Healthy Land. Healthy Food. Healthy Lives.
SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2016
HMI 2015 Annual Report Dear HMI Community,
2015 was an exciting year for HMI and our community. We made a major step forward to develop collaborative programming within our international community. We held 24 Open Gates in 5 countries and with the help of our Certified Educators we trained 8,000 people, influencing 5.6 million acres. We also had 178 farmers and ranchers enroll in our Getting Started Courses from 19 countries. Thanks to the support of our generous donors, HMI was able to expand the number of Open Gate learning days and Whole Farm/Ranch Business Planning and Land Management Workshops and Beginning Farmer/ Rancher Training programs as we provided numerous scholarships to those in need of financial assistance. On the outreach front we continue to expand our reach and educate more people about Holistic Management and HMI. By the end of the year we had a 20% increase in most of our outreach goals including almost 10,000 Facebook fans and another 10,000+ Twitter followers. Almost 15,000 people subscribe to our e-letter and over 110,000 visitors visited our website. While HMI finished 2015 with a net loss of $301,000, it was due to over a $500,000 reduction in investment income as compared to 2014. However, our significant surplus in 2014 of almost $500,000 allowed us to still invest almost $200,000 in new and increased programming in 2015, which enabled us to obtain the programming and outreach metrics noted above. We also were able to reduce our overheads from 22% in 2014 to 15% in 2015 for an even leaner, more effective operation. 2016 is proving to be another busy and productive year for HMI. As we approach our 32nd anniversary and our biennial Gathering in Paicines, California on October 14-16, 2016, we are experiencing a little bit of a makeover. Some of our network has already seen this change when they’ve gone to visit our website. If you haven’t already, please go to
In Practice a publication of Holistic Management International
NUMBER 169
W W W. H O L I S T I C M A N A G E M E N T. O R G
www.holisticmanagement.org and see our newly redesigned website. We hope you find it inviting, attractive, and still a wealth of information about Holistic Management and the Holistic Management community. As part of our redesign we worked with a national marketing firm to better articulate the message we want to share with the audiences we serve. What the marketing folks told us when they looked at our old website and talked to us about our mission and programs was how impressed they were with the Holistic Management community, their passion for the work and their commitment to positive action to solve very complex problems. They helped us highlight that community so we can reach others who have not yet learned about how we can all make decisions that improve our communities. On the program side we have doubled the number of international Open Gates and added two new countries, the United Kingdom and Namibia, for a total of 7 countries involved in our placebased programming, as well as already reaching over 1200 farmers and ranchers. In 2016 we are working harder than ever to educate people in regenerative agriculture for healthy land and thriving communities. With our committed team of Board, staff, Advisory Council, Certified Educators and a passionate network of practitioners we can spread the practice of Holistic Management and touch more lives and landscapes for a better world. Sincerely,
Ann Adams – Executive Director
Holistic decision-making is a critical tool for regenerating agriculture— regardless of whether you grow, sell, buy, or eat food. Learn how Kirk and Tamara Gadzia have been managing their 2-acre suburban homestead (with borrowed highland cattle) on page 5.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Danny Nuckols – Board Chair
Holistic Decision-Making
Annual Report Finances Healthy Land. Healthy Food. Healthy Lives.
In Practice
Educational Programs
a publication of Hollistic Management International
Publications
HMI educates people in regenerative agriculture for healthy land and thriving communities.
Outreach Mineral interests
STAFF Ann Adams. . . . . . . . . . . . Executive Director Kelly Curtis. . . . . . . . . . . . Finance and Operations Director Jennifer Klass . . . . . . . . . Development Director Kathy Harris. . . . . . . . . . . Program Director Peggy Cole. . . . . . . . . . . . Program Manager, Texas Mary Girsch-Bock . . . . . . Development Manager Carrie Stearns . . . . . . . . . Communications & Outreach Manager Valerie Grubbs. . . . . . . . . Accounting Manager Julie Fierro. . . . . . . . . . . . Education Manager Stephanie Von Ancken . . Programs / Office Assistant
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Daniel Nuckols, Chair Walter Lynn, Vice-Chair Kelly Sidoryk, Past Board Chair Ben Bartlett Gerardo Bezanilla Kirrily Blomfield Kevin Boyer Laura Gill Guy Glosson Wayne Knight Jim Shelton Sarah Williford
HOLISTIC MANAGEMENT In Practice (ISSN: 1098-8157) is published six times a year by: Holistic Management International 5941 Jefferson St. NE, Suite B Albuquerque, NM 87109 505/842-5252, fax: 505/843-7900; email: hmi@holisticmanagement.org.; website: www.holisticmanagement.org
Fundraising Administration
How 2015 Funds Were Spent
Summarized Statement of Activities Revenues Educational Programs Grants Publications Mineral interests Contributions Investment income Partnership and trust income Miscellaneous income Net realized gains on sales of investments Unrealized loss on investments Total revenues
2015
2014
86,672 232,717 31,504 707,535 116,268 35,661 134,216 2,630 23,218 -6,638 1,363,783
112,100 214,276 42,405 1,134,466 139,034 112,675 163,357 3,266 -8,214 -7,214 1,906,151
Expenses Educational programs Publications Outreach Mineral interests Fundraising Administration Total expenses
850,520 55,660 150,398 246,978 105,850 256,371 1,665,777
657,459 52,378 72,125 275,221 51,587 309,050 1,417,820
Change in Net Assets
-301,994
488,331
Copyright © 2016 Holistic Management® is a registered trademark of Holistic Management International
FEATURE STORIES Annual Report Financials.......................................... 2 Donors & Supporters. . ............................................... 3 The Gadzia Suburban Homestead— Managing 2 Acres Holistically
ANN ADAMS................................................................................. 5
Willow Brush Ranch— Starting from Scratch
Roland Kroos— The Journey of a Holistic Management Certified Educator HEATHER SMITH THOMAS ........................................................ 9
Book Review............................................................. 10
LAND & LIVESTOCK Rancho Largo Cattle Company—Understanding the Interplay between Economics & Ecology
HEATHER SMITH THOMAS.......................................................11
KERI NELSON ............................................................................. 7
2 IN PRACTICE
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B Bar S Ranch—Anne Stilson-Cope
HEATHER SMITH THOMAS.......................................................15
September / October 2016
NEWS & NETWORK Reader’s Forum— KIRRILY BLOMFIELD.................................................... 17 Development Corner............................................... 19 Certified Educators.................................................. 20 Marketplace............................................................. 21
Donors & Supporters A heartfelt THANK YOU to the organizations and individuals whose generous contributions have helped to make our work possible.
