Gabe Brown - Keynote at Farming For The Future 2020

Gabe Brown delivers the keynote address “Regenerative Agriculture - Letting Nature Work For You” at Farming For The Future 2020 in Lawrence, MI.
Hosted by the Van Buren Conservation District.
Video produced by Luke Petersen.

[@richard9436]

This is the man that needs to be the Secretary of Agriculture.

[@robertoperaza2683]

I second that too 😊

[@veritasvincit2251]

Respectfully, if he were SecAg, he'd have far less capacity to effect actual improvements in farm practices than he has now.

[@vivalaleta]

Nobody ever farmed in my family, to the best of my knowledge. I'm a shop owner with very little area to even garden. I listen to Gabe Brown because it gives me some real hope in this crummy world.

[@Amaranthian450]

I’ve Probly watched this ten times or more. Even listening to it while falling asleep

[@mitchelllott]

thats me with every natural farming video

[@eddiekyler7502]

Thank you so much, Mr. Gabe Brown, for your very easily absorbed and valuable information!

[@barbaraburkhardt2448]

Featured youtube video on our 2023 planning chat for the Community Garden. 4 year goal, create our own green waste/ soil armor. BTW I am taking iron and B12 due to anemia, food nutrients are failing me, took me out of the garden labor force for a year now. Thank you

[@mpccenturion]

In 17 minutes - I have learned more than a 1000 years of living would give me. I can make my equipment. Thank you!

[@cyols]

Best lecture so far that I have listened to on regenerative farming

[@pepper419]

At last a life of common sense. Love it. Keep saving the bees and other pollinators. We need them.

[@donpeterson9282]

This is making a lot of sense. I'm wonder what type of lobbying the large chemical companies and the farm machinery producers think about this movement. Lower yields but higher mineral content. This is an answer to the ability to feed humanity. One does not need to eat as much. This fact alone may help lower the incidence of digestive track cancer? Informative and exciting. Gives me hope for the future my grandkids face.

[@marynunn1708]

Life changing. Thank you so much for illuminating the path to healthier, more productive pasture and livestock. Wheels already turning on how much different my future will be, Lord willing. Bless you Gabe.

[@Nitka022]

Gabe is NOT a farmer! He is a scientist! A biologist, chemist, meteorologist and than some!. If that is what it takes to be a farmer these days than wow! I am a city girl and countryside is a holiday destination, to sniff the flowers and watch the cows nibbling the grasses. But I was blown away by this presentation! Amazing knowledge and skill. Amazing viewing. Thank you! Will watch some more..:-)

[@marksavoia3687]

Science is Life.... Life is a science

[@bonsummers2657]

GABE IS A FARMER. DO NOT DENIGRATE HIM BY SAYING HE'S NOT.

[@Nitka022]

@@bonsummers2657 lol...You misunderstood! Of course he is a farmer! BUT a brilliant one! He became scientists, biologist, chemist and so much more to become a celebrity in farming! These days to succeed our farmers have to acquire more knowledge than astrophysicists!! I was praising him.

[@sf6385]

literally that is part of what makes up a farmer.... multi faceted individuals with an extraordinary range of skill sets

[@bonsummers2657]

@@Nitka022 Don't denigrate the term 'FARMER" as a title. Farmer includes being part biologist, part chemist,...

[@livingladolcevita7318]

I have listened to quite a few lectures around this subject and I find this one the most concise, informative and easiest to understand so far. Thanks.

[@SiriXtar]

Nature's way, reg ag principles min 10:30; Rhizophagy Cycle, microbes enter the roots and recharge the plant with nutrients min 19:18; Comparison management practices and effect on soils min 35:24 Liquid carbon pathway (root exudates) min 49:18 Water bear! min 50:04 Liquid carbon pathway (break down rock, new nutrients available) min 51:33 Weeds like bacteria dominated system (PLFA test) min 53:26 Synthetic fertilizer, compaction, soil aggregates min 56:37 How to increase mycorrhizal fungi min 57:43 Aggregates and water infiltration min 1:01:32 Total Nutrient Extraction test min 1:05:35 Herbicides min 1:10:30 Higher yields lead to lower prices min 1:12:58 Definition of reg ag min 1:15:44

[@arneservatius8686]

Just saw this 3/16/21 I’m not in face book (74)yrs. member MFB. This is very nice🤗

[@BMC-hl2uh]

This is one of Gabe's best. It's clean and to the point. Thanks for sharing.

[@dilpreetsingh737]

Very educating. Thank you so much.

[@eliey4677]

Thank you from Australia !!

