Regenerative Skills

What would agriculture look like with zero inputs? with Shane Simonsen, author of zero-input agriculture

Though I’ve been inspired by all the amazing examples of regenerative farming through the people that I’ve interviewed through this series, there’s one glaring commonality between all of them and that’s the fact that the success of their enterprises all rely heavily on the destructive infrastructure that we currently have in place to get the organic and feed inputs for their enterprises, the seeds or young animals that they then raise, and the fossil fuel system that then transports their food products to market. I’m not at all criticizing these people of their work. It would be near impossible to make a living and produce a meaningful amount of food, certainly not enough to base a business around, if they weren't working with the resources and the systems of our modern times, but there’s no denying that the same systems that make these business models feasible are unlikely to continue for much longer and certainly not in the way we are using and operating them now. That’s why I got really excited about the work and writings of Shane Simonsen who is conducting personal experiments and documenting the process and observations on his homestead in eastern Australia all around the concept of zero input agriculture. His blog by that same name is one of the most original approaches to large scale food production that I’ve come across in a long time and asks the simple question of “how might we still be able to produce enough food for ourselves and our communities if we no longer had access to all of the inputs and fossil fuels of our modern times.”
Despite sounding like a post apocalyptic exercise in primitive living, Shane’s writing is surprisingly optimistic and pragmatic. In a small excerpt from his very first post from September 2019 he writes: In the resource constrained future ahead of us these input dependent approaches to growing food will become impractical or impossible. Instead new systems that rely on locally adapted crops and livestock, integrated into systems that are truly compatible with the local geology and climate will be required. I have taken on the challenge of developing these systems in our particular region in the remaining two decades of vigor I have left in me. This blog is an account of this journey. Hopefully I can inspire some of you to follow in my direction and develop your own locally adapted systems.

Is permaculture still relevant to small farms and local food security? With Loren Luyendyk of Permaculture Intl.

Permaculture has done an incredible job of raising awareness of natural land management techniques and teaching people to observe and read the patterns of the natural world to inform their interactions with the environment, but it often gets criticized for being impractical when it comes to apply its methods to profitable farming enterprises. There’s a long running line of questioning on this show, especially when I’m speaking with producers and farmers about where they have to compromise their choices for the earth with the needs of their businesses and the efficiency required to turn a profit, so to help me to get to the bottom of this paradox I spoke to Loren Luyendyk a Certified Teacher of Permaculture, with over 17 years of practical experience in Permaculture Design, Sustainability, and Horticulture. Loren has also studied and has loads of experience in the fields of Organic and Biodynamic Farming, Arboriculture, Agroecology, Keyline Design, Holistic Management, Natural Building, and The Soil Foodweb. is also a founding partner of Permaculture Design International, an international design collaborative, with the express goal of increasing the professionalism and adoption of permaculture globally, especially with larger scale projects.  He and his wife Aubrey Falk co-founded the non-profit organization Surfers Without Borders in 2008, which promotes practical solutions to ocean pollution through regenerative design. 
In this interview we break down some of the important ways that permaculture can be applied, especially to small farms, not only to improve the health of the ecology on the site, but also the financial bottom line of the business owner. Loren explains how a lot of common practices and teachings in permaculture like crop diversification, building soil health, and harvesting water on site can make a huge difference in the viability of a farm. We also talk a lot about what a regenerative food system might look like at the community level and how people can get started wherever they are by taking simple steps in the right direction. Towards the end we also nerd out on all the amazing plants and foods that grow in our respective climates since both north eastern Spain and south western California are analogue climates to one another there’s a ton of overlap in what we see and grow around us
Resources:
http://sborganics.com/
https://www.permacultureintl.com/

Creating the tools, resources, and community for a regenerative future in farming, with Ray Milidoni of Farming Secrets

Ray Milidoni
Though regenerative agriculture has made huge leaps forward in the last decade, it still only accounts for a very small percentage of the farms around the world and even less in over developed countries. While we still have a long way to go make ecological land management practices the norm around the world, there are a lot of people dedicated to accelerating the progress of recent years by creating educational platforms, mentorship programs and creating community collaboration around these important skills. 
In this episode I got to speak to one of my favorite new contacts in regenerative farming education, Ray Milidoni from Malbourne who works with Farming Secrets, one of the premier educational platforms for profitable regenerative farming based in Australia. 
Ray states that his mission is to create a community which inspires moments of collaboration where we can all learn new ways of thinking by promoting environmental awareness.
In this interview Ray talks about the patterns and commonalities in the successful regenerative farming network that he works with and the power to create change at a societal level through inspiring education and new ways of thinking. We also look into some of the biggest roadblocks that are holding the ecological farming movement back and how our generation holds the power to transform our food system by supporting and promoting the growers who are creating a new way of farming by collaborating with rather than fighting nature
Resources:
https://www.farmingsecrets.com/

