Finale Dr. Forbes Walker is a UT professor of soil science and has been a speaker at several of the Summits. His presentation was on the overview of the UT USDA funded “Smart Climate Grassland Project”. He showed an EPA inventory of the breakdown of greenhouse gases – Co2, nitrous oxide, and methane – and where they come from. Agriculture was #4, making up 10% of the greenhouse gases. Where that 10% is coming from is first how we manage our soils (tillage, inputs). Industry, basing their opinions on CAFO’s, wants to put the blame for agricultural gases on cattle, but Dr. Walker believes the c ..read more

Part 4 Russ Wilson, of Wilson Land and Cattle, has been a regular at the Summits from the beginning in 2019, and he was back this year. He started off with a talk on beyond the garden dollars and saving money by saving your own seeds. His family is really into seed collecting and starting. They’re also into fruit tree grafting. Russ gave an interesting comparative on purchased vs. growing your own plants. Soil health is key when planting your seedlings, and good amendments and mulch is part of the success.   With his next presentation he covered the food preservation revolution, or ..read more

Part 3 New to the Summit was Nick Race, of Race Family Farm. As a former EMS he saw many people with health issues, which connected directly to the food they ate. He decided he wanted to go the way of regenerative agriculture due to the health benefits. He started with pigs, and he enjoyed the land clearing they did, and he loves watching them in action. He started to notice the difference they were making in the biology of the soil, and the plants that were coming up that hadn’t been in that area for a long time. He continued to work with the pigs by keeping them rotated into brushy areas.&n ..read more

Part 2 Are you interested in rotational grazing with mixed species? Greg Brann and his wife Debbie had a wonderful explanation about how this works for them. Greg has been a grazing producer for many years, and a professional consultant. Greg’s first presentation was a relaxed pictorial of forages, animals and how they all works together. He talked about range/pasture management, where is it coming up short in a comparative analysis, and how can we improve it? He says they’ve tried many different angles on the pastures; some work well and some will bite you. In the end what you’re looking for ..read more

Part 1 This Summit was going to be a bit different. Our location changed to The Warehouse, an events venue next door to the Timeless Fence plant. Robbie Britton, owner of the venue, also does the videography for the Summits. Close proximity to the plant made it convenient for all the things that had to be brought over to tend our guests. The Warehouse was a perfect arena for the meetings as well. After a blustery week, we were hoping the weather would work with us, as the caterer and dining location were outside.  As with the Summits before, there were plenty of morning refreshments and ..read more

I so look forward to these awesome gatherings of folks who care about how they affect the soil and environment, and I was not disappointed.   Once again, the USARAAI Sumit was held at the beautiful Clyde Austin 4-H Camp. I want to pause here to say how amazed I was at the care given to every detail by the staff of the facility. From the daylight coffee brewing and fresh pastries set out, to the snacks and drinks provided at breaks, to the flawless set-up and service at mealtimes. The grounds are earthy and beautiful, the food prep and clean-up impeccable, and it’s because of these d ..read more

Part 2 The 2nd day of the Summit was off and running with a presentation by Ward Labs on soil testing, followed by the very popular pasture walk where folks can see, touch, compare soil samples, and ask questions about anything to do with the pasture. It’s a time of seeing first-hand the impact certain pasture practices have on the overall environment, including insects, birds, and wildlife. The speakers show examples and answer questions.  Back for another wonderful lunch, with lots of lively conversations going on all around.  Dr. Gary Bates, director of UT beef and Forage Center ..read more

Part 1 By the first of 2020 plans were already in the works for Summit 2020. Speakers had been contacted, and agenda was being put together…and the rug got pulled out from under everything. COVID19 rolled across the US and life came to a screeching halt. There would be no Summit.  Work continued at the non-profit Farm Campus. Raised beds were being built, a garden laid out, and plans were coming together for a greenhouse or two. It was slow going. The ground was hard-packed, and it was going to take some time to get it ready for plants. We started with the basics: cardboard topped with s ..read more

Part 2 The three-day event hosted several speakers. Three ag professors from UT, Russ Wilson of Pennsylvania, several product vendors, along with Ray Archuleta and Gabe Brown rounded out the presentations. They were all informative and interesting, but Gabe and Ray had my ear. Gabe’s first presentation started with his story of failures, which turned out better than he could’ve hoped for.  He continued with the definitions and break-down of the 6 principles of a healthy ecosystem. These are: minimal soil disturbance, keeping the soil covered, building diversity, keeping living roots in t ..read more

Part 1 It was the summer of 2019…seems like so long ago! I ran into our friend Wayne Hughes and he asked me if I’d read a book by this guy Gabe Brown. He said it had turned his thinking upside down, where farming and grazing were concerned. I told him I hadn’t heard of the book but would love to read it. He just happened to have a copy with him, and he loaned it to me. As I was leaving, he told me that there was going to be a Summit, and Gabe would be the keynote speaker. I thanked him and went on my way.  When I finally got some time, I opened the book “Dirt To Soil” and started reading ..read more