[@sacredcowbbq1326]

This is the fastest hour and a half on KZbin. So exciting to watch. Thank you doesn't begin to express my gratitude.

[@nodigBKMiche]

This,with Mark Shepard's info, must be taught in schools! So glad Gabe is close to Canada! His information is definitely going to positively affect both our Countries❤️🧐. OMG I Want that app on my phone!

[@frederickbowdler8169]

yes school sciences need farms on campus.😊

[@johncook5391]

You are my current God. Please keep up your amazing work!

[@jimmybrooks179]

Isaiah 45:5-6 tells us that: " I am the LORD, and there is no other; there is no God besides Me. I will gird (strengthen) you, though you have not known Me,

[@pyramidion5911]

@@jimmybrooks179 God sounds kind of insecure

[@hilarywade687]

Gabe Brown, the Jordan Peterson of regenerative agriculture.

[@MrGorgolo]

I cried.

[@thecitizenfarmer7700]

Incredible presentation, Thank you!

[@jorgeartola6907]

Amazing video!!

[@danielmisgana2672]

Wow, what an excellent presentation.

[@sabinacampbell3995]

Yes, he is excellent.

[@GmoBuelna]

Amazing, love it, Best regards from Sinaloa, México...

[@fredc8618]

Puro sinaloa! 🍅

[@jonathanstarlight9866]

I agree 1000% to incorporate and integrate livestock in fields and pastures

[@chahahc]

In one sense plants can be thought of as automated, solar powered, biological chargers that charge up the biological ground battery we call the soil food web.

[@underthecanopy1093]

Love it

[@missseed354]

We need Gabe Brown on Countryfile!!! (UK farming and countryside programme). Only, surely he will soon find a way to do away with the spraying of herbicide. Glyphosate is not be part of a regenerative agriculture.

[@mickdodge9778]

Out Standing Talk, Thankyou for putting out this video.

[@Pilotcarsvc]

Thank you Gabe I do microbes! And soil repair/Soil food. If Diverse seeds are not in the mix then money and time is lost. I do hope this goes to our commander in Chief ... He is a champion of CLEAN Water Air and Soil If the soil is bad so is the rest above Thank You again I am with you.

[@liammurphy2725]

Fascinating presentation.

[@kevinmccormack6610]

It the first time I heard him, very interesting presentation.

[@richards5110]

The Ducks Unlimited award part really got me 😂. Great presentation as always!

[@martylawrence9089]

Keep up the good work awesome

[@craigbullock8245]

Fascinating. Thank you Gabe!

[@V4D2]

this is an outstanding presentation ! thorough and yet succinct.. He was as dense on the communication as the soil on his farm ! kudos to everyone involved ;) cheers from Portugal

[@johnfitbyfaithnet]

Cheers from Texas!

[@Amaranthian450]

I wish I could find out when Gabe is going to be in Manitoba. I need to hear more

[@davefroman4700]

KZbin is your friend. There is a ton of stuff about Regenerative ag on here. I would also look up No-till farming because that is where this came from basically.

[@MPTran-pz1gm]

great presentation!

[@theuncertaintyprinciple]

Gabe, thanks for this. Trying to push this in the UK

[@JimmyJamesEOTT]

Where are you based brother?

[@theuncertaintyprinciple]

@@JimmyJamesEOTT South Yorkshire UK

[@JimmyJamesEOTT]

@@theuncertaintyprinciple cheers brother what setup are you guys working with? we’re down in Devon just about to start working a 125 acre farm rewilding, Polytunnels, etc.

[@theuncertaintyprinciple]

@@JimmyJamesEOTT Im not farming myself but have been involved with internal drainage boards whose membership is made up of at least 50% landowners. Nearly every landowner i speak to still wants to use pesticides and herbicides and won't engage with regenerative agriculture. The majority of the public dont understand what's going on in the world which doesn't help either..... I also have colleagues who work in the Environment Agency so keep pushing the message with them. As you are no doubt aware, Defra and Natural England are pretty much useless..

[@theuncertaintyprinciple]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/iH29ZXaPbqd4rdk

[@agn855]

I'm only a gardener (sort of) and have (had) watched several of Gabe's videos the last 2 days. I'd wish a guy like Jeremy Clarkson (who's currently skyrocketing at Amazon Prime) would set up the next of his farming series (that plays on his farm) based on regenerative agriculture - simply to make the public/consumers more aware of that environmental disaster. That would put some pressure on the food industry to exclusively work with farmers that adopt that system. In the end it’s the consumer who's changing things.