Pioneering the urban farm revolution, with Michael Ableman, author of Farm the City

Michael Ableman
Welcome back to another episode in the ongoing series on Regenerative Agriculture. Up until now I’ve spoken with growers and producers on cutting edge of profitable regenerative landbased enterprises and management techniques in rural areas, but there’s also a growing movement to produce food closer to where the heaviest concentration of people are, and that’s in cities. While the basics of growing food are fairly universal, there are a lot of uniques challenges that farmers in the city face that just aren’t present in rural or even suburban areas. And to get an experienced point of view on urban farming, I reached out to Michael Ableman to learn more.
Michael Ableman is the cofounder and director of Sole Food Street Farms and one of the early visionaries of the urban agriculture movement. Michael has worked as a commercial organic farmer for the last 45 years and is the founder of the nonprofit Center for Urban Agriculture. He has also created high-profile urban farms in both Watts and Goleta, California as well as Vancouver, British Columbia. Michael is the author of numerous books like From the Good Earth, On Good Land, Fields of Plenty, Street Farmand his latest, titled Farm the City in which he outlines actionable steps on how to plan, grow, and market your crops in an urban environment.  
In this interview we cover many of those practical steps and much more including business planning and assessing land in the city
Resources:
Get the book "Farm the City" by Michael Ableman
https://www.urbanfarm.org/

Stewarding the holistic health of a community orchard

In the past I’ve talked to quite a few orchardists and agroforestry practitioners, especially in the series on Reforestation and Agroforestry at the end of last season, but I was really glad to be introduced to Michael Phillips’ work by a great friend of the show, Nick from Minnesota. After speaking late last year with Stephan Sobkowiak, Nick recommended that I look into Michael’s incredible books for an even deeper dive into the soil health and biological spraying mixes that MIchael has developed to promote holistic health as he pioneers the revival of the community orchard. Michael Phillips is a farmer, writer, carpenter, orchard consultant, and speaker who lives on Heartsong Farm in northern New Hampshire, where he and his family grow apples and a variety of medicinal herbs. He is also the author of The Apple Grower and The Holistic Orchard. His Lost Nation Orchard is part of the Holistic Orchard Network, and Michael also leads the community orchard movement at GrowOrganicApples.com. He was also honored by Slow Food USA to receive the first Betsy Lydon Ark Award in 2005 for his work promoting healthy ways to grow fruit.
In this interview we take a deeper look at what goes into growing healthy and delicious apples beyond what most people know about. Michael talks about the essential importance of diversity in a resilient orchard ecosystem and how it has to be balanced by what you need to make a profit at market. We also cover a wide range of practical advice from pollinator and pest management, biological mowing, as well as foliar sprays, shifting climate zones and much more. 
I get a real thrill from talking to people with such an obvious passion and love for what they do, and in Michael’s case that passion is coupled with a deep understanding and knowledge of the science behind the health of his plants and soil. I highly recommend this one to anyone looking to grow fruit trees, even if you’re not looking to take it all the way to a production scale. 
Resources:
GrowOrganicApples.com
Get the book The Holistic Orchard
Get the book The Apple Grower
Get the book Mycorrhizal Planet

Is hemp the answer to a regenerative future for American agriculture? with Doug Fine, author of American Hemp Farmer

