

To learn more about Michelle and her work, visit the Wander Soil Ecology Lab here!

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

Nurse-turned-farmer, Karis Johnston, explains what drove her to completely change her lifestyle, and the myriad health benefits she and her family have enjoyed because of it.

Press play to discover:

• Which documentary changed Karis and her husband’s life
• Raw dairy – could it eliminate dairy allergies?
• The health benefits Karis and her family have experienced since changing their eating habits and cutting out all toxic chemicals from their life
• How to start creating a self-sustaining system at home
• The specific bugs that present the biggest challenges to growing crops
• Unexpected challenges when establishing a homestead or sustainable farm
• Advice for someone who doesn’t have the land to grow their own crops, but wants resources for a healthier and more sustainable life

Tune in to hear the full conversation.

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

While other 10-year-old boys might have been playing with toy trucks and sports balls, Joel Salatin was selling chickens to local schools, churches, and other organizations.

When he was just a few years old, his family purchased an abused and worn-out farm in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. Rebuilding and fostering it from the ground up, it now supports four generations, thousands of families, and about 50 restaurants.

Tune in to learn:

• What percentage of edible food in the U.S. is regularly thrown away
• Why world hunger is still an issue (hint: it’s not because there’s not enough food)
• The role of size-prejudicial regulations in food shortages
• What turns a food item into a “manufactured” item
• Practical advice for people who’ve never grown anything but want greater food security and health moving forward

Press play to hear the full conversation and check out https://www.polyfacefarms.com/ and https://www.thelunaticfarmer.com/ to learn more.

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

“Sometimes we’re too close to our problems to actually see them,” says Ole Kristian Sivertsen.

That realization came to him by virtue of his time in the satellite industry, when he routinely observed Earth from space. It inspired Sivertsen to consider how he could make a difference on this planet, which in turn, led him to focus on restoring hope and healing through the mitigation of desertification, soil degradation, and water scarcity around the world.

Press play to discover:

• How to transform dry, degraded land into nutrient and water-rich soil ready for farming
• What unique aspect of Desert Control technology makes their product easy to scale and deploy while requiring up to 50% less water and fertilizer
• Less than 15% of the water applied to crops is retained in the topsoil for the plants to use – where does the rest go, and what does this lead to?

Sivertsen is President and Group CEO of Desert Control, a company whose innovation involves liquifying natural materials, minerals, and clay structures into a substance that’s nearly as thin as water. This substance can be applied to sandy, degraded land, resulting in nutrition-rich and hydrated farming soil.

Since it percolates into the ground by the force of gravity alone, there's no need to remove existing vegetation -- and this is just one of several exciting benefits which just might propel us toward a greener future.

Interested in learning more? Tune in and visit https://www.desertcontrol.com/.

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

“We live in a broken world; it’s a reality that bad things can happen, but in the past two years we’ve seen what’s coming down the road and gotten a lot more serious about it,” says Katie, referring to the prepper mindset and actions she and her husband have had for decades now.

While many people remain apathetic or in denial about how bad things could get, Katie is fully aware of it and prepares accordingly.

Tune in to learn:

• Easy first steps to protect yourself (e.g., stocking up on water and shelf-stable basics)
• How to figure out what items you would need if you suddenly found the store shelves empty
• Why so many people are choosing not to prepare for worst-case and realistic scenarios
• How long it takes to prep to different levels
• What to expect in the coming months and years around the world, including the U.S.

Press play for the full conversation and find tons of information on Katie’s website at https://www.goodpatriot.com/ and her YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCMT6ioHQ0S3m1fefQHfVjA

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

Dive into the world of horticulture with our special guest, Steven Biggs, a distinguished horticulturist, journalist, and award-winning host of Food Garden Life.

Biggs unfolds his childhood memories when all he knew was dried figs. A transformative summer spent at a UK nursery with a national fig collection reshaped his perspective and ignited a desire to grow his own fig trees.

As a horticulture communicator, Biggs is a guide through the intricacies of growing and savoring figs. From blogging and podcasting to teaching, he imparts his knowledge and shares expert tips for a bountiful fig harvest.