Stewards ($50,000+) The Christiano Family Fund USDA/NIFA BFRDP Guardians ($10,000+) The Cynthia & George Mitchell Foundation Thornburg Foundation Threshold Foundation Western SARE - Utah State University Protectors (5,000+) Genevieve Duncan Keepers (2,500+) Clif Bar Family Foundation Patrons (1,000+) 11th Hour Project Armando J. Flocchini III Ben & Denise Bartlett Clint & Betty Josey Dan Nuckols Don & Randee Halladay Emry Birdwell & Deborah Clark Gail Hammack & Doug McDaniel Joan Bybee Joy Law Laura Gill Linda & Bobby Meuth Mayette Johnston Rocky Mountain Farmers Union Ron Chapman Susie Hagemeister TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation Sustainers ($500+) Alice Ball-Strunk Belva Locker Byron & Wayne Eatinger G Rodes Gail Kursel Hugh B. Garnett Jr. Jim & Sara Shelton Kelly Sidoryk Kent Reid Linda K James Linda Museus Mary N. Adams Noah Small Pono & Angela Von Holt Ryan Jarvis Sebastian & Kelly Stadler Walt & Dianne Davis William S. & Tracy Litle Supporters (250+) Ann Adams Björn Fallström
Clifford & Mary Ann Borgelt Jaye Henneke Kathy Harris Lowell & Mary Forman M.K. & Veronica Campbell Nancy Levi Ranney Peninsula Open Space Trust Pete & Linda Hutton Peter Schulze Rob & Martie Rutherford Scott Sims & Family Friends (<$250) Adrian Callender Adrian Favis Alejandro Tizatl Juarez Alfred (Chip) Chenoweth Alisa Gravitz & Joe Garman Andrey Sobkalov Anita Ramos & Reid Folsom Art & Leslie McElroy Barbara & William Scaife Ben Berlinger Bruce & Lisa Rickard Bryan Wehrli Candace Burns Carl D Warrick Carrie Stearns Carrizozo SWCD Charles & Peggy Schmidt Charles Garrett Claire Anderson Clifford Hawbaker Clint Walker Cynthia Villa Dana Lydon Dave Maxwell Dave Waters Dee Ann Henneke Denise Bostdorff & Daniel O’Rourke Derek & Roberta Meader Derek Blomfield Don (Roc) & Judy Rutledge Don Faulkner Douglas Dockter Edwin Waters Elizabeth West Elizabeth Wheeler Gary Gilbert Gary Henneke Genevieve Cran George Whitten George Work Glynn Schanen Greg Glenn Guy Glosson
Ike Mallula Jack & Teresa Southworth James & Geraldine Matthews James F. Dudley James Friedrich James H Johnson James McCollum Janet Deane Jared Dressman Jeff & Denise Hunewill Jennifer Munster Jennifer Peotter Jeremy & Jodi Peake Jerry Kitt Jim & Barbara Long Jim & Gerry Rackley Joan Kelleher João Sanganha John & Julie Ott John & Pamela Trent John G. Hackley John Wernette JW-Carlton Family Ltd Katherine Dickson Kelli & Bill Parker Ken Gallard Ken Riddle Kent Burnett Kevin Fulton Kim Pophal Larry Madge Lee & Jill Dueringer Linda Davis Linus Meyer Louis Hagener Lowry McAllen Lucy Trujillo Margaret Hillenbrand Margarette Chavez Margy Rogers Mark & Wendy Pratt Marnie Hoy Mary Baldrige Mary Ellen Gonzales Mary Emeny Michael Gooden Michael Sweeney Milton Suthers Nicole Schmid Nikolaus Gruswitz Pete Ferrell Peter Wizinowich Petra Zinniker Philip Bancroft Philip Close
Priscilla Marden Rich & Anne Morris Richard Teague Rick Cameron Rita Talbot Robert Campbell Robert Duffy Robert Parker Robin Acton Robina Satchwell Sally Gamauf Sally Wellborn & William Gallagher Samantha Lapin Sandra Langelier Sarel J L Marais Spencer Martin Stacey Sullivan Stacy Maurer Stephanie Cloutier Stephanie Von Ancken Steve Dorrance Sue and Don Gilbert Thom McAllister Tom & Irene Frantzen Valerie Grubbs Vivianne Holmes W.L. Holmes Walter Lynn William Jenkins William Jonsson A special thanks to the following organizations and individuals who have graciously supported our programs. 11th Hour Project All We Need Farm Animal Welfare Approved Area Farm & Food Link Australian Government Extension Avila Valley Barn Barking Cat Farms Bat Conservation International Berkshire Grown Canadian Forage & Grassland Association Carne 47 Carrizozo Soil & Water Conservation District CD & Bobby Pounds Center for Environmental Research Central New York RC & D Claunch-Pinto Soil & Water Conservation District Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (MA)
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Donors & Supporters
Connecticut Dept. of Agriculture Connecticut Natural Resource Conservation Service Cornell University Corpus Christi Downtown Farmers Market Craig & Claire Kapernick Dallas Farmers Market Dancing Bee Winery Dave James Day Springs Farm Debbie & Don Davis Debbie Smith Dixon Water Foundation Ducks Unlimited Canada Dunblane Farm Eastern Connecticut RC & D Edible Austin Erik & Doniga Markegard Faith Hollow Ranch Farm & Ranch Freedom Alliance Farm Aid Farm Grange School Fig Trees Organic Farms Fort Bend County Extension Glen Orton Farm Glenrock Farm Good Roots Garden Greencover Seed Greg & Rachel Hart Hill Country Alliance Jackson Soil & Water Jake Smith James Ranch John Stigge Jonathan Cobb Judi Earl Kane Veterinary Supplies Kerr Wildlife Management Area Kim Martin King’s Mark RC & D La Cosecha CSA La Montanita Co-op La Plata Open Space Conservancy Land for Good Laurie Bostic Lives Lucends Farm Maine Agricultural Mediation Service Maine Farm Service Agency 4 IN PRACTICE
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Maine NOFA Maine NRCS, Maine Organic Farming & Gardening Assoc. Mangarara Station Markegard Farm Massachusetts Department of Agriculture Massachusetts Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA) Nancy Ranney National Grazing Lands Coalition Native Prairies Assoc. of Texas Natural Grocers NCAT New Connecticut Farmer Alliance New England Small Farm Institute New Hampshire Dept. of Agriculture New Hampshire Farm Bureau New Hampshire NOFA New Hampshire NRCS New Hampshire Soil & Water Conservation Districts New Mexico Association of Conservation Districts New Mexico Game & Fish New Mexico NRCS New York NRCS NMSU NMSU Extension North American Hair Sheep Assoc. North Country RC & D NRCS Texas Pacific Organics Paddy & Liz Reynolds Panorama Meats Peach Trees Peninsula Open Space Trust Pines & Prairies Land Trust Piojo Ranch Rancho El Represo Del Verde Ranney Ranch Raven Lukehart Richards Family Farm River Systems Institute
September / October 2016
Rocky Mountain Farmers Union Ross Farm Rural Texas Innovators Ruzicka Sunrise Farm Saddle Butte Ag San Mateo County Resource Conservation District Sand Creek Farm & Dairy Seco Valley Ranch SG & R Farms Small & Beginner Farmers of New Hampshire Southeast Massachusetts Agricultural Partnership Southern New Hampshire RC & D Southwest Grassfed Livestock Alliance Stacey Roussel Stigge Farm Sunnybrae Farm Sustainable Food Center Sustainable Growth, TX Tamara Ranch Texas & Southwestern Cattle Growers Assoc. Texas A&M Agrilife Texas Ag Land Trust Texas AgriLife Research Texas Dept. of Agriculture Texas NRCS Texas Organic Farmers & Gardeners Association (TOFGA) Texas Parks & Wildlife Texas Riparian Association Texas-Mexico Border Coalition The Christiano Family Fund The Cynthia & George Mitchell Foundation The Dixon Water Foundation The Intervale Center The Thornburg Foundation TomKat Ranch TomKat Ranch Education Foundation Tracy & Bill Litle Triple Cross Farm TRM International TX NRCS University of Connecticut
Extension University of Maine Coop Extension University of Massachusetts University of NH Extension University of Texas-Pan Am University of Vermont USDA/Western SARE Valley Food Partnership Vermont NOFA Walker Honey Farm Weston A. Price Foundation Wimberley Valley Watershed Assoc. Women’s Agricultural Network – Maine Women’s Agricultural Network – Vermont Women’s Agricultural Network Connecticut 5.6 Million Acres Influenced in 2015 8,000 People Trained Worldwide
178 people from 19 countries enrolled in HMI’s Online and Distance Learning Classes 104 farmers and ranchers participated in HMI’s Whole Farm/Ranch Business Planning Series
51 farmers and ranchers participated in HMI’s Whole Farm/Ranch Land Management Series
131 Beginning Women Farmers Trained in Seven States 92% of program participants experienced knowledge change as a result of the training
24 Open Gate Events in 5 Countries: ♦
United States ♦
Canada
♦
Australia
♦ ♦
Mexico
New Zealand
922 Open Gate Participants in 2015
The Gadzia Suburban Homestead—
Managing 2 Acres Holistically BY ANN ADAMS
W
hen I travel around the country more productive and healthy, providing talking to people about Holistic multiple ecosystem benefits. Management, people always comment on how they can’t It Takes a Village manage holistically because they don’t own The Gadzias utilize the acequia or animals or land. I usually mention HMI’s book, ditch flood irrigating system that is part At Home with Holistic Management, to help of New Mexico agriculture. In this case them understand that Holistic Management the water comes from the Rio Grande The 1 acre of pasture is usually grazed for about 50 days by is about managing the natural, human, and River and makes its way through a 5 Highland cattle on loan from their owner. The owner gets economic resources in your control through the series of ditches to the Mercantile free feed for the animals, saving the cost of 3 tons of hay. The Holistic Decision-Making process. You don’t Irrigation ditch that the Gadzias share pasture’s soil gets lots of ecosystem benefits from the cattle. need to own land or animals to do that. You just need to make summer long before the your decisions toward your Highland cattle come in the holistic goal. fall, the Gadzias decided to While Kirk and Tamara mow the grass several times Gadzia do own land (2 acres), in the spring. They found they they don’t own animals. The had tighter grass spacing and land they manage is part of more variety of plants with a suburban neighborhood in timed mowing than if they did the small town of Bernalillo, not mow. In this way, they New Mexico, just 15 minutes mow for soil/plant health, not north of Albuquerque. Kirk is a for aesthetics. long-time Holistic Management Kirk and Tamara both Certified Educator with over 20 come from a long background years of experience teaching in gardening and interest in Holistic Management worldwide caring for the land. As a team and Tamara has worked they grow most of the food on numerous educational they eat or use to trade for publications for the Quivira other food items. The one Looking out the kitchen window of the Gadzias’ home one sees the abundance Coalition, a local non-profit that exception is the meat. They of their harvest as well as the beautiful, edible landscape outside. focuses on sustainable land buy their grassfed meat from practices. with 12 other families. They are allowed to use another rancher, Nancy Ranney, of Ranney When Kirk purchased the property in 1995, the irrigation water once every two weeks for 6-8 Ranch in Corona, New Mexico. They know they there was no landscaping at all. Now their hours starting about April 1st. They can continue could probably raise a good portion of their property is host to 27 trees, 57 forbs, 17 shrubs to irrigate on that schedule as long as the water meat on their homestead, but they would rather and vines, 39 grass species, over 100 species holds out. help manage the Highland cattle for a couple of of birds, and numerous pollinators, insects, As for the grazing, it’s all done by 5-6 months and then not have to worry about animal and wildlife that all work to make those 2 acres Highland cattle courtesy of Virginia Smith of the husbandry the rest of the year. They also prefer Bar Lazy S Ranch in Los Lunas, New Mexico. to support a local ranch that is doing right by Those cattle average about 4.5 animal units the land as well. In this way, everyone wins as and in 2015 stayed for 51 days resulting in the Gadzias work to create a good quality of life the use of 230 animal days of feed off of one while growing healthy food and building healthy soil. acre of pasture. They divide that acre into 17 And the list of people helping to grow healthy paddocks to increase stock density and reduce land and healthy food for the Gadzias goes on. overgrazing. Averaging 27 pounds a day of feed One neighbor raises geese, so the Gadzias per animal day means that irrigated pasture trade greens for geese eggs, while they buy produced 6,200 pounds of feed or a little over their chicken eggs from another neighbor. Other 3 tons/acre of feed for the cattle and probably neighbors have apple, cherry, plum, and peach about the same amount of feed for the microtrees and happily encourage the Gadzias to organisms in the soil. They were fed through the glean from their orchards. The Mercantile Ditch carries water from the Rio large quantity of trampled forage incorporated These neighborly exchanges add to the Grande River and provides flood irrigation to into the soil. production the Gadzias have on their property 13 families. Whatever isn’t used is returned to Because they are growing pasture all CONTINUED ON PAGE 6 the Rio Grande River. N um ber 169