I’ve been meaning to get in touch with someone who could explain to me the nebulous and exploding new farming industry around the ancient yet newly legalized hemp plant, and I found a gold mine of information in Doug Fine, the author of Hemp Bound and American Hemp Farmer. Doug is known as a solar-powered goat herder, comedic investigative journalist, and pioneer voice in cannabis/hemp and regenerative farming. He has grown hemp in four US states, and the genetics he’s developed are in five more. He’s an award-winning culture and climate correspondent for NPR, the New York Times, and the Washington Post, among others publications. 
In this interview, Doug shares the moment that he calls his climate Pearl Harbor which set his life on a new trajectory. He breaks down the complicated history of hemp cultivation around the world and in the United States and we also explore the current state of hemp which has been recently legalized for cultivation. We also unpack the gold rush on hemp products especially CBD oils and Doug explains his caution about the potential for a boom and bust cycle that could be terrible for the industry at large. He also outlines his thoughts on a healthy and regenerative industry for hemp, not only for the land but for all of the yet undiscovered and unstudied properties of this amazing plant, to say nothing of all the useful byproducts in the stalks and fibers. I personally learned a ton from this chat and am really looking forward to watching this budding industry find its roots so to speak and am hopeful for a bright future for the hemp market.
Resources:
Get the book American Hemp Farmer
https://www.dougfine.com/
Ted talk
https://www.instagram.com/organiccowboy/

How to restore soil and ecological health on a massive scale with regenerative agriculture, with Gabe Brown, author of from dirt to soil

A lot of the farms that come to mind when I think of regenerative agriculture are smaller, more diverse and quite intensive, with many different crops and animals working in closer proximity with many stacked functions and a niche business model, but what can be done for all those vast fields of monoculture plantings of crops like corn, soy, and wheat that take up so much space in the heartland of the midwestern and western US? Are there regenerative solutions for these massive farms of thousands of acres? Is there hope for farming the plains and savannas through ecological management?
For answers to these questions I reached out to Gabe Brown of Brown’s Ranch in North Dakota. A historically challenging environment for agriculture, North Dakota is a place dominated today by massive cattle ranches and monocultures stretching beyond the horizon of dry and windy plains. But in this challenging environment, Gabe has been a pioneer of the soil-health movement and has even been named one of the twenty-five most influential agricultural leaders in the United States. Gabe, his wife, Shelly, and son, Paul, own Brown’s Ranch, a holistic, diversified 5,000-acre farm and ranch near Bismarck, North Dakota. The Browns integrate their grazing and no-till cropping systems, which include cash crops and multi-species cover crops along with all-natural, grass-finished beef and lamb, pastured pork, and laying hens. The Brown family have received numerous awards including a Growing Green Award from the Natural Resources Defense Council, an Environmental Stewardship Award from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, and the USA Zero-Till Farmer of the Year Award.
In this interview I asked Gabe about how he managed to persevere through some very challenging years in the beginning to develop the diversified and healthy landscape that his family manages today. He also tells me a lot about the invisible challenges to this way of farming such as the counter productive incentives of the US Farm Bill and the cultural stigma that can be difficult when making unconventional changes to your farming practices. We also dig into some crucial advice that Gabe has for farmers looking to make a transition to regenerative agriculture from industrial management. This interview gave me a lot of hope that the American plains can be restored without risking food shortages or spikes in food costs. I really hope that any of you listening to this will share this episode with someone you know who works in farming who perhaps hasn’t heard of these possibilities or who thinks that their mechanized monoculture operations can’t be converted or don’t lend themselves to ecological transformation. 
Resources:
Get the book From Dirt to Soil
 
https://brownsranch.us/
understandingag.com
soilhealthacademy.org
Chelsea Green Publishing - the leading publisher of sustainable living books since 1985.

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Essential tools to accelerate agricultural land regeneration, with Rhamis Kent, Co-director of the Permaculture Research Institute

My guest today is someone who has been an inspiration to me since I first began to study permaculture almost a decade ago. Rhamis Kent has been the man behind the scenes for some incredible regeneration projects around the world through his work with the Permaculture Research Institute in the middle east, north and eastern africa, the Iberian peninsula, and many other regions of harsh and challenging climates. Though Rhamis is someone that I could talk to for days about so many different ecological topics, I reached out to him for this session because of a great article and presentation that he put together for the World Permaculture Association about how machinery can be leveraged for positive environmental impact and why we need to use it wisely to regenerate land on an unprecedented scale. 
In this episode we start out by examining the economics of land degradation and how machinery has been a big driver in the ecological devastation that we are experiencing all over the world today and how it’s misuse has created the conditions for the loss of millions of tons of topsoil every year as well as massive deforestation. Rhamis then goes on to outline how the same technology can be harnessed to completely reverse these trends by outlining a number of machines and tools that work especially well in specific applications. I’ve also linked to the original article that Rhamis wrote which contains a video presentation of even more information and pictures of the machines that he highlights for those of you who struggle to picture some of the things we talk about here. All those can be found in the show notes on the website 
Resources:
https://worldpermacultureassociation.com/earth-repair-upscaled/?fbclid=IwAR0G0PHuXX--SwKZAYsPQb2uRQobZM3-LuQYKdyiThY_3iU3odE7JpKD3TE