[@barbararussell897]

Thanks so much Gabe. Who should Biden Pick for the Ag appointment, or what policies can we push for the future? What's our plan? Thanks again

[@manis1438]

It was an eye opener, Thank you

[@Nikolasmar]

Bravo about all you have done and for your willingness to help other farmers. I want to know if all these have a relationship with fukuoka and natural farming, and one more question what would you do if you didn't have the planting machine or you could not use it because of the cultivation for example trees or vineyard and if you didn't have rain from February or March until September or October every year. Thank you

[@dallasschneider4564]

Must See Presentation!

[@gregcrowe8885]

Thank You

[@brendalucas15]

Wow what an exiting inspiring presentation. I can't wait to start applying some of these principles in a small scale way at home! Thank you for sharing.

[@thuyain31]

So impressively presentation and invaluable experience sharing. Thank so much.

[@underthecanopy1093]

Beautiful

[@ernieferguson6346]

china already came out with a nutrient spectrometer for food that is also an android phone... it has an extra spec. camera with full spec. emitter next to center camera.. next is built in thermo imager

[@denniskemnitz1381]

Has your "story, evolved" by quantum leaps since Sean, Ray, David and yourself spoke at Holton, KS back in the day? Perhaps it was 2009 . I was impressed greatly with your presentation then BUT have not gotten many farming practices changed (since TRYING to follow your farming methods) even though I was TRYING to farm certified organic at the time(and still am). ANYHOW THANK YOU VERY VERY MUCH FOR THIS LATEST INFO YOU HAVE SHARED. It is great.

[@rajansinh]

Thanks

[@rufia75]

He mentioned 110 frost free days he has. I wanted him to talk about how cold and long winters affect soil health. What happens during this time when nothing grows? When it's too cold for 98% of cover crops to survive? for a long time? He has 255 'frost days' according to his own calculation of 110 frost-free days. Especially when he says that "soil aggregates only last for 4 weeks." Well his winter is sure longer than that. So in spring, he starts with ZERO soil aggregates?

[@MrGorgolo]

Hi, sorry to dig up an old comment. He has stated in other talks that the highly active biology keeps the soil warmer longer into the cold season. I'm sure that helps to maintain the biological population higher over the cold season. Be well ✌

[@magapefarmshomestead6453]

There is already a way to do that, with a BRIX meter. It is not only a sugar meter it measures "total soluble solid" thus total nutrient density.

[@healthyfitmom]

❤️❤️❤️

[@joepeeer4830]

ty

[@phillipbertrand8514]

where can I get info related to tropical systems like Cuba?

[@goplayoutdoors1682]

What would you recommend the first step to be for compacted dirt that is producing many weeds? We just have a few head of cattle. Goal is to create better grazing land and increase soil health.

[@VanBurenCD]

Hello, Thanks for checking out our video and asking some questions. I think you are asking Gabe these questions? I do not think he is commenting on this video, so we will try to help. The Van Buren Conservation District works with many growers who are novel to incorporating cover crops and other soil health practices. If you have compacted ground and weeds, you may need to get some manures in the ground and some cover crops. Grasses have robust root systems and can really start to break up compaction. Gabe spoke to our group about diversity in the rotation. We find when growers use mixtures of cover crops, that can really jump start the healing process of the soil. It will break up compaction and shade out weeds. You can also put in mixtures that cattle will forage. If you are very weedy, that may mean you have an imbalance in the soil and may need a soil test to tell you which amendments you need. If you have more questions or want to discuss it more please email us at [e-mail]

[@daddoscattle]

Use cattle to break the surfaace. A system call Ultra High Density Grazing. Please look up Johann Zietsman on KZbin. He is our mentor.

[@jamesmoon1841]

Check out Greg Judy's you tube presentations on regenerative grazing practices.

[@christinebottaro9017]

I watch Richard Perkins on KZbin, a farmer who has a no-till, regenerative ag farm in Sweden. He talks a lot about P.A. Yeoman’s system of soil and water management dating back to the early 1950s in Australia. Yeoman’s son now manufactures the special tractor that is meant to be used in the Yeoman system of determining water flow lines and contour lines of your land, with the goal of spreading rain water across the land evenly, greatly reducing topsoil loss. It accelerates the improvement of soil so that capping and layering of compacted soils are broken through and deep roots of perennial plants form much more quickly and effectively.

[@TheNonplayer]

perhaps that if this were to be incorperated into a decently good game, knowlige of it would spread to young people a bit more... I know it's just one of many options, but it might not be one that we should be skipping. ..just a thought ;-) (there are farming games out there, populair ones... only showig "traditional ways" of farming)

[@TS-vr9of]

I've had this thought many times as well. A simple app to teach the principles. or even some soil health principles integrated into some of the farm simulator games. The simulators are apparently popular enough to be profitable every year because they keep making new version with updated farm equipment and tractors.