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Managing 2 Acres Holistically
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where most of the plantings fall into the edible landscape variety. Not only do they have highly productive raised beds that are constructed of cinder block that allows them to flood irrigate the beds from below when they are flood irrigating the pasture, they also have their own fruit and nut trees, table grape vines, and hops from which Kirk makes his own beer. They also plant many species that attract and provide food and habitat for pollinators. They even have a bee escape ramp in their pond to make sure that the bees attracted by this paradise don’t drown. And with all these trees, the temperatures in the house are more regulated. 100 degree temperatures are not unusual in June and July, so many people are running their cooling systems all day and night for comfortable indoor temperatures in this region. The Gadzias only have to run theirs in the afternoon because the trees create a cooler
closest to the trees,” says Tamara. “We realized we wanted a perennial bed, so we decided to transition that southern bed to perennials so we wouldn’t have to fight the tree roots. We also plant our squash late for here, in July, so we don’t have to deal with squash bugs. We always are looking at the best timing for what we want to do to work with nature.” The Gadzias don’t buy in any soil amendments. They get free manure from the Highland cattle for their compost and use their own egg shells and coffee grounds for a nutrient boost. (No, they don’t grow their own coffee!) Even with the winter cold snaps (0 degrees), their garden begins producing in February and goes through the late fall. They plant carrots to attract grasshoppers from other plants, and all their careful planting attracts the birds and spiders that eat the grasshoppers as well. Given what a plague grasshoppers can be in this area, they have very little predation from that species due to their symbiotic efforts. The plan this year is to add a 4th bed so they can begin to experiment with cover crops in the
The Gadzias have created habitat on their suburban homestead that has attracted over 100 birds. In turn, the birds provide a host of services including bug control. some young farmer come in and use all of these properties around us that are only being used for agricultural purposes in a very small way. But, sharing our food and the work with our neighbors is a big part of our quality of life. It’s part of a larger neighborhood experience.” “We are always making decisions toward our holistic goal. We look at how things will affect our quality of life and make adjustments. For example, we used to have the cattle with us in January and February, but it wasn’t fun breaking ice and moving them at that time of year. That’s why we shifted to having them come in October and November. It’s always a process of trial and error, but we seek to create the balance in our lives of improving the earth, having time for friends and family, and growing good food.” Kirk Gadzia can be reached at: kirk@ rmsgadzia.com. To learn more about Kirk’s consulting services and training, visit his website at: http://www.rmsgadzia.com/.
Almost all of the plantings on the Gadzias’ homestead are edible, as in the case of this Flame Red table grape arbor. The arbor design reduces bird predation of the grapes. micro-climate. It’s like the whole property is one giant swamp cooler. “Everything has a rhyme or reason,” says Tamara. They work hard to make sure each planting provides multiple benefits and doesn’t encroach on the goal of having all this production and aesthetics and a quality of life. Paying attention to what nature is telling them and working with it is the key. “We were really struggling with having to till around tree roots in our southern raised bed because it was 6 IN PRACTICE
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beds as another way to aid soil fertility while not decreasing food production and reducing composting efforts. While this may sound like a lot of work, Tamara assured me that they weren’t putting in more than 10-20 hours/week during the growing season. “It’s my health routine. I love to get outdoors and work in the garden, and I don’t have to pay for a gym membership,” she says. “I know there is so much more opportunity for agrarian activities in this neighborhood. It would be great if people would agree to let
September / October 2016
To utilize flood irrigation, the Gadzias have created cinder block raised beds where the bottom layer of the blocks are on their sides so water can more easily reach the soil at the bottom of the bed and be wicked up to the plants.
Willow Brush Ranch—
Starting from Scratch BY KERI NELSON
K
elly was a good ol’ 4th generation The biggest challenge we faced was writing everyone excited and wanting to work toward cattle and grain farm boy. I was a a Holistic Goal, and where to even start. something in common. I feels it’s a very natural typical hard headed, stubborn, get Singular goals are much easier to come up thing to include the kids on the goal setting and er’ done City Girl. In 2007, Kelly was with because it doesn’t involve anyone else brainstorming front because at the end of the sent off the family farm to find his fortune, and or have any heavy meaning in life. A Holistic day it is for them. One day they will do their own support his growing little family and became an Goal is real; it’s all encompassing; it’s what you thing, hopefully on the farm. electrician. Little by little since the day Kelly and want to work toward. The notes from our goal I set out into the world, we have slowly inched was: “sustainable, family oriented, community Farming without Land our way back to the land. Now as proud renters involved, open spaces, wellness.” There are many ways to farm and for kids on family land our dreams are near. While not Through our Goal and Vision Statement we who are wanting to start out in Alberta it is living out the idea of farming almost impossible to buy land, the family has (“You should go build a house, and afford the buy some cows and land”), we startup costs of whatever are marching to the beat of our path you want to take for own drum and expanding our farming. With the average knowledge in a different kind age of farmers in Canada of farming. being 55 years of age there is With various courses, land out there. Some farmers seminars and books read and are wanting to retire and are studied, the ideas of how and hoping their kids will come where to begin started. In 2014 back from the city to farm or at a Ladies Livestock Lessons want to leave a legacy to their conference, I was immersed family when they pass on. in the farming community, and However, when a farmer retires beyond all inspired that women and there is no one to jump in can do this. In the fall of 2015, and man the ship, then we end I came home with an idea. up with a lot of land with no There was a “holistic” farming one to work it. The practice of course running in the New Year renting land from other farmers and I thought we should take for crop or pasture is almost it. Kelly’s reply was “A what?” as old time, but is an easy little As we set off to the planning jump for a “First Time Young meeting full of questions, some Farmer.” Renting land is far Having chickens help give Keri’s children a sense of accomplishment, stubborn paradigms, and a lot of cheaper than mortgaging it, compassion and understanding of where their food comes from. confusion, we gave it a chance. and most rental agreements In January 2016 the course began and we were off made decisions on what we actually wanted to can go from one growing season to many years. to the races. do, which is nothing even remotely close to what Sometimes you find the old farmer who is just we had originally thought. In the beginning it so happy that someone is doing something on Paradigms, Communicating and Goals was Kelly’s dream to “have big, new machinery, the land and it’s not sitting idle. If you’re lucky The first weekend was full of learning what lots of cattle and lots of land. I was all about “big enough to find family land to farm on, the costs kinds of paradigms we have heard, live in and garden to feed two growing boys, all different can be different. believe are true. Some examples of these kinds of cute, mostly baby animals, cute little Renting land from family can be a challenge paradigms are: “There’s no money in farming,” farm house with a little red barn, and a horse, in itself due to the emotional attachment “Cash poor, Land rich,” “The only way to farm is small land space.” Basically Kelly wanted what to the land, and the change that is created with chemicals,” etc. With a huge shift in thinking he has always known and craved to get back when a younger generation doesn’t generally and having the world of possibility suddenly to, and I wanted a funny farm. Writing a goal agree wholly on what the older generation open up, the challenges were easier to see and and vision statement brought us together to a is practicing. There is no one way to farm. the solutions more attainable. visible future of what we actually want. Yes, it Different people work in different ways and work Communication is always a work in progress. will still involve cattle, at some point. Our boys according to their location and growing season, But with the course, we learned that using Kaleb, 8 and Koen, 5 even sat down for a big what’s available for startups and what they communication effectively with different statements family brainstorm and goal writing session with know. When you break out new ideas to a family such as “I feel” we have found it easier to us. They completed our goal with pictures—of who hasn’t done that particular avenue it can be communicate with extended family members. giraffes. Getting the whole family involved gets CONTINUED ON PAGE 8 N um ber 169
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Managing 2 Acres Holistically
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stressful, and hard to get started. There is a certain paradigm within old farming families, which are generally a monocropped or cattle in feedlot style, that small mixed farms “won’t work” and “won’t make any money.” So, let’s compare the income from canola versus the 1-acre market garden. Yes, the canola producer may gross more income, but once the costs are added up for cost of land, seed, spray, fertilizer, cost to purchase and maintain equipment, and, trucking, who is really getting further ahead? Most market gardens or CSA’s have a small tractor or even a walking tractor, less land costs, less seed costs and most are leaning back on the old organic and permaculture ways. The risks are less and the profit potential may be higher. The older generations of farmers have been told for decades about feeding the world and working in the paradigm of “more, bigger, better, faster,” when the new younger generations have shifted in thinking to local, communityinvolved farming. Hence, CSA’s (Community Supported Agriculture) and small mixed farms are popping up. There is a global shift with younger generations to support local, basically going back to the way life used to be in GreatGrandma’s time with sourcing local food. It’s fresher, lasts longer and is usually cheaper once you cut the large chain middle man. Kelly and I are some of those young renters, living in town about 15 minutes away from the family farm. It is a short “commute” for me to get to the farm every day. With Kelly still working an off-farm gig as an electrician, I really wanted to get started with something small, something I could handle on my own for the most part, something the kids could be involved with and learn from. So March 29, 2016 the first batch of chicks came. 200 heritage breed chicks to be exact. Through the Holistic Management decision-making matrix Kelly and I realized that we did not want to run a commercial breed for egg layers or meat birds. We wanted the flexibility of butchering the cockerels for meat and saving the pullets for eggs. While the egg production isn’t as high as the commercial birds, they also take longer to grow into egg production and butcher size. They are a hardier bird that can withstand the harsh Canadian climate easier.
