Earlier this week, at the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue made the following remarks in regard to the economic crisis facing many small and mid-sized farmers, especially dairy farmers: “In America, the big get bigger and the small go out. I don’t think in America we, for any… Read More →
LEWISTON, Minn. — Composting and soil biology will be the focus of a Land Stewardship Project field day on Thursday, Sept. 12, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at the Lewiston dairy farm of Dale and Carmene Pangrac and Kim and Andy Olson (19300 Trestle Drive). The field day will explore the soil microbial universe… Read More →
Ross Cooper and his family raise canning and grain crops on their Century Farm in Spring Valley in southeastern Minnesota. Shortly after his son was born, Ross converted to no-till to cut down on the amount of time he was spending in the tractor. More recently, he has begun integrating cover crops into the farming… 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 →
NOTE: John Meyer, his wife Linda and their two youngest children, Charlie and Maggie, farm about 500 acres in southwestern Olmsted County, Minn. John planted his first oat cover crop in early spring of 2016 on half his land — on frozen ground and through snow — and planted corn directly into that “green,” allowing… Read More →
LSP Urges MN Farmers to Check Out Working Lands Conservation Program Improvements this Spring SAINT PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota farmers can now submit initial 2019 applications for the nation’s two premier working lands conservation initiatives: the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) and its cost share partner, the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). While applicants can apply… Read More →
Good news! State legislation that reinstates the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) Citizens’ Board is moving forward, but legislators are going to need to hear from constituents for it to pass (HF 973—Persell, SF 627—Marty). You may recall that during the last hours of the 2015 Minnesota legislative session, language was inserted into a massive… Read More →
In our democracy, it is up to us to make sure that our elected officials act in the best interests of our communities and the land and that our government wisely uses public resources to meet public needs. For decades, stable funding for public healthcare programs and public health initiatives in Minnesota has come from… Read More →
RUSHFORD, Minn. — A special Land Stewardship Project workshop on how conventional and organic farmers can utilize the roller-crimper to build soil health and suppress weeds will be held Thursday, March 7, at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Rushford (103 N. Mill Street). During the workshop, Dr. Erin Silva of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and… Read More →
NOTE: During a pair of Land Stewardship Project workshops Jan. 29 and 30, Dawn and Grant Breitkreutz will be discussing how they are using no-till row cropping, managed rotational grazing and diversified cover cropping to build soil health profitably on their southwestern Minnesota farm. For more background on the Breitkreutzes, check out this LSP blog… Read More →
