The People of Soil Health

In this final episode of The People of Soil Health podcast, host and SHP Senior Director John Mesko reflects on the legacy of Soil Health Partnership, the people who have made our work possible and how the organization’s impact will live on for many years to come.

Trey Hill is the co-owner and operator of Harborview Farms in Maryland, and he’s been part of the SHP farmer network since 2017. Trey was recently featured in an article in The Washington Post focused on carbon credits and, in this episode, he sits down with host John Mesko to talk about how he got involved in that work. If you’re interested in farmers’ role in the climate change discussion, this is an episode you’ll want to tune into! 

Host John Mesko sits down with Iowa farmer Chris Gaesser to discuss creative ways to make cover crops cost effective for your farm. Chris started working with SHP in 2016 and was one of the seven farmers featured in our recent report, Conservation’s Impact on the Farm Bottom Line.

In this episode of The People of Soil Health Podcast, host John Mesko sits down with Nick Ward, president of Ward Laboratories. The two discuss what Nick’s team looks for when testing soil samples, why soil samples should be pulled annually, and some helpful advice on when and how to pull your soil samples for the most accurate data sets.

In this episode of The People of Soil Health Podcast, host John Mesko sits down with Ken Rosenow – one of the SHP farmers who was instrumental in the creation of our recent report, Conservation’s Impact on the Farm Bottom Line. Ken is the sixth generation on his family’s farm in Wisconsin and shares how he embraces that history while evolving for the future.

Host John Mesko is joined by his colleague and fellow leadership team member – SHP’s Field Development Director, Elyssa McFarland. The pair discuss the history of the Soil Health Partnership, SHP’s current focus, and the future goals and opportunities they see on the horizon.

Episode Resources:

Conservation's Impact on the Farm Bottom Line

An update on the work and impact of SHP

Host John Mesko is joined by Daryl Maple, co-owner and operator of Maple Farms in north-central Indiana. Daryl discusses his five-year partnership with SHP and what they’ve learned while trialing different conservation practices – including reduced tillage and cover crops.

Host John Mesko is joined by Boone McAfee, director of research and stewardship for the Nebraska Corn Board, to discuss Boone’s efforts around encouraging and providing education and resources to farmers as they improve environmental stewardship not only their individual operation, but in the agriculture industry as a whole. They talk through Boone’s many partnership efforts on state and national initiatives related to supply chain sustainability, ag innovation, soil health and natural resources.

Host John Mesko is joined by Boone McAfee, director of research and stewardship for the Nebraska Corn Board, to discuss Boone’s efforts around encouraging and providing education and resources to farmers as they improve environmental stewardship not only their individual operation, but in the agriculture industry as a whole. They talk through Boone’s many partnership efforts on state and national initiatives related to supply chain sustainability, ag innovation, soil health and natural resources.

Host John Mesko is joined by SHP Lead Scientist Maria Bowman and Environmental Defense Fund Research Analyst Vincent Gauthier to discuss findings from their new report, Conservation’s Impact on the Farm Bottom Line. They discuss the importance of collecting detailed financial information when talking about conservation practice adoption and some of the key takeaways from their study. You can find the full report now at soilhealthpartnership.org/farmfinance.