pasture for the approximately 100 cockerels (meat chickens) and the 70 turkeys who will be living in some Salatin-style tractors and who will be rotated through the pasture as needed. The pullets will be in an old wooden grain bin converted into a chicken coop and will have rotational yarding. We also have a 20,000 sq. ft. market garden with a successive planting and crop rotation planned out. This small beginning has allowed us to keep costs relatively low and manageable using Kelly’s off farm job to finance until our business gets off the ground. I have maintained a tight schedule of when everything needs to be planted, moved, harvested and butchered while still allowing for some fun family time. The balance has been fairly easy so far, but as the season picks up there will be more running for the whole family. The Holistic Management course that Kelly and I took early this year has created an awareness to think outside the box, to look at avenues that aren’t the norm for the family and to create our own path. For a young family with little to no money to start a farm is a challenge that we are working daily to achieve. With the financial portion of the course, we learned to set our profits then set our expenses within what was left over. We also learned how to create a
Planning out the fields is a family affair.
Those who have learned how to use the Holistic Management decision-making framework know better than anyone the many benefits you can experience on a daily basis when you improve your decision-making. What have been your rewards? Here’s a short list I know from having talked to many Holistic Management practitioners and my own experience of practicing this for 20 years: 1. More time with the kids 2. Kids want to participate in the family and in the family business 3. Quality time with your spouse/partner 4. Profit/Financial Security 5. Being able to invest in the business so the business doesn’t run you 6. Getting to take vacations 7. Time to engage with your community 8. Eating better 9. Sleeping better 10. Seeing the landscape you influence become healthier
Our operation is close to 2 acres of land that hasn’t been utilized for almost 20 years. There’s
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Keri Nelson lives in Didsbury, Alberta, Canada and can be reached at: willowbrushranch@icloud.com
10 Reasons to Change the Way You Make Decisions
The Ranch
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financial model so the farm can flourish and thrive in the years to come. We constantly consider what machinery is actually required to purchase and if we can get away with renting some sorts of equipment to get by for now. It’s a lot to take in for the first season, but with careful planning and by starting small we are looking forward to a bright future of living a sustainable life while feeding our family, giving back to the community, and creating a solid rental land base we can expand in the following years to be able to step closer toward our Holistic Goal.
September / October 2016
Share your holistic decision-making story. What benefits have you experienced? If your story is selected to be used as a blog or an article, we’ll send you a free HMI hat! Send ideas and stories to Ann Adams at anna@holisticmanagement.org
Roland Kroos—
The Journey of a Holistic Management Certified Educator BY HEATHER SMITH THOMAS
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ased in Bozeman, Montana, Roland Kroos works with many farmers and ranchers across the western U.S., teaching Holistic Management through his family-owned company called Crossroads Ranch Consulting. Kroos grew up on a farm in Nebraska and decided to study range management in college. “My dad was a farm laborer and worked for several different people, including my uncle. My mother strongly encouraged me to go to college after I graduated from high school. I have a degree in wildlife and range management from the University of Nebraska, and began working for the NRCS after graduating from college,” he says. In 1978 Kroos started working for the NRCS in Nebraska. Shortly afterward (in May 1980) Mount St. Helens blew up and his job moved him to Washington State to help deal with those effects, as NRCS attempted to help restore vegetation to the blast zone. The NRCS gave him some stepping stones that he continues to use today when teaching Holistic Management seminars. One of those is the importance of managing for whole communities. “After the blast, the public was expecting us to come up with recommendations very quickly, to restore that area. The government spent a lot of money on the blast zone of the mountain to try to rehabilitate the soil, only to watch it take about 20 years before that land finally began to grow healthy vegetation back. We spent millions of dollars doing things like throwing seed from airplanes, with little success,” says Kroos. “The geologist told us that the estimated temperatures on the blast zone of the mountain would have been close to 2,000 degrees. This extreme heat cooked everything in the soil and even though the seed we threw out there germinated, the soil was inert, with no biological life.” “This was one of my strongest learning points involving biological communities—in the soil, above the soil and how one entity supports another. We had the perception at first that we should go back in with native species that were there before the mountain blew up, without recognizing how the whole ecological site had totally changed,” says Kroos.“Now you
can go back to that site and see the change, but at first it was stark and nude—a very sterile environment.”
Introduction to Holistic Management
After completing various projects involving Mount St. Helens, things were starting to wind down a little bit and NRCS brought Allan Savory
Roland Kroos to Washington State in late 1982. “He was scheduled to speak at Ellensburg for 2 days and arrived 2 days early. He’d never been to this area, so they asked me and another colleague to show Allan around the Northwest. He’d only been in the U.S. about 4 years, at that time. In preparation for his presentation, he said he wanted to look at the land and some of the ranching operations,” recalls Kroos. “We did two days of tours and I asked if I could go with Allan on his walks, to see how he was able to read the land. So my colleague and I both went with him on his walks, and I was hooked.” After the tours, Allan was to present for 2 days. “The second day of his presentations was more for ranchers and farmers. This was the early 1980s—a period that was not very kind to ranchers and farmers. We lost 10 to 20% of ranchers/farmers in some regions during that time, due to the very challenging conditions. I was watching the ranchers/farmers at his presentation, and what Allan was telling them seemed like a breath of fresh air to them. He got some excitement going among this group of ranchers,” Kroos says. “Shortly thereafter, I moved back to
Nebraska as a District Conservationist and organized a two-day workshop with Allan. We did it in North Platte, Nebraska in January 1984 and had a phenomenal turnout. The first day we had about 175 people,” says Kroos. “The second day we had even more people—250--with some people standing around the walls. There was unbelievable excitement and energy at this meeting. Afterward about 40 ranchers that I was working with traveled clear to Albuquerque to attend the week-long seminar with Allan. Our Nebraska meeting really stimulated their interest,” he says. “They came back from that class, and started asking me to help them with their grazing planning. I told them I hadn’t really been through the seminar, myself. I’d spent several days with Allan walking across pastures, but I had not had the full induction into all of his ideas. The ranchers wrote a lot of letters to the state NRCS office saying that they wanted their field office staff trained in Holistic Management. The ranchers felt this was a great concept.
The Next Step
“After that, the NRCS sent me to my first class. Allan’s 7 day class was so intense. It was almost impossible for me to absorb all the ideas, so I went back again 5 months later, on my own. After that second class I became fully immersed with a group of ranchers in Nebraska and we had phenomenal success,” says Kroos. “The Center for Holistic Management had gotten started in late summer of 1984. Allan was teaching a class at Billings, Montana and about 6 ranchers corralled him and told him they wanted him to continue teaching. They said his ideas were too important to ignore. Since he was the only one who had these ideas, after that seminar they founded and created the non-profit organization that is now called Holistic Management International. It started here in Billings in 1984, and in 1985 they got a large grant that allowed them to hire 6 people to be trained in Holistic Management—and I was one of them. We called ourselves the Six-Pack,” says Kroos. CONTINUED ON PAGE 10
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“It was full immersion. I moved to Albuquerque and left my family in Nebraska. The grant would train us for six months and then we had to go out and start teaching our own seminars in Holistic Management and start generating revenue to keep it going. Otherwise we were not going to make it work,” he explains. “That’s how I became involved in Holistic Management, and have been teaching courses in it since 1985. By May of 1986 my training was finished and I moved back to Nebraska. My new job covered a large area; the title they gave me was regional director of the northern Rocky Mountain Plains. I was covering Nebraska, North and South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. At that time there was nobody covering Canada, so I was frequently going into British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan. This was a lot of traveling!” he says. “I had a wonderful experience doing this. I worked for HMI from 1985 until 1992 when I started my own company. Allan taught me how to do in-depth financial planning, and that aspect became my forte. I enjoy sitting down with clients and helping them with their financial issues,” says Kroos.
