Episode 115: Covering Ground: How Cover Crops Can Change Your Farm with Brian Magarin

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Күн бұрын

Brian Magarin has a background rooted in farming, spanning over a decade. Brian's journey has been shaped by hands-on experience and a commitment to sustainable farming methods after first starting in a conventional setting. Through years of trial and error, he has gained valuable insights into soil dynamics, irrigation techniques, and the impact of cover crops on crop and soil health. Brian manages 9,000 acres for Belltown Farms and grows corn, soybeans, wheat, and alfalfa. He also operates his own farm, growing organic corn, soybeans, and small grains.
In this episode, Brian and John discuss:
The importance of understanding soil dynamics
Experimenting with strip-till and no-till management
Challenging traditional chemical-centric practices
The processes and challenges of using roller crimpers
The benefits of cover crops in maintaining weeds and moisture
The impact of cooler temperatures on crop growth and productivity
About John Kempf John Kempf is the founder of Advancing Eco Agriculture (AEA). A top expert in biological and regenerative farming, John founded AEA in 2006 to help fellow farmers by providing the education, tools, and strategies that will have a global effect on the food supply and those who grow it.
Through intense study and the knowledge gleaned from many industry leaders, John is building a comprehensive systems-based approach to plant nutrition - a system solidly based on the sciences of plant physiology, mineral nutrition, and soil microbiology.
Support For This Show & Helping You Grow Since 2006, AEA has been on a mission to help growers become more resilient, efficient, and profitable with regenerative agriculture.
AEA works directly with growers to apply its unique line of liquid mineral crop nutrition products and biological inoculants. Informed by cutting-edge plant and soil data-gathering techniques, AEA’s science-based programs empower farm operations to meet the crop quality markers that matter the most.
AEA has created real and lasting change on millions of acres with its products and data-driven services by working hand-in-hand with growers to produce healthier soil, stronger crops, and higher profits.
Beyond working on the ground with growers, AEA leads in regenerative agriculture media and education, producing and distributing the popular and highly-regarded Regenerative Agriculture Podcast, inspiring webinars, and other educational content that serve as go-to resources for growers worldwide.
Learn more about AEA’s regenerative programs and products: www.advancingecoag.com
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VIDEO: To learn more from John Kempf about regenerative agriculture, watch this conversation between John and three AEA grower partners about how regenerative agriculture is changing lives and conventional farming: • How regenerative agric...

Пікірлер: 17

@turnindirtandwrenches Ай бұрын

Thank you John for doing these podcasts! You have inspired me to make big changes on my farm. Last year I grew one acre of open pollinated corn no tilled into white clover and native preannuals. This year I'll have 60 acres of it! The ROI is amazing! And I have much more time to spend with my family because I'm not cultivating all the time. Thanks again for making these podcasts!

@richardheinen1126 Ай бұрын

Great podcast!

@brodiesmith4173 Ай бұрын

Hello, Thank you for all the information you are making more readily available! I have a question regarding covercropping. While I understand that it is a technique used in between main crops. Therefore, letting covercrops go to seed, or using perennials is not typically the intent; however, it seems to me that purchasing seed every year, or whenever someone's covercrop cycle may be, would get expensive. I also understand that the money spent would be returned either in a monetary covercrop, or in nutrients, microorganisms, or mineral availability for future seasons; however I am curious if there is anyone who intentionally lets their covercrops re-seed, while still planting and harvesting a main crop in the same area. Is this done? How much of a decrease in the main crop would be expected (this would definitely be variable based upon a number of variables)?

@marynunn1708 Ай бұрын

Wow. Great discussion thanks. Always good to hear of another great success story. Especially enjoyed hearing of your success and tools/methods using vetch. Used it once but now will be using it a lot more!

@ryecarlson7867 Ай бұрын

the real crimper killer is rocks and uneven ground

@C.Hawkshaw 12 күн бұрын

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a Regen Ag college in the U.S.?

@bohio2449 Ай бұрын

Any pictures of the double crimp design

@marlan5470 Ай бұрын

Hello! I have a question. It's not directly related to the subject here, but I'm asking anyway: Even if a farmer is successful in growing grain (of any kind) in the most regenerative way, without any chemicals, non-GMO, etc...How is it still possible to not contaminate the crop at the grain elevator/silo that the farmer sells it to, when those storage facilities are reliant on the pesticides/chemicals for preservation? How can reliance on those chemicals be minimized, if not entirely eliminated, to keep the food chemical free at the point of storage and distribution? Is the clean crop mixed with the crops of other farmers who do not grow regeneratively/chem free? How does it work? Thank you

@projectmalus Ай бұрын

I'm not from AEA but I think the chemicals like glyphosate are a problem in the other places like in the groundwater or soil, not in the harvested crop. Or like the neonics affect the pollinators, or workers using these products get cancer etc. If the food grown is less healthy because the soil is made poor then this might affect one directly. I've noticed in the last few years that produce gets moldy very quickly. Also, if processed food in general is poor and these poisons are to facilitate that system then it's time for a change.

@marlan5470 Ай бұрын

@@projectmalus Ha! I bought a pumpkin last September and I still have it on display. It's not showing any signs of rotting and it's late April now.

@marlan5470 Ай бұрын

@@projectmalus My understanding is, usually seeds are dipped in chemicals, the ground is treated with chemicals and mechanical disturbance, then the crop is sprayed at different times of growth, then it's taken to the silo and it gets treated there too. I don't know exactly how warehousing is after distribution from the silo but I assume there's chemicals at the warehouses too. So... how to minimize the whole chemical shower, even if the crop is planted/harvested with the least ecological damage?

@projectmalus Ай бұрын

@@marlan5470 I believe those chemicals have a life span with respect to growing crops, and the harvest and spraying etc are arranged around this. Not sure how they would treat silos full of material since it would be hard to mix and expensive at that stage, so that comes in at the factory along with the plastic packaging. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a proponent of those chemicals, they're a hammer where subtlety is needed.

@marlan5470 Ай бұрын

@@projectmalus Are you meaning efficiency for what they're supposed to do or how long they stay in the soil and water? Because the chemicals stick around for a very long time. Glyphosate is a chelator, DDT stays a very long time. I don't think we're out of danger yet when it comes to DDT, and it's been a few years.