Perennial AF

Goats, sheep, cattle, hogs, horses, and fowl all have different diets, behavior, and impacts on the land. Choosing the right type of livestock for you and your farm is key to success. Wisconsin farmer and researcher Cherrie Nolden discusses the strenghts, weaknesses, and needs of different types of livestock in this recording from the 2022 Perennial Farm Gathering.  Show notes: www.savannains...

Host Jacob Grace and Eric Wolske of Canopy Farm Management join Will Fulwider and Michael Geissinger, hosts of the Field Notes podcast from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension, to answer questions that Wisconsin crop farmers might have about agroforestry.  Show notes at: https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf Field Notes podcast: https://cropsandsoils.extension.wis...

Jacob Marty reflects on how his relationship with his father has shaped the dynamics on their sixth generation family farm in southern Wisconsin in this recording from the 2017 Perennial Farm Gathering.  Show notes at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennial-af-generational-dynamics-with-jacob-marty/

Scott Brainard, a plant breeding specialist working for the Savanna Institute, gives an overview of the institute's goals and strategies for breeding more productive and resilient tree crop varieties.  Show notes at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

In this recording from our 2021 Perennial Farm Gathering, farmer Dayna Burtness moderates an online panel conversation with cookbook author Beth Dooley, orchardist and historical horticulturist Eliza Greenman, and author and food justice advocate Anna Lappé.  Hear more at https://www.youtube.com/@SavannaInstitute

A recording of our July 27th, 2023 pasture walk at the Spring Green Campus with farm director Erik Hagan and farmer Michael Dolan. Erik and Michael share lessons learned and compare "silvopasture by addition" and "silvopasture by subtraction". Show notes at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

Austin Unruh, owner of Trees for Graziers and author of "The Grazier’s Guide to Trees", tells the story of how he started his agroforestry business in southeastern Pennsylvania and shares the advice he wished he had gotten as a beginning agroforestry entrepreneur in this recording from our 2022 Perennial Farm Gathering.  You can learn more about Austin and his work at https://treesforgraziers...

Kathy Dice and Tom Wahl of Red Fern Farm in southeastern Iowa have been practicing agroforestry for decades. In July, podcast host Jacob Grace visited Red Fern Farm to ask Tom and Kathy what they see as the three biggest agroforestry mistakes people can make, learn what their most profitable tree crops are, and explore their established, profitable, and highy diverse agroforestry system.  Sho...

This mini-episode features voices from our 2021 black currant tasting event: farmers Kevin Wolz and Erin Schneider and chefs Odessa Piper and Colton Schara. You can learn more about growing and marketing black currants at https://www.savannainstitute.org/blackcurrants/

Exerpts from Mark Krawczyk's presentation at the 2022 Perennial Farm Gathering, drawing from Mark's new book , "Coppice Agroforestry". Mark provides an overview of techniques and tree crops for coppicing, or "the ancient practice of resprout silviculture" - cutting off trees to make them resprout and regrow in useful ways. More at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/.

Paul Dietmann, Senior Lending Officer for Compeer Financial’s Emerging Markets program, talks with host Jacob Grace and with Steffen Mirsky from the UW-Madison Division of Extension's Emerging Crops program and co-host of The Cutting Edge Podcast . Paul has worked for many years helping farmers and landowners find ways to finance new crops or emerging practices like agroforestry.  Fearless Fa...

Excerpts from Dr. Samantha Bosco's presentation at the 2022 Perennial Farm Gathering, entitled "Thick as Thieves: A social ecology of nucivery in a more-than-human world". Dr. Bosco's presentation covers a wide range of topics, from the influence of foraging animals' personalities on forest composition to the non-binary nature of agroforestry and its connections to social justice and queerness in...

To commemorate the Savanna Institute’s 10th anniversary this year, Kevin Wolz and Keefe Keeley recall the early days of the Savanna Institute, including Kevin’s role as a founding member of the first board of directors and Keefe’s role as the organization’s first employee (and first executive director). More at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

Meghan Filbert discusses virtual fence technology in a recording from our most recent Perennial Farm Gathering, and staff member Bill Davison reads an essay he wrote about how the book "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron has influenced his thinking about farming and agroforestry.  Show notes at savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

Aaron Steele is an Iowa farmer and entrepreneur, owner of Goats On The Go®, Sheep on the Go®, and host of the Farm Dog podcast. In this episode, Aaron describes why he started his business and his podcast, and discusses what he sees for the future of grazing on solar farms.  Show notes and links at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf Farm Dog podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/po...

An audio tour of agroforestry and perennial farming systems at New Forest Farm in southwestern Wisconsin with farmer Mark Shepard, author of "Restoration Agriculture". 

Savanna Institute Research Fellow Xinyuan Shi describes her time as an Agroforestry Apprentice and talks about her current research on silvopasture and multifunctional agroforestry buffers. We also share a teaser for the Agroforestry Podcast, hosted by the Center for Agroforestry.  Show notes: https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

A recording of Dr. Ricardo Salvador's keynote presentation to the 2022 Perennial Farm Gathering, "Perennial Dreams and Realities", which draws on Dr. Salvador's decades of experience working with scientists, farmers, and policymakers. Dr. Salvador has spent much of his career working in Iowa, and now serves as the director of the Food and Environment Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists. S...

Marie Raboin is a beginning farmer in southern Wisconsin who has already learned a lot from her first few years of raising livestock and tree crops . In this episode, host Jacob Grace visits Marie to see how many of his farm dreams can withstand her scrutiny. 

This episode is a collaboration with The Climate Conversation podcast , which is produced by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI). Hosts Dan Bresette and Emma Johnson interviewed Keefe Keeley, Savanna Institute's executive director, and Tucker Gretebeck, an organic dairy farmer, about how they got into agroforestry and what they're hoping to see in this year's Farm Bill. You can lea...

Agroforestry can be tough to do on your own. This episode features interviews from our "Partnering for Agroforestry" series about successful partnerships that have made agroforestry possible. As farmer Dayna Burtness says,  “We don’t all have to do it alone. That’s the way of the past!” You can see the full video series at https://www.savannainstitute.org/partnering/

Greg Galbraith, a retired Wisconsin organic dairy farmer turned podcaster, answers questions from listeners and tells some stories about his time as a farmer. Show notes available at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

As we enter the holiday season, many of us begin thinking about food and cooking - and what to do with perennial crops as they go from farm to kitchen. In this recorded webinar from January 2022, we hear a conversation between cookbook author Beth Dooley, farmer Linda Hezel, chef Rick Mullins, and agroforestry apprentice Taylor Neff. We hope this episode will inspire you to “go get some really goo...

In this episode, Marie Raboin of Brix Cider, Jacob Marty of Green Fire Farm, and Thelma Heidel-Baker of Bossie Cow Farm answer some of Google's top questions about farmers and farming. You'll never think about overalls the same way again! Show notes at https://www.savannainstitute.org/perennialaf/

Keefe Keeley and Barbara Decr é discuss agroforestry as a natural climate solution in a recorded webinar for the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters.  Learn more about Climate Fast Forward, Oct. 17th, 2022: https://www.wisconsinacademy.org/climate-fast-forward-2022