A Focus on Bison Production
Kroos has been working with buffalo operations for the past 30 years. In 1986 he began to work with the Durham Ranch, which at that time was one of the larger bison operations in North America. “John Flocchini and his father (Bud) went down to Albuquerque to attend a
Holistic Management course. Allan stressed the importance of having the whole team trained in this management approach. They had a large staff at their ranch, so they asked me and Kirk Gadzia to do an on-ranch on-site seminar for the rest of their team,” says Kroos. “This was the first on-site course, and I’ve been working with the Durham ranch ever since, helping them practice Holistic Management on this wonderful 55,000 acre ranch that runs 2,000 buffalo. It’s been exciting to watch the changes,” he says. “In 1995 I helped the Durham Ranch establish a land health monitoring program. Today we have more than 20 years of land monitoring data with photos that show some of the changes that have occurred. I’ve watched the dynamics, and have used that ranch as a training center since about 2000. I do one or two seminars each year on the Durham Ranch,” says Kroos. “This past April, Dave Carter, the CEO of the National Bison Association, asked me to come along with him to attend the Bison conference at Rice Lakes. I watched Marielle Hewett (the daughter of Mary and Lee Graece, of NorthStar) give a presentation, and watched Lee give a presentation. I was just amazed. Marielle could probably teach the grazing portion of my seminar. It was refreshing to hear a presentation from a practitioner who was that knowledgeable, with that much information. This really caught my attention,” Kroos says. “I felt so much energy in that room, and the desire for more information. So after Marielle’s presentation I proposed an idea. I told her I could do an on-site seminar at their place, if there was a facility I could use. We
briefly mentioned it to the group and they were excited about it. So we coordinated things, and did the seminar at Tomahawk Scout Camp,” says Kroos. “We had a perfect training location there. I asked the Graeses to participate. I told them I would do the seminar but I wanted their input. This is what works so well at the seminars I give at the Durham Ranch. I teach the Holistic Management, but the manager is there and some of the other staff at the Durham Ranch always help with it. Every morning I start with an hour-long question and answer session. Someone will ask me about vaccination programs for buffalo, or some other type of management question, and rather than me trying to answer it, I turn to the staff and have them explain how they do it.” “Just like the Durham Ranch, NorthStar is doing a very good job of practicing holistic management, monitoring, making adjustments, making decisions that are economically sound, and ecologically sound as you look at their pastures. They are also doing a good job socially—trying to help other buffalo producers get started.” Whether working with ranchers helping them with their business, or monitoring their land, or helping them with their grazing planning, or sharing his knowledge through presentations and seminars, Roland Kroos enjoys helping others learn how they can use Holistic Management to get the results they want on their land and for their businesses. Roland Kroos can be reached at: kroosing@msn.com or visit his website at: http://www.crossroadsranchconsulting.com/
Book Review by ANN ADAMS The Carbon Farming Solution: A Global Toolkit of Perennial Crops and Regenerative Agriculture Practices for Climate Change Mitigation and Food Security By Eric Toensmeier; Chelsea Green, 2016 I was quite eager to read The Carbon Farming Solution: A Global Toolkit of Perennial Crops and Regenerative Agriculture Practices for Climate Change Mitigation and Food Security by Eric Toensmeier as it clearly was articulated as a toolbox for all regenerative agriculture practices. And indeed it does cover the gamut of those practices as well as laying out a comparison of how well the different agricultural practices will sequester carbon and, therefore, mitigate climate change.
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The largest chunk of the book is a fairly exhaustive list of the numerous perennial crops for use in carbon farming for protein, fats, carbohydrates, oils, biomass, hydrocarbon, industrial starches, etc. This is where the book shines for me. It really helps you see how diminished our crop focus has become due to a combination of government policies and corporate influence. It boggles the mind how much of our production could be perennial and how the soils would be so much healthier for it. Ultimately, any practice that helps us improve carbon in the soil and soil health is a step in the right direction. As holistic managers we know that there are many factors as to why a producer will choose one carbon farming practice over another. We need to focus on how to get producers to take any step in the right direction toward carbon farming practices that speak to them. The first step is understanding the importance of carbon farming and the next step is being a part of the solution.
LIVESTOCK
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Rancho Largo Cattle Company—
characterized by high expectations and planning that looked good on paper. “I started out with a focus on efficiency to maximize stocking rate. On this ranch it takes about 60-70 acres to run a cow-calf unit year round. With our financial set-up, with me wanting to buy into the ranch over time, BY HEATHER SMITH THOMAS and having a land mortgage, we were asking a lot from a potentially 200cow operation--to support my family, pay the mortgage and allow me to hirty miles east of Walsenburg, Colorado, the Rancho Largo buy into the operation,” he explains. Cattle Company consists of 14,000 acres of dryland grazing Maximizing the stocking rate to spread the fixed costs over more (mixed short-grass prairie and pinon-juniper canyon habitat), cattle seemed the logical strategy, along with doing it the “right way” with most of it deeded, along the best cattle genetics, selective with two state school sections. Grady breeding, detailed animal records Grissom came here in early 1996 to and financial records, tight calving run the ranch in a partnership. “My seasons, etc. “I understood partner is in the investment industry that stocking rate was the most in California, so our partnership important decision a manager combines sweat/equity—his equity makes, but I did not understand and my sweat!” says Grissom. that there is no leeway to push the “Our plan was for me to acquire envelope—even with all the newest more and more of the operation, breeds, feeds, and technologies,” over time. This is all rangeland, he says. with no irrigation. It’s arid country, “In those early years, our with average annual precipitation of overhead was too high. We were 10-12 inches. When I came here, I’d trying to force the ranch to run had a lot of experience working on at 45-50 acres per cow, and we ranches, but I was not ranch raised,” started getting the results that Grady Grissom he says. His parents grew up on in hindsight a person would ranches, but he was raised in the suburbs of Denver. He spent time on his expect—low conception rates averaging 80-85%. We tried a number of grandparents’ ranches and became hooked on the land, the animals, and things to alleviate that including different breeds of cattle, local cattle, the ranch work ethic, and by the sixth grade he knew he wanted to be a rancher, changing calving season, etc. But ultimately we were overstocked and our so through high school and college he worked on ranches in Colorado. overheads were too high.” One thing he tried to do to alleviate the overstocking was to Dreams Meet Reality rotate cattle through the pastures. “But we did it without an ecological Grissom went to college on the east coast (a degree in geology from understanding of what we were doing. Our only goal in rotating cattle was Princeton University), then came back to Colorado and spent several to increase stocking rates. Under that scenario we had poor results. Our years working on ranches. He went to graduate school on the west recovery periods were about 40-60 days—shorter in the spring and longer coast, and while in graduate school started working for a horseshoer and in the summer.” became a farrier. “My career path through graduate school was always aimed toward Enter Holistic Management ranching,” he says. When this opportunity at Rancho Largo in Colorado “We were going through those difficult early years when I read Allan came along, he and his wife, Lynda, and their young daughter left Savory’s book and developed an interest in Holistic Management,” California to pursue that dream. says Grissom. “I had a good grasp of day-to-day work taking care of cattle, but in “I never did go to a school, but mainly worked from his book that hindsight I realize I didn’t have a very good grasp of strategic management he published in 1988. The critical influence of Savory was the concept decisions. I had very little knowledge of big-picture management or that economic success is driven by ecology. From 1998 until 2000 were ecological health,” he says. His initial management approach was CONTINUED ON PAGE 12
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transition years for us. When you group cattle more tightly and move them, their ecological impact on the environment becomes more apparent. The analogy that I use is that it’s similar to a lifelong beer drinker getting into the whiskey. It’s more potent. You really see what those cattle are doing because you have higher stocking density,” he says. Things all came together, reading Savory’s book and beginning to look at grazing ecology because those cattle were grouped up. “I developed that economic interest, and bought into Savory’s concept 100%--that ecology drives profit. There was one other major influence on my thinking. A really good Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) range guy put on a school—once a week for a couple months—and it wasn’t strictly Holistic Management, but he certainly was aware of Holistic Management concepts,” says Grissom. “We developed an ecological goal. Our ranch is short-grass steppe. We do get some February through April precipitation. Our elevation is 5,500 to 6,000 feet. On the initial ecological survey, we had very few cool season grasses in an environment that should support cool season grasses.” A long history of leasing and summer grazing had created a system dominated by gramma grass, with the cool season grasses, forbs and shrubs in low abundance. “There are a number of scientific papers that show the same thing for short-grass steppe; continuous grazing, especially at elevated stocking rates, leads to blue gramma and buffalo grass dominating the warm season grasses, and you’ll lose the cool season component,” he explains. Thus, his initial ecological goal for the ranch was to recruit more cool season grasses. “The first big adaptation/change we made, to accomplish that, was to extend our recovery period. We started at a minimum of 100 days. In the first couple years of extended recovery, we began to see results,” he says. “We had some initial success recruiting cool season grasses and
a number of other species including a native shrub called winterfat. In the winter it can have 12 to 14% protein. This shrub not only provides adequate protein for cows on winter pasture, but it is on the cows’ ‘candy list’ 12 months of the year. They hunt it down to eat it. So if you don’t give
This picture shows recovery after graze periods. The middle pasture with heavy manure (200’ from a water tank) was recently grazed in dormant season. The background pasture is partially recovered (compare to the near foreground). It will not be grazed until it has more growing season recovery. The near pasture (note wire) is fully recovered and ready for grazing. it a chance to reproduce, it is a decreaser plant. We figured out that if you give it a chance to go to seed, which the longer recovery period will do, this shrub is really good at reproducing,” Grissom explains. “There were a number of other grasses like green needlegrass, silver bluestem, vine mesquite—both warm and cool season grasses—that responded to that extended recovery. In 2000 we did an NRCS EQIP (Environmental Quality Incentive Program) contract to do some fencing and went from 9 pastures to 36. This improvement facilitated the extended recovery period and also shortened our graze periods,” he says.
