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On Farm Trials ft. Garrett Heinick and Garrett Moon (pt. 1)
Join the conversation between Garrett Moon of Moon Family Farms in the Horse Heaven Hills,
WA and Dr. Garett Heineck, Cropping Systems Agronomist with the USDA-ARS CAF LTAR
network research program. The interview dives into how they are working together on the farm
to answer questions about the ‘down-side production potential’ of perennial wheatgrass Kernza,
cover crops, and mapping cheatgrass in a region where fog counts as significant precipitation.
What are they measuring and what data matters from the research side and on the working
farm – and how are they making it work? Listen now to find out!
On Farm Trials ft. Wade Troutman (pt.2)
In the second part of a two-part episode, host Carol McFarland visits with cropping systems innovator and award-winning conservationist Mr. Wade Troutman. Check out episode one of the two-part interview to hear about his adventures trying things on his farm in Bridgeport, WA – from being one of the first to grow canola in WA, to direct marketing of organic ‘Wade’s Wheat’, finding sunflower pans for the combine, and how ag and his neighborhood have evolved over his decades of On-Farm Trials!
On Farm Trials ft. Wade Troutman (pt. 1)
In the first of a two-part episode, host Carol McFarland visits with cropping systems innovator and award-winning conservationist Mr. Wade Troutman. Check out episode one of the two-part interview to hear about his adventures trying things on his farm in Bridgeport, WA – from being one of the first to grow canola in WA, to direct marketing of organic ‘Wade’s Wheat’, finding sunflower pans for the combine, and how ag and his neighborhood have evolved over his decades of On-Farm Trials!
On Farm Trials ft. Jesse Brunner
In this week’s episode we interviewed Jesse Brunner whose farm near Almira, WA has been under No-Till management for over 20 years. Jesse grows canola, wheat, and several other rotational crops, including his experimentation with re-crop winter wheat in an otherwise crop-fallow system. In this episode you can hear about his favorite drill for direct-seeding canola, residue management in No-Till, his strategy for making trials happen, and the record-keeping he uses to determine if a practice is something worth repeating. He also describes experimenting with his Weed-it system over the last year, optimizing nozzle selection and what he’ll be trying next year.
Host Carol McFarland visits with Amy McKay from McKay Farm and Ranch in LaCrosse, WA sharing her experience with full, two pass and no-till production across their operation, precision spray application strategies, trying intercropping, and running cows on her cover crop trial. Listeners can hear how she navigates the moisture limitations in her area. What happened when she mowed the cover crop to seed wheat into? Check out the episode to find out!
On Farm Trials ft. Chris Eckhart
Join this conversation on Eckhart Farms outside of Deer Park, WA where we talk
about cover crops, reducing synthetic fertilizers, building organic matter, mycorhizzal fungi, and
farming with the next generation.
On Farm Trials ft. Moses Boone and Oscar Rodriguez
Host Carol McFarland returns to Holland-Boone Farms to speak with Moses Boone and student Oscar Rodriguez about the co-production of research around a field scale pH survey featuring the research and extension experiences for undergraduate students and the use of in-field pH meters and experimental design to capture pH variability across the field and within the soil profile and a discussion of low pH symptoms in lentils, nitrogen fertilizer contribution to low pH, and the benefits of the co-production of research.
On Farm Trials ft. Moses Boone
In this episode, host Carol McFarland talks with Moses Boone of Holland-Boone Farm
outside of Palouse, Washington on experimenting to overcome no-till seeding spring crops into high
residue and other barriers to full adoption of no-till practices, balancing soil health with production
goals, why he isn’t currently growing cover crops, return on investment for experimentation, and
what keeps farmers from experimenting today.
On Farm Trials ft. Eric Odberg
Join this conversation in Genesse, ID as Eric describes the features of his new Ag
Pro drill, increasing his ROI by reducing his inputs, his experiences growing and marketing
sunflower, millet, cover crops and more as part of his wheat-based system. We also hear about
how Shepherd’s Grain has enabled producers to account for their cost of production with
identity-preserved regional marketing.
On Farm Trials ft. Sheryl Hagen-Zakarison
On this episode, we visit Zakarison farms and chat with Sheryl Hagen-Zakarison about the farm that’s been in her family for 4 generations! This episode includes her experience with their enterprise’s recent and big transitions into thinking about their farm near Palouse, WA within an ecological framework, including No-Till adoption, reducing inputs, diversifying and intercropping crops, and their farm’s alternative marketing strategies. She discusses partners in their experimentation as well as lessons learned in what they’ve tried.
On Farm Trials ft. Dusty Walsch
Join this conversation as Dusty shares his trials using a ‘new’ planter, and growing
wheat, canola, and sunflowers, cover crops and cows, and flowers and kids outside of Colbert,
WA.
Stories From The Farm: Bonus Episode 1
On this bonus episode, we revisit our talks with Sheryl Hagen-Zakarison, Dusty Walsh, and Moses Boone to hear them share their stories from the field.
Stories From The Farm: Bonus Episode 2
On this bonus episode, we revisit our talks with Jesse Brunner, Amy McKay, Eric Odberg and Chris Eckhart to hear them share their stories from the field.