cover crops

Internationally Known Soil Health Pioneer Gabe Brown Featured at Farm Near Austin Sept. 16

‘Hemp & Food Health Day on a Regenerative Farm’ Sept. 17 Near Austin

AUSTIN, Minn. — Internationally known soil health pioneer Gave Brown will be featured at a regenerative farming field day Friday, Sept. 16, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Tom Cotter farm near Austin (50203 205th Street). This event, which is being sponsored by the Minnesota Soil Health Coalition, Superior Cannabis Company and the…  Read More

‘No-Till, Cover Crops & Finances’ Workshop Sept. 1 at Dairy & Crop Farms Near Lewiston

Discussion to Focus on how Practices like No-Till, Cover Cropping & Planting Green can Improve Soil Health & Make Financial Sense

LEWISTON, Minn. — Transitioning to no-till, planting green into cover crops, using a triticale cover crop as dairy cattle feed, and using cover crops after corn, soybeans and silage, will be the focus of a Land Stewardship Project (LSP) field day Thursday, Sept. 1, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., near Lewiston. Farmers Everett Rolfing and…  Read More

Cover Crop ROI & All That Matters

Crunching the Numbers Via Biological Bookkeeping

Note: Earlier this summer, Land Stewardship Project soil health organizer Alex Romano reached out to one of our soil health steering committee members, Mike Seifert, who farms near Jordan, Minn., with his wife, Dana, and father, Big Mike, to ask for his thoughts on “return on investment” from cover crops. She wanted to know his…  Read More

LSP Regenerative Farming & Grazing Field Day Aug. 17 in Winona County to Feature Allen Williams 

DAKOTA, Minn. — See, discuss and go in-depth on soil health and grazing with an internationally known regenerative farming expert Wednesday, Aug. 17, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Luke and Holly Bergler’s farm near Dakota (37062 County Rd. 12). Allen Williams, a veteran regenerative producer and consultant, will lead the tour. This event…  Read More

Small Grains, Cover Cropping, Organic Weed Control Featured at 2 Freeborn County Soil Health Field Days

Events July 13 & July 27 in Twin Lakes & Hartland

FREEBORN COUNTY, Minn. — Small grains, cover cropping, and organic weed control will be the focus in July during a pair of Land Stewardship Project (LSP) soil health field days in Freeborn County. For both events, specialists from the Freeborn County Soil and Water Conservation District and the Rodale Institute will be on-hand to provide information…  Read More

Land Line: Tillage’s Toll, Conservation & Leases, Soil Health & Nutrient Density, Emerging Farmer Help

June 22: An LSP Round-up of News Covering Land, People & Communities

The Midwest has Lost 57.6 Billion Metric Tons of Soil Due to Agricultural Practices (3/16/22) The Midwest has lost approximately 57.6 billion metric tons of topsoil since farmers began tilling the soil, 160 years ago. And this is despite conservation practices put in place in the wake of the Dust Bowl in the 1930s, according to Phys.org. Much…  Read More

LSP Grazing Group Pasture Walk to Feature Grazing of Summer Annuals July 19 Near Zumbrota 

ZUMBROTA, Minn. — Grazing of an 11-way mix of summer annuals and specialty crops grown in bale residue left behind by cows from winter-feeding will be the focus of a Land Stewardship Project (LSP) pasture walk Tuesday, July 19, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at Knutson Shorthorns near Zumbrota (46998 170th Ave). This event is free and…  Read More

Ear to the Ground 274: From Dirt to Diversity

How Scott and Amanda Holthaus are transforming corn-soybean ground into perennial pasture utilizing soil biology and the rotational grazing of diverse cover crops. More Information: • LSP Video: What does Healthy Soil Look Like? Water Infiltration Test & Comparison • LSP’s Soil Health & Grazing Web Page • LSP’s Soil Health & Cover Cropping Web…  Read More

LSP Pasture Walk to Feature Spring Grazing of Cover Crops May 19 near Ossian 

OSSIAN, Iowa — Spring grazing of cover crops will be the focus of a Land Stewardship Project (LSP) pasture walk May 19, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., at Oak Creek Pastures near Ossian (1963 155th Street). This event is free and open to the public and sign-in begins at 4:45 p.m. Supper will feature…  Read More

Soil Health: From ‘Light Bulb’ Moment to Daily Practice

How Todd Duncan Learned to be Comfortable with being Uncomfortable

Nearly seven years ago, northeastern Iowa farmer and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) district conversationist, Todd Duncan, along with a group of local producers, started looking for tangible solutions to the erosion problems they were seeing on their farms. These farmers had already been implementing NRCS’s best management practices when it came to conversation, but…  Read More