In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Darron Gaus joins Peggy Sechrist, a pioneer in the organic beef industry in Texas and a long-time Holistic Management International educator.

Darron, who is based in Victoria, Texas, co-leads a working group with Peggy in Texas as part of NCAT’s Soil for Water Southern SARE project. That project includes some great conversations with members of the working group – a four-state team of producers, scientists, and universities trying to key in on some of the barriers keeping more operations from adopting regenerative grazing methods.

Today’s conversation is between Peggy and Jenny Pluhar, Executive Director of the Texas Grazing Land Coalition, and ranch manager for Taylor Ranches in the panhandle of Texas. She is also the co-author of the book Texas Range Plants. Jenny details her work with the Texas Grazing Land Coalition and the new project the coalition is working on, called “Principles Before Practices.”

Related ATTRA Resources:

· Livestock

· Climate Solutions

· Soil

Related NCAT Resources:

· Soil for Water

Other Resources:

· AG Proud

· Texas Grazing Land Coalition

· Texas Grazing Land Coalition Facebook page

· U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef

· Texas Range Plants

Contact Darron Gaus at darrong@ncat.org.

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You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other
resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Gabriella Soto-Velez talks with author and farmer Dani Baker. Since her retirement from another career and subsequent inspiration from an Extension class on permaculture, Dani has become well known for her takes on creating “resilient edible landscapes.” She and Gabriella discuss the benefits that come from realizing that nature knows what it is doing.

Related ATTRA Resources:

· Permaculture

· Climate Change and Perennial Fruit and Nut Production: Investing in Resilience in Uncertain Times

· Weekly Wednesday Workshop: Permaculture 101

Other Resources:

· Home-Scale Forest Garden with Dani Baker preview

· The Home-Scale Forest Garden: How to Plan, Plant, and Tend a Resilient Edible Landscape

· Cross Island Farms

Contact Gabriella Soto-Velez at gabriellas@ncat.org.

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You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Northeast Coordinator and Agriculture Specialist Chris Lent talks to Matt Steiman, the Farm Energy and Livestock Manager at Dickinson College Organic Farm in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, about the farm’s new biodigester.

A farm-based biodigester can turn cow manure and food waste into natural gas to produce electricity for the farm to use and to sell to the utility grid.

Matt and Chris discuss Matt’s research over the past 14 years on turning waste streams into biofuels and how that research led to the new biodigester’s design and its installation at the farm.

The discussion covers the unusual scale of the project, which was designed to manage the manure from 150 dairy cows and up to three tons of food waste daily. The project is meant to demonstrate to mid-sized farms across Pennsylvania and elsewhere that it is possible to manage waste streams in an environmentally sound way by
transforming them into a source of carbon-neutral energy.

Related ATTRA Resources:

· Biodiesel Use, Handling, and Fuel Quality

· Micro-Scale Biogas Production: A Beginners Guide

· Anaerobic Digestion of Animal Waters: Factors to Consider

Other Resources:

· Biogas – Dickinson College Organic Farm

· Dickinson College YouTube Channel

· USDA Rural Energy for America Program Renewable Energy Systems & Energy
Efficiency Improvement Guaranteed Loans & Grants

· USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) On-Farm Energy Initiative

Contact Chris Lent at chrisl@ncat.org.

Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.

You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted,
practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other
resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Gabriella Soto-Velez talks with Nate Olive, the owner of Ridge to Reef Farm on St. Croix, US Virgin Islands.

Nate talks about the innovative market- diversification strategies that have contributed to his farming success and the challenges and opportunities of the St. Croix market.

Related ATTRA Resources:

· ATTRA Internship Hub

· Subtropical Soil Health Initiative

· Cover Crops for Hot and Humid Areas

Other Resources:

· Ridge to Reef Farm

Contact Gabriella Soto-Velez at gabriellas@ncat.org.

Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.

You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted,
practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other
resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, Kandi Williams of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff’s Small Farms Program talks with Arkansas farmer Michael Henegan about his farming heritage and some of his methods to reach markets that others don't by wildcrafting local herbs and plants, including mullein and poke salad.