• The nuances that make figs unique and distinct from other fruits
• Innovative techniques for protecting the health of a fig tree in cold climates
• The importance of regularly pruning fig trees (and how to do it strategically!)

Ready to cultivate your own figs? Press play to learn more and get started!

Visit Food Garden Life Show — Food Garden Life for more info.

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

For more than four decades, Charles Dowding has been growing his own vegetables, mastering the very best ways to do it. But it wasn’t until more recently that he started sharing all of his knowledge with people around the world.

Press play to learn:

• How the “no dig” method works as a labor-saving way of high-yield gardening
• How doing less to your soil can lead to more (and better) food in your kitchen!
• Soil health – how it works, how to foster it, and what it can do for you
• Why weeds are a good sign, and how to get rid of them using the “no dig” method
• Whether you should cover your crops
• How much new compost to add to the soil each year

Interested in learning more?

Tune in, read Dowding’s book titled No Dig: Nurture Your Soil to Grow Better Veg with Less Effort, and check out his YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/CharlesDowding1nodig

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

Many of the brightest and wealthiest people in the world are bracing for impact and preparing for a depression. More and more people are realizing there’s no way around it, and for signs, you don’t have to look any further than the grocery store.

Rather than panic, learn some practical, simple steps to prepare yourself no matter where you are.

Chris Taylor, known as the "Financial Prepper" discusses:

• Ways to secure food that has a long shelf life
• Protein – why it will soon be very hard to access, and how to prepare
• The importance of buying certain types of food right now – prices are only going to increase
• How easy – and smart – it is to grow potatoes
• How many chickens to get if you’re interested in your own supply of fresh eggs
• What it really takes to start building a secure source of food and water for you and your family

For details on all this and so much more, check out Taylor's YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/c/FinancialPrepper

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

“You have to try to turn your problems into solutions, because if you don’t, and you run away from your problems, they’ll follow you and you’ll plant problems everywhere you go.”

Spoken by a Zimbabwean subsistence farmer known locally as the “water farmer,” these words ignited an even stronger desire in Brad Lancaster to find solutions to the water problems plaguing his hometown of Tucson, Arizona.

Press play to discover:

• Ways to harvest water that avoid additional problems, like flooding and water quality issues downstream
• Why irrigating with rainwater as opposed to city water will leave you with much healthier plants and soil
• Various reasons for and benefits of water harvesting
• How to determine how large a rainwater tank should be based on the amount of rainfall in a given area
• How contact with roofs, asphalt, etc. affects the quality of rainwater (and how to limit the negative effects)
• The factors that determine how much money you could save by harvesting rainwater

Interested in learning more? Visit https://www.harvestingrainwater.com/ for an impressive collection of information on these topics, and to find Lancaster’s award-winning books.

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q

The planet’s not getting any bigger, but humanity’s footprint IS.

That’s the problem driving Paul Shapiro’s search for solutions as CEO of The Better Meat Company.

Tune in to learn:

• How long it takes to produce meat-like products from microbial fermentation
• How the process of fermentation is used to create mycoproteins which mimic the experience of animal-based meats, but are far more nutritious and environmentally friendly
• Which meats are easiest and most difficult to mimic
• The environmental and health impact of animal-based meats
• What differentiates Better Meat Co.'s methods from other methods of creating animal-free meat

“Raising animals for food is the number one cause of deforestation on the planet… the Amazon rainforest is being cut and burned down because of humanity’s desire for meat. If we’re concerned about climate change, if we’re concerned about wildlife extinction, if we’re concerned about keeping some semblance of the natural world intact, we need to cut down on the number of animals we’re using for food,” says Shapiro.

“I’ve devoted much of my life to figuring out ways to wean humanity off this addiction to raising and slaughtering animals for food,” he adds.

Shapiro explains why animal agriculture takes such a toll on the environment and contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. He also discusses alternatives that don’t require much compromise on the part of consumers who seek the same meat experience they’ve grown to know and love.

Press play for the full conversation and learn more at https://www.bettermeat.co/.

Episode also available on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3bO8R6q