Can we make ecological agriculture mainstream by 2040? With John Kempf, author of Quality Agriculture

Welcome back everyone to another episode in this ongoing series on regenerative agriculture. Before we get started today I want to give a quick shout out. Before starting this series I’ve been in contact with a listener of the show named Nick who has been incredibly generous and helpful in sending me links and information about other practitioners in the field that I should check out. I’ve learned so much from the ideas he’s sent me so I just wanted to take the opportunity to say thanks to Nick for all his help and guidance. 
Today’s interview comes from one of the people that Nick pointed out to me and who I’ve been following and listening to ever since. John Kempf is a regenerative agricultural consultant, entrepreneur, speaker, teacher and podcast host who is passionate about the potential of well managed agriculture ecosystems to reverse ecological degradation. He is also the author of  the new book titled “Quality Agriculture” where he highlights important interviews with prominent farmers and researchers on the cutting edge of ecological farming. He states that his personal mission is to have these regenerative models of agriculture management become the mainstream globally by 2040.
In this interview, John speaks with me about the incredible growth of regenerative and ecological farming practices in just the last few years and what is behind this trend. He also gives great insights about what he sees as a future where industrial and regenerative agriculture merge to leverage the best parts of both worlds rather than continuing to be at odds. We also cover the real drivers of change in the agricultural sector and how the new generation of young farmers are innovating and reshaping the future of this industry. 
I really liked the straight forward and pragmatic approach that John takes to these important questions. Many voices calling for a change in agricultural practices that I’ve heard in the past do a great job of idealizing a world of healthy environmental interaction but fall short when it comes to supporting evidence and case studies, but John does a great job about focusing on the realities of the world we currently have and how we can look to tangible examples of practices and methods that regenerate our damaged ecosystems while respecting the context of the globalized industry that farming is these days and what farmers themselves need to make their businesses work. I also highly recommend his show, The Regenerative Agriculture Podcast for people who want to hear from scientists, researchers and producers in the field who are making incredible advances for the ecological health of their land. I especially enjoyed a recent interview he did with Ray Archuleta, and his short video series on the five core concepts of regenerative agriculture on the advancing regenerative agriculture youtube channel, both of which I’ve linked to in the show notes for this episode.
Resources:
Get the book "Quality Agriculture"
https://johnkempf.com/
https://www.advancingecoag.com/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRApdrU3BA0Pzo6MNWTD2jg
Ray Archuleta episode

Championing a regenerative farming revolution in Europe, with Richard Perkins, author of Regenerative Agriculture

Welcome back everyone to this ongoing series on regenerative agriculture. Last week we kicked off with an interview with Joel Salatin and in this session I’ve got another great interview with one of the most influential regen ag practitioners in Europe. There are a lot of inspiring voices in the regenerative agriculture community, but few have done such a thorough job of documenting and publishing every step of the development of a small profitable farm the way Richard Perkins has done with Ridgedale Permaculture. Especially now that I’ve decided to put down roots in Europe, I’ve been looking for examples of profitable small farming models for inspiration for my own project here, and between Richard’s youtube channel and two books, Making Small Farms Work and the new volume titled Regenerative Agriculture, there are few better resources to guide you step by step through all the design considerations, from landscape analysis, business planning, crunching numbers and creative paths to market. 
Though I spoke to Richard for the first time back in season 1, I invited him back for this episode to talk about some of the massive changes that are coming about from the COVID health crisis and how he’s seen it affect small farms around Europe. We explore topics like farm enterprise analysis, suggestions for direct to consumer marketing and collaboration, and Richard also talks about his observations over the years of transformation of his small farm in northern Sweden, not only from a land health perspective, but also things he’s noticed about his teaching and mentorship strategy as well as the characteristics he thinks are essential for succeeding in farming.
Resources:
https://www.youtube.com/user/mrintegralpermanence
https://www.facebook.com/ridgedalepermaculture/
https://www.regenerativeagriculture.co/