[@Amaranthian450]

To be honest since I learned soil health, it’s ruined my motivation for farming simulator haha. No soil health practices in it and my imagination is to old to pretend.

[@Uli944]

Hello, @VanBurenCD Thank you for a great presentation! Is it possible for you to switch the option of other users being able to add subtitles? I work for an agricultural company in Ukraine and would like to translate the subtitles into Ukrainian if that is fine with you. Thank you!

[@VanBurenCD]

Hi @Uliana, I apologize that we just saw this, but I believe the update we just made should allow for auto-translation of the captions from English. Thanks for the interest!

[@missseed354]

My apologies, he doesn't use glyphosate. Should have watched to the end first.

[@Joe-rc2on]

I'm not a farmer. At 16:50, why do corn seeds grow out of 3 or 4 inches of that residue but weed seeds don't?

[@VanBurenCD]

Great question! Christine Charles at Michigan State University Extension would be the best person to chat with about that. [e-mail]. She's got some extra crop expertise that we think would be well-suited to your inquiry.

[@vivalaleta]

Can anyone tell me how hairy vetch or even sweet clover isn't poisonous to cattle as I have read?

[@VanBurenCD]

With both of these plants, like most legumes they can be tricky to graze. Hairy vetch and sweet Clover can be poisonous to cattle, but there is more to it then just is it poisonous or is it not. It is more about how and when the livestock eat it, and also breed of cattle consuming it too. With hairy vetch it seems to be a build up of toxin load (yet to be determined by scientists, last I knew) in their kidneys, and it also seems to only affect a select group of cattle which would lead to the conclusion it is a genetic response or "hypersensitivity" to what the chemical is in the hairy vetch. Hairy vetch poisoning also seems to widely only effect cattle >3 years and which also leads to this "build up and hypersensitive" theory. One last link that that hairy vetch poisoning being genetic is that it also seems to widely only effect the Holstein and Angus breeds. Here is an article I found explaining this. www.addl.purdue.edu/newsletters/2004/winter/vetch.asp With sweet Clover it is all about when it's eaten. Fresh in the field it is actually a decent forage nutritionally, but one your cattle might avoid if they have other choices as the palpability (bitterness) is low. The real problem with sweet Clover is when it isn't baled correctly. It contains a chemical called "Coumarin", which undergoes a chemical change into "Dicoumarol" when it reacts to mold spores in wet hay. Dicoumarol is an anti-clotting agent that will cause livestock to hemorrhage and cause internal bleeding. If you are haying sweet Clover though it's not terrible, you just need to do it consciously while it is still young and easily dryable, the longer it grows the thicker and woodier the stem gets and the harder it is to dry out for no mold. Here is an article I found explaining this. extension.sdstate.edu/sweet-clover-poisoning#:~:text=Poisoning%20Concerns&text=Sweet%20clover%20contains%20a%20substance,problem%20looking%20at%20the%20cattle.

[@vivalaleta]

@@VanBurenCD Thank you for all the information.

[@markmurphy9420]

Is there a PDF available of the slides from this presentation?

[@VanBurenCD]

Hello and thank you for your interest. We unfortunately do not have the slides to share.

[@davincimen4495]

Wow. Kellogg’s and General Mills will be restricting purchase of grains grown with all these nasty pesticides and herbicides? I would not have dreamed this would happen.

[@jackturner4917]

This is great stuff. The downfall of this system is the need for expensive heavy machinery. Would it be profitable if done at a smaller scale with no machinery? This system is so intensive, I doubt it could even be duplicated without this equipment.

[@davideforesti7556]

That’s a good question. Especially if you work by hand and organically. Market Gardners like Charles Dowding have developed no till systems for vegetables but for grains is not so easy, plus they are input intensive (mulch and compost). How do you plant seeds without tillage by hand? Even if you graze the grasses you still have to plant the seeds, you need to disturb the soil, at least in the planted areas. Either you work with a perennial system or you gotta till for planting annuals. You need to restart succession from the annual grass level. Would love to see a no till organic wheat production on small scale..

[@user-lr1sq8fp7j]

This can absolutely be done at any scale

[@bencyber8595]

farming for the future .

[@zefrum3]

@1:05:28 Total Nutrient Exreaction soil test

[@timdescher2606]

You use herbicides? How does that affect your living soil ?

[@colleenforestieri4625]

Hey Tim, I think he does use herbicide sparingly within his rotation. He is not organic and likes to have it as a tool when needed.

