Ear to the Ground Podcast

Here you will find LSP’s 20-year collection of podcasts featuring farmers, scientists, and others telling stories from the land. You can find LSP Ear to the Ground podcast episodes on Spotify, Pandora, iTunes, YouTube, and other podcast platforms.

Ear to the Ground 177: Covering the Bottom Line

A farmer and a researcher talk about making cover crops pay.

Ear to the Ground 176: Testing Total Terra

LSP experiments with a new test that provides deeper insights into soil’s productive potential.

Ear to the Ground 175: Spades, Worms & Fungi

An Indiana farmer describes his experience with cover cropping and how it fits into a bigger goal of improving his land’s soil health (part 3 of 3).

Ear to the Ground 174: From the Roots Up

A soil scientist compares Indiana’s ‘bottom up’ approach to advancing soil health to Maryland’s ‘top down’ system (part 2 of 3).

Ear to the Ground 173: A Million Acres of Cover Crops

How Indiana became the king of cover cropping (part 1 of 3).

Ear to the Ground 172: Beyond the Backyard

With the help of LSP’s Farm Beginnings and Journeyperson, Sara Morrison takes her garden beyond the backyard.

Ear to the Ground 171: Pasque Providers

Using conservation grazing to revitalize a prairie.

Ear to the Ground 170: Constructive Criticism

How a Farm Beginnings field day makes everyone a “consultant.”

Ear to the Ground 169: Acre of Opportunity

A livestock/crop farmer lends out an “odd corner” on his property as a launching pad for a beginning vegetable operation.

Ear to the Ground 168: Blitzing the Biome

Rural residents and naturalists “BioBlitz” grassland and learn about its relationship to clean water and vibrant communities.

Upcoming Events

October 2025

Saturday October 18

1:00 pm – 3:00 pm: Pasture Walk: Real World Tools to Extend the Grazing Season
Saturday October 18
1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Pasture Walk: Real World Tools to Extend the Grazing Season
Nestingen Road, Nestingen Rd, Coon, WI 54667, USA
Valley Stewardship Network will host a pasture walk demonstrating various strategies for extending the grazing season. The event will be held on the Zinn Family Farm in rural Westby.

As input costs rise, livestock producers may want to consider extending the grazing season. Stockpile grazing and bale grazing are two proven methods to achieve this goal.

The Zinn Family has been utilizing these practices for years on their rural Westby farm. Join us to see stockpiling, bale grazing, and winter water systems in a real-world setting.

For more information, or to RSVP, contact Evan Dvorsak at 608-632-6166 (call/text) or evan@valleystewardshipnetwork.org. Snacks will be provided. Details are also available in this flier.

Funding for this event is provided by the USDA’s Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative (GLCI).

Thursday October 23

8:30 am – 4:00 pm

Farm to School & Early Care Grants Deadline

Thursday October 23

8:30 am – 4:00 pm

Farm to School & Early Care Grants Deadline

Online

School is back in session and this week’s cool temps definitely remind us all that fall is just around the corner. This time of the year also means that the application period is open for Minnesota’s Farm to School and Early Care grants.

Earlier this year, the Land Stewardship Project and our partners were successful in expanding funding for the AGRI Farm to School and Early Care program. The application window for the next round of funding is now open and will close at 4 p.m. Central Time (CT) on Thursday, October 23.

APPLY FOR FUNDING HERE

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is serving up two funding opportunities to help schools and early childhood education (ECE) centers buy Minnesota-grown and -raised foods.

1. First Bite Grants: Up to $5,000 (no match required) to kickstart local food purchasing through intentional, high-impact activities.
2. Full Tray Grants: Up to $35,000 (1:1 match required) to help experienced schools and ECE centers increase or expand their local food purchases.

Equipment funding: First Bite and Full Tray applicants can also request up to $25,000 (1:1 match required) to support the purchase of kitchen equipment that will enhance their capacity to buy, prepare, and serve local foods.

These grants are open to:
• Public or private K-12 schools or school districts in Minnesota that participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP)
• Early childhood education (ECE) centers that participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) in Minnesota

MDA encourages schools, districts, and ECE centers serving sovereign tribal nations to apply.

Local Tots Cost-Share Program
There are also funds available to reimburse family child care providers for buying Minnesota-grown and -raised foods used for meals and snacks as part of the the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP):

Interested providers must submit a Local Tots Cost-Share program Letter of Intent to participate. Award amounts will be up to $1,000 and there is a 1:1 cash match required for providers who received a Local Tots Cost-Share award in 2025. There is no cash match required if you are new to the program.

Applications are due by 4 p.m. Central Time (CT) on Thursday, October 23, 2025.

Program details and online applications are available at http://www.mda.state.mn.us/farm-school-early-care-programs or by contacting the Grants Team at MDA.AGRIgrants@state.mn.us.

Want to learn more about eligibility, allowable expenses, and how to apply?

Join the MDA for a virtual info session:
First Bite and Full Tray Grant Info Session
September 15, 2025, 2-3 p.m.
Register here

Local Tots Cost-Share Info Session – for family child care providers
September 18, 2025, 1-2 p.m.
Register here

Farmers: Are you Interested in selling to a school near you?
Send this opportunity along to the food service director at schools near you or connect with a Regional Local Food Coordinator to help you make connections with schools, childcare settings, and other opportunities to sell locally. These positions are supported by the Department of Education and Renewing the Countryside.

Saturday October 25

1:30 pm – 2:30 pm: Book Event: We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy
Saturday October 25
1:30 pm – 2:30 pm
Book Event: We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy
Madison Public Library - Central, 201 W Mifflin St, Madison, WI 53703, USA
The Johnson Center for Land Stewardship Policy is excited to share that one of our its primary pillars of work — a published collection of Paul Johnson’s writings — is set for release on Oct. 2. The book features a brief biography and a discussion of Paul’s ideas within the historical and future contexts of private lands conservation.

During the Wisconsin Book Festival, Curt Meine will talk about the book in a discussion with author Sonja Trom Eayrs (Dodge County, Incorporated), in a session on “The Fight for Rural America.”

For details on We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy click here.

Tuesday October 28

12:00 pm – 1:30 pm: MDA Grants Webinar
Tuesday October 28
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
MDA Grants Webinar
Zoom online
Are you interested in applying for a grant from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA)? On Tuesday, Oct. 28, from noon to 1:30 p.m., the Land Stewardship Project will be holding an online webinar on four grants that will be available this fall. MDA staffers will go over the details of these grants and how to apply for them.

To sign-up, click here.

This webinar will feature information on four grants:

– AGRI Livestock Investment Grant

– AGRI Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Grant

– Preparing for Extreme Weather (Prepare) Grant

– AGRI Protecting Livestock from Avian Influenza (Protect) Grant

For more information, contact LSP’s Alex Kiminski at akiminski@landstewardshipproject.org.

Wednesday October 29

4:00 pm – 6:00 pm: Book Event: We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy
Wednesday October 29
4:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Book Event: We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy
The Harkin Institute for Public Policy & Citizen Engagement, 2800 University Ave, Des Moines, IA 50311, USA

The Johnson Center for Land Stewardship Policy is excited to share that one of our its primary pillars of work — a published collection of Paul Johnson’s writings — is set for release on Oct. 2. The book features a brief biography and a discussion of Paul’s ideas within the historical and future contexts of private lands conservation.

For details on We Can Do Better: Collected Writings on Land, Conservation, and Public Policy click here.

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