ATTRA - Voices from the Field

This episode of Voices from the Field is a conversation centered around two organizations helping the community through sustainable agriculture and education in the San Antonio, Texas, area. Stephen Lucke of Gardopia Gardens in San Antonio's Gardopia Gardens and NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Justin Duncan take a candid look at their organizations’ missions as well as the projects th...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , we meet Fred Bahnson, NCAT’s new Executive Director. Fred tells us the story of the journey that led him to NCAT and talks with Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Mike Lewis about the strength of NCAT’s resources — and staff — and some of its many programs. Related Resources: ·        National Center for Appropriate Technology ·        ATTRA ·        Arme...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialists Andrew Coggins and John Wallace talk about biochar and NCAT’s use of biochar in its Small-Scale Intensive Farm Training (SIFT) program.   John runs NCAT’s SIFT farm at the nonprofit’s headquarters in Butte, Montana. SIFT does sustainable agriculture trials at the farm, including some that have focused on biochar. J...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , we meet NCAT’s new carbon farm planner in Texas, Cody Brown. Cody’s friend — and now colleague — NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Darron Gaus talks with him about his background, the carbon planning work he is doing now, how producers can get involved in that work, and his hopes for the future.   Related ATTRA Resources: ·        Climate Solutions...

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Katherine Favor talks to NCAT Southwest Regional Director Mike Morris about a new series of irrigation guidebooks available from NCAT’s ATTRA program. Mike and Katherine discuss some common myths and misunderstandings about irrigation, the under-appreciated importance of soil health to irrigators, and some easy and i...

Community gardens and urban farms provide more than just delicious, fresh food for surrounding neighborhoods. In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialists Felicia Bell and Nina Prater talk about what these two types of enterprises are and the differences between them, why they are so beneficial, what some of their challenges are, and what resources are availab...

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Martin Guerena has a conversation with Bob Scowcroft, former Executive Director of California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) and Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF).  Bob recounts his involvement in the organic movement, from working as an organizer with Friends of the Earth on pesticide reduction to organiz...

Dr. Bill Robertson recently retired after a long career as the Cotton Extension Agronomist with the University of Arkansas Extension Service. He also worked for the National Cotton Council for a few years, focusing on improving the sustainability of cotton production. Bill and his wife, Carey, have a livestock farm where they raise sheep and many other livestock species using prescribed grazing te...

In this episode of Voices from the Field, two NCAT staffers talk about their years of experience working with historically underserved farmers. Gulf States Regional Director Rockiell Woods and Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Felicia Bell discuss who the USDA NRCS defines as historically underserved and some of the programs that are available to them. They also address topics that agriculture pr...

This episode is a conversation between NCAT Energy Program Director Stacie Peterson and Iain Ward, a farmer and founder of Solar Agricultural Services. It is the sixth in a series of AgriSolar Clearinghouse podcasts that are being featured on ATTRA’S Voices from the Field podcast. Stacie and Iain discuss the potential of agrisolar as way to remove barriers to entry into farming, how agrisolar is s...

This episode of Voices from the Field is the second of a two-part conversation between Maryrose Livingston of Northland Sheep Dairy in New York and NCAT Regenerative Grazing Specialist Linda Poole. It is part of the podcast’s occasional “She’s Raising Sheep” series. Maryrose and Linda give advice for those considering starting a sheep dairy, including ways to improve the bottom line by saving mone...

Despite a centuries-long tradition of sheep dairying in Eurasia, sheep dairies are rare in the United States. But burgeoning demand for artisanal sheep cheeses is prompting more shepherds launching dairy enterprises.  This episode of Voices from the Field is the first of a two-part conversation between Maryrose Livingston of Northland Sheep Dairy in New York — America's oldest sheep dairy — a...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , NCAT Agriculture Specialists Nina Prater, Guy Ames, and Lee Rinehart explore the balancing act of managing phosphorus – a macro-nutrient essential for life.   Getting just the right amount of phosphorus without over-applying it is a tricky balance because of the unique way phosphorus interacts with the soil. Getting phosphorus fertilization right is also...