Kandi also works with the Silas H. Hunt Community Development Corporation, which partnered in producing this podcast.

This podcast was also produced by the National Center for Appropriate Technology
through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program, under a cooperative
agreement with USDA Rural Development. This podcast was also made possible in
part by funding from the Southern Risk Management Education Center, USDA
National Institute of Food and Agriculture, through the University of Arkansas.

Related ATTRA Resources:

· Business and Marketing

· Risk Management

Other Resources:

· Milliesbarn Veggie Farm

Contact Justin Duncan at justind@ncat.org.

Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.

You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted,
practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other
resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, Audrey Kolde, an NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist, talks with Iriel Edwards, the farmer and owner of The Dancing Radicle Farm in Alexandria, Louisiana. Iriel is also a Certifier and Regional Organizer with the Real Organic Project.

Prior to starting her own farm, Iriel managed Jubilee Justice's 5-acre organic farm in Alexandria and worked with Black farming communities in the Southeast.

Iriel and Audrey discuss the challenges and potential of farming small-scale grains, particularly Louisiana rice. They delve into the necessary components for small-scale success, including community involvement and cooperative models, inspiring us to embrace innovation and collaboration toward a brighter future.

Related ATTRA Resources:

· Disease and Insect Management in Organic Small Grains

· Nutrient Management in Organic Small Grains

· Weed Management in Organic Small Grains

· The Real Story Behind the Real Organic Movement

Other Resources:

· Real Organic Project

· Jubilee Justice

· Iriel Edwards: USDA Discrimination, Land Access, and Collective Liberation

Contact Iriel Edwards at iriel@realorganicproject.org

Contact Audrey Kolde at audreyk@ncat.org.

Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.

You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, Kandi Williams of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff’s Small Farms Program talks with Hope, Arkansas, farmer Ernestine Maxfield about ways for limited-resource producers to manage risk in the Ark-La-Tex region. The Ark-La-Tex region is a socio-economic, tri-state region where Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas meet.

Kandi also works with the Silas H. Hunt Community Development Corporation, which partnered in producing this podcast.

This podcast was also produced by the National Center for Appropriate Technology through the ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture program, under a cooperative agreement with USDA Rural Development. This podcast was also made possible in part by funding from the Southern Risk Management Education Center, USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, through the University of Arkansas.

Related ATTRA Resources:

· Risk Management

· Business and Marketing

· Farmer Start-Up

Other Resources:

· Silas H. Hunt Community Development Corporation

· University of Arkansas Small Farm Program

· Southern Risk Management Education Center

Contact Justin Duncan at justindj@ncat.org.

Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.

You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.

This episode of Voices from the Field was produced in partnership with ATTRA and the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program. To learn more about SARE’s library of practical information and available grants to fund projects that advance sustainable agriculture, visit sare.org.

In this episode, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Tyler Jenkins dives into the world of chestnuts with Michelle Ajamian, who works with Rural Action as a network developer for Appalachian Staple Foods Collaborative.

Michelle shares her experiences and insights from her work in southeastern Ohio as a project developer and advocate for small-scale farming. She discusses her efforts to establish a thriving market for chestnut growers in the region.

Chestnuts are a sustainable and nutritious crop with deep roots in American agriculture. Michelle explores the success stories of cultivating chestnuts – from fostering community partnerships to promoting environmentally friendly practices.

Resources:

· Demonstrating Higher Yields and Market Opportunities of Mixed Annual and Perennial Intensive Planting in Appalachian Ohio

· Producing Culinary Chestnut Flour with Michelle Ajamian and Amy Miller

· Consider Chestnuts: A Potential Perennial for Market Farms

· Rural Action

· Appalachian Staple Foods Collaborative

Contact Tyler Jenkins at tylerj@ncat.org.

Please complete a brief survey to let us know your thoughts about the content of this podcast.

You can get in touch with NCAT/ATTRA specialists and find access to our trusted, practical sustainable-agriculture publications, webinars, videos, and other resources at ATTRA.NCAT.ORG.