[@azizomar5774]

So I have become a big fan of Gabe Brown and his practice and advocacy of not using agro-chemicals in his farming and livestock rotations to build up soil microbiology. So what threw me off was him revealing that he has to use a herbicide to terminate the Rye cover crop so the cash crop he's planted can grow. So wouldn't that have a destructive effect on the fungi and other soil microflora? And why can't his livestock take care of this cover crop or why isn't he harvesting the rye which is an important grain and can be a cash crop itself and has to use a herbicide (hope it's no Roundup!!) :(

[@nancylucas4231]

I was surprised to hear him say that too. I have never heard him say that before. Puzzling to me to. I have heard others do not do this at all.

[@joannedupreez9230]

He said he has a very short growing season (about 120 days if I remember correctly). Due to this he was not able to grow the cover crop long enough to be able to roll it down in order to plant his cash crop, and still have a cash crop harvest. In other words, his short growing season forced him to plant his cover crop and his cash crop at the same time.

[@jamesmoon1841]

Gabe Brown is very clear on avoiding the use of glyphosate (Round-up) as it is a chelating agent and ties up many essential soil minerals. He makes this point in his book.

[@stegisk]

how would you decrese the acidity of the soil, without using lime. I have just inherited a bit of land, and really nothing has been done on it for the past 40 years (appart from a small forest growiong on top of it), so i would like to understand how to work it sutainably. the current pH is varying from 4.8 - 5.8, so not a very goof for cashcrops.

[@TidBitOf]

The Nature and Properties of Soils is a great introductory text on what your trying to do. It goes over every aspect of soil. There are more natural methods to raise soil ph but they can take a long time.

[@stegisk]

@@TidBitOf thanks

[@VanBurenCD]

I cannot answer this question for Gabe. I am answering from experience working with growers who are on a regenerative journey. A lime application, early in the journey, is really what you will need to use to adjust that pH. As you incorporate diversity, reduce tillage and build organic matter that is what is going to help you hold a proper pH. It may take you years before you pH is more stable. Growing robust cash crops and cover crops is what will build you soil. Sometimes baby steps is what is needed for overall log term soil health.

[@laurasmithira]

I love no till methods. In permaculture gardens tilling is the worst thing to do

[@TheoriginalBMT]

That statement by Don Campbell...

[@Amaranthian450]

I wish I knew of what herbicides gabe uses to disrupt the plants when he is “planting green” I have some old hay fields that I want to spray out and start planting covers for winter grazing and these fields are mostly full of grassy perennials. I don’t want to have to use glyphosate as it sounds very destructive to soil health

[@Amaranthian450]

@@Jj-gi2uv this spring since it’s so wet in Manitoba, I can’t get my sprayer out in any land so the areas that are fenced in using the cows to knock down any perennials before and during seeding. Time will tell how it works for me. I’m only seeding feed for livestock at this point anyway so any grass and legumes already existing are welcome to regrow

[@Amaranthian450]

@@Jj-gi2uv update: so I no tilled into my old perennial stand with a 8 species cover crop after a very hard overgraze, and the results were just absolutely pathetic, I would never recommend doing that without spraying out the field first. There just way to much competition for the cover crop to establish and surpass the perennials, we had lots of soil moisture and the regrowth was 98% pasture grasses and they didn’t regrow very good after a hard late spring graze either.

[@marlonkevlar447]

His farming methods are becoming mainstream. There should be carbon credits established for drawing down the CO2 into the soil...

[@Mrbfgray]

This is good but basically the same as series from yr.s ago.

[@archeryhunter1578]

Truth never changes

[@blessingchigona1606]

aah!!! 3 years of hail plus drought I will quit farming into mining

[@scottschaeffer8920]

Compare this dialogue to what is suggested on AgPhd. Our crops are like an athlete on steroids-it’ll yield like crazy but, when is the crash coming?

[@Webfra14]

Buying fertilizer as a farmer is like buying salt water as a fisherman...

[@dallasschneider4564]

Too many variables! Try playing the game if Go! Then see the AlphaGo video to see A. I. applied to it. Perhaps A. I. could help Regenerative Agriculture conquer Climate Change!

[@arneservatius8686]

List crops 3X to hail and no crop insurance? Slow learner. As a banker I would not back him either. 🤪

[@frederickbowdler8169]

notice the dictatorial presentation why ?obviously many good ideas but No farmer is right all the time farming is an art and a science and a" religion"

[@Michael_McMillan]

So much coughing during that presentation. I hope everyone was far apart from each other.