This episode is a conversation between NCAT Energy Program Director Stacie Peterson and Alexis Pascaris, executive director of AgriSolar Consulting. It is the fifth in a series of AgriSolar Clearinghouse podcasts that are being featured on ATTRA’S Voices from the Field podcast.  Alexis is a consultant and a stakeholder in the AgriSolar Clearinghouse. She and Stacie discuss the social aspects of ag...

This episode of Voices from the Field is a conversation with John Coleman, the manager of Alcorn State University’s demonstration farm. John and Rockiell Woods, director of NCAT’s Gulf States Office in Jackson, Mississippi, talk about the idea of beginning farmers modeling their operation after demonstration farms. They discuss labor costs, recordkeeping and GAP certification, choosing equipment,...

This episode of Voices from the Field is the second half of a conversation between Latrice Tatsey, a soil scientist, the cultural science lead, and the intern supervisor for the Piikani Lodge Health Institute of the Blackfeet Nation and NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Linda Poole.  Latrice focuses in this episode on the management practices her research has suggested and how she measures t...

Latrice Tatsey is a soil scientist, the cultural science lead, and the intern supervisor for the Piikani Lodge Health Institute of the Blackfeet Nation. A rancher herself on the spectacular Rocky Mountain Front of Montana, Latrice — whose Piikani name is Buffalo Stone Woman — works with cattle and bison producers to improve the health of the land, the water, and the people where her relatives have...

What are the secrets to success in raising sheep? For Wyoming rancher, shepherd, and world champion stockdog trainer Wendy Auzqui, the answers lie in our attitudes, our powers of observation and communication, and our willingness to cooperate with nature rather than battle against it. In this episode of Voices from the Field , Wendy has a conversation with NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist L...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Felicia Bell continues her “Weekly Wednesday Workshop” webinar and podcast series by spotlighting the grants available from Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE).  Felicia enlists the help of Southern SARE’s 1890 Land Grant Institution Liaison Brennan Washington. He lays out the production a...

Episode 297. Digging into Texas' First Carbon Farm Plan  In this episode of Voices from the Field , we dig into Texas’ first Carbon Farm Plan with New Leaf Agriculture Farm Director Matt Simon, NCAT Climate and Agriculture Program Manager Elise Haschke, and NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Darron Gaus.   Matt shares his “aha” moments in farming and his vision for ecological restoration...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Mike Lewis talks with Gary Zimmer, co-owner of Otter Creek Organic Farm in south-central Wisconsin and founder of Midwestern BioAg, a fertilizer company focused on biological and organic farming methods.  Gary is also a co-founder of Rye Revival, an organization that aims to bolster the use of rye. Gary and Mike tal...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , NCAT Agriculture Specialist Mike Lewis talks about pastured hogs based on his experience on his Kentucky farm, where he raises farrow-to-finish heritage hogs on pasture and in the woods.   NCAT Livestock Specialist Linda Coffey poses questions to Mike asked by her beginning farmer son, John, who plans to raise pastured hogs in Arkansas. Mike shares valuab...

In this episode of Voices from the Field , NCAT Agricultural and Natural Resource Economist Jeff Schahczenski discusses the climate benefits of certified organic production systems with Dr. Amber Sciligo, Director of Science Programs at The Organic Center.   With training in systems-based research, Dr. Sciligo has worked closely with researchers, industry, farmers, and policymakers to identify org...

This episode features a conversation between Stacie Peterson, NCAT’s Energy Program Director and Manager of the AgriSolar Clearinghouse, and Pete Berthelsen, Executive Director of The Bee and Butterfly Habitat Fund and President of Conservation Blueprint.  It is the fourth in a series of AgriSolar Clearinghouse podcasts that are being featured on ATTRA’S Voices from the Field podcast.   Pete and S...

Here’s a fun fact. Before European settlement, as much as 10% of the continental U.S. was influenced by the presence of beaver dams. Although beavers have been displaced from much of their historic range, land managers don't have to be high and dry in their absence. More and more people are rehydrating their land by mimicking beavers to catch and hold more water.   In this episode of Voices f...