Focus on Recovery
This photo is looking across Rancho Largo’s western boundary fence. Note the Winterfat (grey shrub) in the foreground and the lack thereof across the fence on the neighbors. This neighbor is a good operator with conservative stocking rates, high conception rates, and heavy weaned calves. However, they prefer continuous stocking in each pasture. They always have abundant grass, but their pastures lack highly palatable shrubs and forbs like Winterfat (classic decreasers). Without deferral periods these plants cannot compete. 12
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“There are many different ways to do things, but for me I have to absolutely focus on recovery period more than the length of graze period,” says Grady. “Even with the 36 pastures I came nowhere near the stocking densities required to get a mob grazing ecological effect. All of my grazing strategies are focused on diversity of plant species. I feel like that comes primarily from the extended deferrals. Over the years, instead of 100 days (or any set time) we now look at physiological plant recovery. Our criteria is to see if the target species has gone to seed since the last time that pasture was grazed,” he explains. The plants need a chance to complete their life cycle rather than have an inflexible time period. Seasonality thus became a huge focus. “I think that a lot of stockmen do focus on seasonality. If I graze a pasture in March or April the cattle are concentrating on the green cool season grasses, supplemented with dormant gramma and other warm season grasses. In July or August those cool season grasses have become mature and coarse and the cattle prefer the warm season grasses that time of year,” he says. “I can graze a pasture in August and not touch the cool season grasses, so if I come back 60 days later in the fall, then the cattle may be eating the cool season grasses. We began to focus on what the cattle were eating, and recovery of each plant species.” This gives more
flexibility for what’s happening year to year and how the season goes. “We ended up developing a monitoring program. Short-term monitoring—at the end of every graze period--involves looking at the percentage of each species that was defoliated during that graze period, and the severity of that defoliation. Long-term monitoring is where I butt heads with the scientific community. They want to see transects, hard data, etc. For my purposes all I need to do is make decisions. I’ve found that the transects don’t help me very much,” says Grissom. “In my travels around the ranch, moving cattle, etc. I begin to see where changes are occurring. I carry a camera and focus my monitoring on those locations.” To monitor the cool season grasses versus warm season grasses, he climbs up on a water tower to get a broad view of the landscape. Those grasses have a different color and texture and it’s easy to tell them apart. “On a scale of tens of meters, there will be a patch dominated by western wheatgrass, which is one of our main cool season grasses. The patches dominated by gramma have a different color and texture. I do annual estimates of where I am recruiting winterfat and how much, and do those estimates of cool seasons versus warm seasons. We have at least tripled our cool season grasses, but we didn’t triple them based on evaluating canopy or ground surface point counts. We tripled them based on looking across the pasture from a high spot,” he explains. “From 2001 through the present (including the severe drought years of 2011-2013) we are now running at 45-50 acres per cow, which between 1996 and 1999 was unsustainable economically because of the 80% breed back. Ever since 2001, all our breed backs have been over 90%. We have a mixed operation with cow-calf and stockers, retaining some calves. We cut back the cow herd to give us some flexibility in stocking rate,” he says. “On the cow performance side, that stocking rate has become sustainable, and ecologically we are still improving in terms of species diversity and residual grass. We have made that unsustainable stocking rate essentially sustainable.” These are the things that help determine whether a person can stay in business or not. “An important point that Jeff Pratt for NRCS emphasized was that if your overhead costs are too high the solution is to cut your overhead costs,” says Grissom. In 2002, needing to improve the economic picture, he went back to shoeing horses to help cut the overhead. “We decreased my management salary and I was able to support my family by shoeing horses,” he says. The ranch has no full-time hired help, but Grissom has plenty of summer help. He coaches wrestling and usually has some high school students as part-time help through the summer. “I don’t need full-time help because there are not a lot of winter chores. In our environment we sometimes get hard winters, but we also get a lot of open winters so winter feeding is essentially just putting out protein supplement. We do that with cake, tubs or alfalfa, whatever works out economically for that year.” It really helps to be able to graze most of the year. “This is a key piece of the grazing system that modern scientists (who have done grazing trials) don’t understand. Part of my seasonal variation of grazing is that the dormant season grazing period removes a lot of biomass, which is a factor in recovery. With the recruitment of cool season grasses, my dormant season grazing has been reduced to essentially December and January. Some years those cool season grasses are ready to graze by sometime in February. This year by late February, the cattle were getting on some cool season grasses that were 2 to 3 inches tall. If we have fall moisture we get some regrowth that can be grazed in the fall. My true dormant season grazing (where the cattle are not defoliating a green plant) has now been reduced down to December-January but it is part of that mix of seasonality in grazing,” he explains.
Grady doesn’t usually keep heifers, but last year for several reasons he kept a set of heifers, mostly out of Corriente cows bred to black and Charlais bulls. These heifers will weigh 900-1000 lbs. at maturity and retain many of the favorable Corriente traits including fertility and calving ease.
Cattle, Ecology & Markets
Grady started out with black baldies in a cow/calf operation. “Then to a large degree driven by grazing ecology, I went to a combination of cow/calf and stocker cattle. In those transition years (2001-2002), I was watching a video sale where 1,100-1,200 pound mother cows were bringing $700 to $800. Then they ran in a set of Longhorn and Longhorncross cows that were third trimester. The bid was at $260 so I picked up that whole set of pregnant Longhorn cows!” says Grissom. “Those cows taught me a lot. I’ve had Longhorn breeders try to get me to say that the Longhorns are better than anything else, but my line is just that their value can be better.” Every breed has some plusses and minuses. “At $265 versus $800 to purchase them, they didn’t need to raise as
“From 2001 through the present (including the severe drought years of 2011-2013) we are now running at 45-50 acres per cow, which between 1996 and 1999 was unsustainable economically because of the 80% breed back. Ever since 2001, all our breed backs have been over 90%.” big a calf. They are also very fertile and do well in rough country. We have canyons and rough country and they manage fine. For 6 months out of the year we are supporting 800 pounds of cow rather than 1,200 pounds, and that also makes a difference,” he says. The big drawback is on the marketing side, selling the calves. But if these cows are bred to a bull of another breed, the calves have more growth/fleshing as well as hybrid vigor. “I started out using Angus bulls, and for a couple years I artificially-inseminated (AI) mass bred most of those cows. Then I moved away from that, realizing that Charolais bulls gave me a more uniform calf crop out of a mixed set of cows,” he says. CONTINUED ON PAGE 14
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From 2002 until about 2010 he ran mostly Longhorn and Corriente cows, but didn’t retain any heifers. The heifer calves (to sell) were worth what a third trimester young cow was worth so it made more sense to sell the heifers and buy back bred cows. “By accident I kept some of those Angus-Longhorn cross heifers and even a few Charolais cross heifers and they made great cows. You end up with a 900-950 pound cows that is fertile, hardy and raises a good calf. But the Longhorn and Corriente cows stayed so cheap that I mainly just kept buying the cows,” he says. “Then in 2009 or 2010 I was having a hard time finding Longhorns and Corriente cows that were cheap enough, so I developed a relationship with a guy in Arizona and started buying some mixed cows from the Reservation. All the same things (about the Longhorns and Corrientes) applied to those cows. Some of those Reservation cows are red mottle-
Prior to adaptive management most draw bottom assemblages were Blue Grama, filaree (an annual forb) and sometimes Western Wheat Grass. But by 2008 diversity of draws also included Silver Bluestem, Vine Mesquite, Green Needle Grass, and New Mexico Feather Grass. faced and weigh about 900 pounds and I am not sure of their breeding. They are the toughest little cows on earth, but they have some issues with disposition!” In 2011 when the drought hit, he changed direction. “Now I don’t own as many of those cheaper type cattle. Because of the ecological resilience and the residual grass on the ranch, I ended up buying some higher quality cattle in 2011, thinking it would be a one-year deal. I bought some cattle that weighed 1,100-1,200 pounds—a mix of blacks and reds—that were more typical range cattle, thinking that in 2012 I would sell them. I assumed it was going to be just a one-year drought. Those cows were cheap when I bought them, but we ended up with a 3-year drought. With cow numbers coming up and the market acting funny, I can probably sell those higher quality cows that are easier to market and replace each of them with two Corriente or Longhorn cows for the same money,” he says. Flexibility in marketing strategies and not being locked in to any one breed can be a big help, doing whatever works. “My thinking there goes back to an article written by Bud Williams. His concept was that a rancher needs three things: capital, grass and cattle. Most of us are always out of capital and grass. Cattle are the one thing that is always available. The price may vary, but they are always available. It was that kind of thinking that led me away from being tied to any genetic focus. Any cow I buy is essentially for sale,” says Grissom.
