If you are the sort who likes to be outdoors, self-reliant and working close to the land, what Anna Racer and Peter Skold did for five summers might sound ideal. They worked at a camp in northern Minnesota where they took teenagers into the wilderness for six weeks at a time. But there comes a… Read More →
Alex joined LSP’s soil health team in July 2018 and lives, works, and plays in the Driftless countryside with her family. At LSP, Alex spends her days leading the soil health team and organizing with regional farmers and partners to establish soil health practices as the new norm for farming. Alex grew up as a… Read More →
The deadline to apply for the Land Stewardship Project’s 2020-2021 Farm Beginnings class is Tuesday, Sept. 15! This year-long training program focuses on the goal setting, marketing, and financial skills needed to establish a successful farm business. Classes will take place in an online setting November through March, with on-farm educational events to follow later… Read More →
It’s field day time on this western Minnesota farm, and it’s made clear from the outset that there will no main presenter, no expert from on-high telling it like it is or isn’t, no PowerPoints produced by consultants. This is a field day where farmers learn from other farmers. “You are all consultants,” Richard Ness… Read More →
Cover crops proved themselves foul weather friends during the Great Drought of 2012. A groundbreaking farmer survey conducted in the Upper Mississippi River watershed showed that during that year’s brutal growing season keeping the soil covered with small grains and other plants helped fields preserve enough precious moisture to provide a yield bump of, in… Read More →
On Tuesday, June 11, I traveled to the Capitol from my home near the city of St. Charles, Minn., in Saratoga Township to meet with Governor Mark Dayton. My home is within a few miles of seven proposed frac sand mines. In February, I traveled to the state Capitol for the first time in my… Read More →
One of the nation’s most innovative working lands farm conservation initiatives has received a financial reprieve, thanks to the continuing resolution signed by President Barack Obama on Tuesday. The continuing resolution, which was passed by Congress late last week, appropriates funds to federal government agencies through the remainder of the government’s current fiscal year. The… Read More →
Melody Arteaga was born and raised in the Inland Empire region of Southern California. In pursuit of education and new opportunities, she moved to Minnesota to attend college. Through her experiences as a community organizer, youth worker, and facilitator, Melody has seen firsthand the power of community in changing systems and creating equitable changes. She… Read More →
LEWISTON, Minn. — The Land Stewardship Project (LSP) filed a legal brief May 22 with the Minnesota Court of Appeals contesting Daley Farm’s appeal of the state District Court’s decision to deny the operation’s attempt to circumvent Winona County’s rules related to the size of large livestock operations. Daley Farm is seeking a variance so that… Read More →
LEWISTON, Minn. — A work plan submitted by Minnesota state agencies to address nitrate pollution in southeastern Minnesota does not address the root cause of the problem and instead relies on pre-existing programs that have shown little evidence of success thus far, said members of the Land Stewardship Project (LSP). “We know that we can… Read More →
