Gov. Dayton, my name is Bob Christie and I have lived and farmed in Winona County for my entire life. My wife Marilyn and I have three daughters and seven grandchildren. We farm 320 acres, of which 215 acres are tillable, with the balance being rolling pastureland and woodland. We raise corn, beans, alfalfa and… Read More →
Land Stewardship Project members sat down with Governor Mark Dayton for an hour last Wednesday to talk frac sand. Meeting in the River Room at Winona State University, the eight of us were surrounded by pictures of the Mississippi River from the turn-of-the- century featuring the bluffs of the region—a reminder of the uniqueness of… Read More →
This summer, I was one of 100 people from southeast Minnesota who participated in a meeting hosted by the Land Stewardship Project in Rushford. As someone who’s been paying close attention to the issue of frac sand mining for two years or more, I knew this would be a meeting I couldn’t miss. It was… Read More →
Last year, the Land Stewardship Project celebrated the historic investments in emerging farmers that we won at the Minnesota Capitol. One of these wins included doubling the funding for and prioritizing emerging farmer applicants within the Minnesota Farmland Down Payment Assistance Program, which the Land Stewardship Project worked on with the Midwest Farmers of Color… Read More →
Perhaps despite my better judgement, I made the decision several years ago to alter my career trajectory and become a farmer. As a former farm kid from the plains of southwestern Minnesota, it shouldn’t have been that crazy a notion, and I thought I’d have a leg-up getting my farm started. Despite rural connections and… Read More →
Ready for the Next Step (part 1) Jon Kaiser is less than a year away from paying off his Farm Beginnings livestock loan. He smiles when he says this, because it means he’s just a little bit closer to making farming more than just a fantasy. “I’m surprised I’ve come this far,” says the 35-year-old… Read More →
Jan. 29: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities After COVID-related Livestock Kills, a Push to Diversify Meat Processing in Minnesota (1/25/21) When several large pork processing plants shuttered last spring because workers got sick with COVID-19, it had a huge impact on farmers across the Midwest. One estimate is more than… Read More →
I recently witnessed the return of life to Jordan and Rachelle Meyers’ fields, which are transitioning from giant ragweed and thistles into soil-building plants such as chicory, red clover, and wild bergamot. During the past few years, the family, which farms in southeastern Minnesota’s Houston County, has used hard work and attention to the soil… Read More →
When considering significant changes to the way one farms, there’s nothing like a couple acres of convincer, a template for the potential offered up by tapping into the land’s ability to build soil health in an economically viable manner utilizing livestock and perennial plants. Mark Erickson points out just such a personal proving ground on… Read More →
It’s early July—a time on one Wisconsin farm when there’s a brief reprieve between the spring rush of putting in crops and the mid-summer hurly-burly of making sure the land and animals are as productive as possible by fall. What better time to take a breather and assess where you’ve been, and where you’re going.… Read More →