Learning Through Neighboring
Grissom’s early years working on ranches and being immersed in eastern Colorado ranch culture imprinted him with a utilitarian view of grasslands; they were meant to produce beef to pay the mortgage. “I did not perceive grasslands as wild, natural places to be conserved. At 14
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the same time, my teenage years included a love of mountain climbing/ rock climbing and my brother and I roamed the Rockies from Colorado to Canada on climbing trips. These experiences and the culture I experienced as an undergraduate at Princeton imprinted me with an ecological view of the mountains and the environmentalist perspective that wild places must be protected and segregated from humans,” he says. He didn’t realize he held two conflicting views. “Even when I became partner and manager at Rancho Largo Cattle Company in 1995, I still had not recognized that my views of grassland and mountain systems were incompatible. These views were the result of two distinct cultural influences, not a rational perspective on ecosystem value and function. My experience at Rancho Largo began to provide that rational perspective. In the process of trying to pay the mortgage, I developed views about what a healthy ecosystem is, and how natural systems relate to human communities,” Grissom explains. “My journey convinced me that grasslands are wild, natural places that humans can manage toward desired outcomes.” Ultimately, human economics must be part of the solution, rather than the problem, in the conflicts between “environmentalism” and “conservation” and between industrial society and ecology. During his early years at the ranch he couldn’t hear what the land and cattle were telling him. “I clung to the paradigm of efficient stocking and tried all the right ‘fixes’ as the financial losses mounted. But eventually the cultural knowledge of my ranching neighbors broke through. They never told me what to do; I gained their knowledge through the community tradition of neighboring—sharing labor in the spring at branding and in the fall at shipping and preg-checking. Neighboring is simultaneously recreation, social interaction and business transaction. For me, it was a valuable education. I finally began to notice that the ‘successful’ ranchers had two things in common: fat cattle and lots of residual grass. Spring, fall, drought or blizzard—the ranchers that persisted for generations had more grass and fatter cattle than anyone else,” says Grissom. These cattlemen hadn’t gained their knowledge from textbooks or trade magazines; their land and cattle had taught them what works. “I began to ask about stocking rates but their answers were never direct. ‘It depends,’ they said. Finally one of them told me, ‘Look at your cows; they’ll tell you when you are overstocked, before your grass will. If you learn to listen to your cows, you’ll always have grass.’ My cattle taught me to decrease stocking rates,” he says. Then his grass improved. “Cultural knowledge passed through generations of successful family ranches is a key to economic survival. I have been told repeatedly that ranchers who manage ‘the way Dad did’ are headed for failure. I found the exact opposite to be true. The cumulative experience on the interaction of cattle, land and money held by long-time ranchers is invaluable,” says Grissom. Ranching on native grasslands is inherently sustainable. “The immediate economic message from poor cattle performance forces ranchers to destock before overgrazing damages ecology. Ranchers who persist in overstocking will not survive economically. This ecological protection holds true, as long as the land and cattle are owned by the same entity,” he explains. “My monitoring program is driven by decision-making rather than statistical significance,” says Grissom. Ranchers don’t have to understand complex natural systems; they interact with them. Planned recovery grazing is a powerful tool to transform ranchers into ecosystem managers. Ranching can provide a compatible symbiotic relationship between human economies and an ecosystem. “Ranchers are ‘in’ nature. Their dependence on their land is complete, and their land depends on them,” he says.
B Bar S Ranch—
Anne Stilson-Cope BY HEATHER SMITH THOMAS
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he B Bar S Ranch, located in the mountains near Boulder, mechanical engineering. We were married in 1989 and became involved Colorado, has been family owned and operated since 1965. “My in the ranch.” parents, Don and Marianne Stilson, bought this property and By that time, she and Grady had learned a great deal from Savory’s raised us kids there,” says Anne Stilson-Cope. Don and Marianne books and the newsletter circulated by the Center for Holistic Resource came to Colorado in the late 1950s after meeting at Washington State Management (now HMI) and the Colorado branch of the Center. Looking University. In 1960, Don became a professor at the University of Colorado back, they believe the family’s lack of ranching background may have Medical School. been an advantage. Their ignorance allowed them to embrace Holistic Not long after the family arrived in Colorado, Anne, her mother and Management without previously acquired ideas standing in the way. younger brother Tom became interested in horses. The family bought a In 1990 Grady, Anne, and parents bought the Prairie Ranch south of ranch west of Boulder to provide hay and pasture for the horses. “A house Elizabeth, Colorado, in western Elbert County. It was at 7,000-feet was built there in 1970 and Dad had a 100-mile commute to the Medical elevation, and high plains with good grass. School in Denver,” says Anne. “In 1970 my parents acquired a couple of ancient John Deere tractors, Adapting the Herd a side-delivery rake, an old mower, and a worn out baler and began At that point the family expanded the operation by adding 30 pregnant putting up hay—selling some of it and feeding the rest to their own horses cows. “We carried 50+ mama cows through that first winter. About twenty and 20 to 25 horses boarded for calves from the previous year other people. Dad wasn’t there very were grass-fed and sold directly to much, except during his vacation, consumers that fall. For the next which was always the time when the 15 years my parents, Grady and I whole family pitched in and put up were paying for the land. Together, hay,” recalls Anne. we bought a bunch of bred cows “In the late 1970s the market to keep at the Prairie Ranch,” for horse boarding seemed to be she says. weakening, and it looked like we “These days, we take the might need another enterprise for yearlings up to the Mountain our ranching operation. My parents Ranch for the summer only. decided they could generate a little Feeding hay in winter up there is income from raising beef cattle. not too difficult, but it’s very hard to Mom bought a couple of bred cows keep cows at 8,000 feet during the and we were in the beef business.” winter because the water systems “In 1985 Dad met C. Wayne are almost impossible to keep Cook, a retired CSU professor of thawed long enough for the cattle Don Stilson and Anne Stilson-Cope animal science and cowboy. Instead to get a drink,” says Anne. of depending on personal opinion, Cook and two colleagues gathered “Each season, on the Mountain Ranch, our grazing patterns become a extensive data comparing grassfed beef with beef from grain-fed animals. little more sophisticated. The water source [natural springs] is in different They compared everything from production costs to measures of the places in the meadow. We fence the cows out of the springs and pond toughness and fat content of the beef. The researchers also looked at that support fish, birds and other wildlife. Every year the grazing system taste comparisons made by people who were not told whether the beef in is tweaked a little. It’s like a wheel but because of the land configuration, their mouths was grain-fed or grass-fed. They weren’t wildly enthusiastic it’s not a wheel. For stock water, we move the tanks around and pipe one way or the other, but they concluded that grassfed beef was good [gravity flow] the water to where the tanks are. There have been some to eat. It didn’t cost much more to raise grass fed beef than grain-fed, really dry years that we have had to haul water to the stock tanks because so when Dad got through talking to Professor Cook and read this report, the springs were not functioning. The Mountain Ranch is 100 acres but he decided that we ought to try marketing our grass-fed beef directly supports 50 to 60 head of cattle for our beef program during 3 months in to consumers.” the summer, thanks to the grazing system.” About the same time, her father heard Allan Savory interviewed This last summer she had 50 head at the Mountain Ranch–-cattle she on a PBS radio broadcast. He found Savory to be both interesting and bought that spring from Wyoming. “The 29 head at the Prairie Ranch are persuasive and immediately signed up for a short course being taught by mama cows calving in June. Calving in March is too hard on the mamas Savory in Denver, with ranch visits in Elbert County. This was the Stilson and babies alike. We have 11 steers for the beef program from last year’s family’s introduction to Holistic Management. “My parents implemented calf crop. These steers I can honestly say are 100% grassfed because the grazing system at the same time they began selling grassfed beef,” they have been under my supervision since they were born. I just don’t says Anne. have enough of them to supply all the people who want to buy beef from Then Anne met Grady Cope. “Grady is a Colorado native and grew up us,” says Anne. in Arvada Colorado. In 1985 we met in a calculus class at the University of The purchased yearlings on the mountain ranch are black Angus. “Our Colorado/Denver. I was in the electrical engineering school and he was in CONTINUED ON PAGE 16 N um ber 169
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mama cows are a commercial cross, but I bought a Buelingo bull last year to breed them. The Buelingo is a mix of black Angus and Dutch Belted. At the same time they have the Angus small birth weight, but grow fast. You don’t have to be out there pulling calves.” The high elevation pastures make good summer environment, with good grass, but the cattle have to come off that ranch in September. “This is because we sell them after they have gone through the peak growing season. If we don’t bring them down at that point, we may get stuck up there in the snow. We sell our beef in September. If there are a few that are not big enough we may keep them until the next year. I’ve brought them down to the prairie ranch to graze for a couple more months. We have an open winter longer down there.” The cattle are usually between 18 and 24 months when sold. “There are many variables that determine how soon they are ready. It’s really nice on a year like 2015, where we had plenty of grass, because we had rain. It’s a gift, and makes a huge difference. It makes me feel good when it looks like the animals are happy. When it’s hot and dry they are not as happy,” Anne says.
They were said to be grassfed, but I don’t feel I can really qualify through the AGA because they weren’t under my care and management; I didn’t watch them from the day they were born. I think I could say they were grassfed, but I can’t guarantee it,” she explains. “My goal is to be an operation that can honestly say that we follow all the guidelines of the AGA, but I am not sure we can make AWA certification again because we have to buy some animals every year.” She doesn’t want to buy animals from Texas or Missouri, since long transport is against the AWA guidelines. “It’s hard on the animals to have a 10-hour or 2-day truck drive. It’s bad enough trucking them from Wyoming, which was a 5-hour drive.”
Improving the Land
The Stilson-Cope family has worked hard to improve the health of the land through their grazing. “The main thing we do is try to optimize our planned grazing. Another thing we try to do is weed management without using herbicides. The way we manage weeds is to cut them down or dig them up. We do a lot of that at both ranches. The Niche Marketing grazing also helps with that,” she The family has been selling says. “clean, lean, freezer beef” for “There has been tremendous 30 years, with direct sales to beneficial animal impact on the customers. The cattle are finished land this past year. If we can on grass in high mountain pastures, concentrate the animals in a small and are not given growth hormones, area for a short period of time, it antibiotics or any grain. “Our makes a difference in how the land customer list gets bigger every year looks the next year,” Anne says. The Mountain Ranch provides summer grazing for the herd. The and we get more new customers,” “These are the 3 biggest things, Stilson-Cope family has been working to adapt their grazing every year says Anne. for us—the planned grazing, and during the growing season to encourage greater biodiversity and land “A few year ago we got Animal the animal impact from that, along health, including protecting the natural springs. Welfare Approved certification. with weed management. This We got the processing plant (Arapahoe Meat Co) AWA certified so we has greatly improved our land. I was out mowing weeds along the road, could be AWA certified. Every year we buy some cattle in the spring for because I don’t want them spreading into our property. The seeds come the beef program, keep them on grass for 3 months and then take them from the road base, but you can’t expect the county to come out and mow to the processing plant for our customers. But I can’t find another AWA the weeds in a timely manner. They might mow along the road, but it’s certified source of beef, partly because we are one of the only 3 AWA usually after the seeds are already out. It’s better to mow them earlier. This certified operations in Colorado. So AWA terminated our certification. I is probably the biggest battle we have. There’s a lot of management that tried to explain to them that I wanted to develop this program and get goes with the grazing, but the weed control is the hardest part,” she says. more people involved. I was working to do that, but I couldn’t find enough Animal impact and herd effect have been used to nudge certain certified animals. Currently we are certified American Grassfed Association targeted areas toward the landscape goal. For instance, feeding in the members.” spring (when the ground is wet) in areas eroded by runoff has smoothed “There are more rules today regarding what you call grassfed. Natural those eroded surfaces, trampled in seed from the hay, and stimulated beef is not always grassfed, and organic beef is not necessarily grassfed. more grass growth. Natural beef is not organic beef. We are working to follow AGA rules. I In 1994 the family re-wrote their 3-part holistic goal. Part of that goal don’t claim an AGA label yet, because we are not quite there. American was to enable Anne and Grady to be on the land full-time, without having Grassfed Association label says from weaning to slaughter, whereas to work in town. For this family, Holistic Management has been a Animal Welfare Approved says from birth to slaughter. “ philosophical foundation for living, and it became “natural” to consider She calls her product grass finished. “For instance in 2014 I didn’t ranching problems in terms of the missing keys, the testing and know exactly where the cattle came from. That part was not under my management guidelines and their quality of life goals. Over the years their control. It’s hard to find cattle that are certified. In 2015 I bought them holistic goal has guided them to continue to grow quality meat while indirectly from a rancher in Wyoming and knew where they came from. continuing to improve the health of the land. 16
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READER’S FORUM Health Benefits of Grass Fed vs Grain Fed Beef BY KIRRILY BLOMFIELD
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f you’ve ever tasted the difference of beef fed on diverse pastures, there’s an inherent knowing that it must be better for you, because it tastes so good. I am a grass fed beef producer in Australia—and I’d like to share with you why my husband and I choose to produce grass fed beef in our business. We want to produce something that nourishes the body, not just fills the stomach. Many people already know that grass fed beef is better for them because of its healthier fat profile, but there are some other differences that you may not be aware of, like its ability to satiate, its superior mineral content and its role in preventing modern, western society diseases. Let me start by explaining why the fat profile of grass fed beef is healthier.
Good Fats
There has been much recognition of the importance of fats in our diets in recent years. And they do form a very important part of our diet but it’s essential that we eat the right ones—or more importantly, that we eat the right balance to help ensure great health, longevity and freedom from modern day diseases. Essential fatty acids are named so as they are required in biological processes in our bodies, as opposed to fats that are for storing and providing energy. Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids are such fats, and it is the balance of these essential fatty acids that is important. There is much evidence to suggest that the diet on which we evolved consisted of a ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids of around 1:1. Modern day western diets however, have much higher relative levels of omega 6 fatty acids, which has been found to promote diseases like heart disease and cancer, as well as inflammatory and autoimmune diseases (1). Shockingly, most current western diets consist of ratios of around 16:1 and even higher! Choosing grass fed beef over grain fed beef assures you a healthy balance of fats from your beef. Grass fed beef has an omega-6 to omega-3 ratio of around 1.5 : 1—a level consistent with wild game —because, like wild game, grass fed animals are eating what nature intended! This is compared with grain fed animals—the meat of which has a ratio of up to 7:1 and even as high as 16:1(2)—much higher in its relative quantity of the less desirable omega-6 fatty acids. High concentrations of Omega 6 in the diet have been linked to memory problems, confused behavior and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as weight gain, allergies and depression. Research shows that choosing grass fed beef helps put you in a position of preventing or fighting these diseases. Virtually all cattle in Australia are born into a grass fed environment. Many of these however are then sent to feedlots (CAFO’s) as yearlings (at a certain weight and age), where they are fed and finished on grain. Research shows that the fat profile of the animal changes very quickly, (to an undesirable level) once the animal’s feed is switched to grain. Grain fed beef then takes to the consumer the potential health problems associated with this higher omega-6 to omega-3 ratio—and in most cases to an unknowing consumer. This is one of the reasons why I choose to eat and produce
beef that is not only fed on pasture, but is also finished on pasture—completely 100% grass fed. Grass fed beef is one of the best Grass fed cattle can be better for you and the land. ways to source healthy omega 3 fats, along with other grass fed & free range meats, coconut oil, olive oil, butter from grass fed dairy cows and eggs from pasture fed chooks. Avoiding commonly used vegetable and cooking oils (which are high in omega 6’s), will also help keep your omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio healthy —things like canola, sunflower, soybean and cottonseed oil. I avoid these whenever possible (and it’s not so easy to do if you eat anything remotely processed—they are in so many things, including most sweet and savory biscuits and crackers and even sultanas—listed as vegetable oils!). Many of these oils themselves are highly processed. Stick with whole foods, stick with what nature intended.
Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA)
It is not only the greater proportion of the desirable omega-3 fats that makes grass fed beef a healthier option. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is another substance found predominantly in ruminants animals (cows and sheep) fed on grass pastures. These CLA’s have great health attributes, such as aiding in the prevention of: • cancer • heart disease • osteoporosis • high blood pressure • inflammation Bodybuilders also love it for reducing body fat and increasing lean body mass.
Secondary Compounds
Another reason why you may like to choose grass fed beef over grain fed is due to the secondary compounds or phytochemicals (naturally contained in plants) that grass fed animals access when grazing—things like tannins, flavanoids, aromatic oils and alkaloids. These are rarely talked about with relation to food. We regularly hear about the primary compounds—protein, carbohydrates, energy, and the mineral content of food, but rarely do we hear about these secondary compounds. This is possibly understandable, because there are thousands of different compounds—but don’t let this have you underestimate their importance! The combination of a variety of these different compounds contributes to overall wellbeing—in this case, of our cows. It also however, has a positive knock on effect to our health— the ones consuming the grass fed beef! These secondary compounds are like nature’s medicines. They are CONTINUED ON PAGE 18
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the things responsible for why red wine is said to be good for your heart and why certain herbs can aid health. Secondary plant compounds have many roles in your body including appetizing, digestive or therapeutic purposes.(3) What cows need then, to access the necessary variety of these compounds, is a diverse pasture on which to feed. The access to this diversity of plants means that the animals maintain good health and the need for chemically treating sickness is avoided. Animals that feed on a single species crop (like an oat crop) however, simply don’t have access to this plant diversity. You and I (as humans) have mostly lost the intuition for knowing what we need to eat to ensure good health or to mend illnesses. Cows however, have not. Giving them a diversity of plants on which to feed will provide them the choice required that they may ‘self-medicate’ and ensure their own well-being. This is great because it means that the cows are healthy and farmers can then avoid pesticides and undesirable chemicals that may otherwise be needed to treat health problems in their cows. Secondary plant compounds are responsible for a huge range of positive impacts on cows (and then you, as you consume the beef). Here are some examples of the positive effects that plant secondary compounds can have on animals. They can: • Be antibacterial or anti-parasitic in the digestive tract • Provide antioxidant protection • Inhibit cancer growth • Stimulate circulation • Prevent diarrhea • Offer pain relief • Boost immunity • Provide satiety (feeling satisfied or full) • Influence feed intake • Improve fertility • Provide flavor and color to foods One cow will have different needs to the next (just like we have different nutritional needs to our friends), so a diverse pasture gives cows the ability to select for what they need. A standard grain mix, rationed every day to animals, as with grain feeding does not account for individual animal requirements. If you choose to consume beef fed on diverse pastures—it’s better for you. We choose diverse pastures for our cows to graze on so that we can avoid the need for ‘chemical bandaids’ for our cows. This means that our customers get the knock on effects of clean food and of the associated advantages of the plant secondary compounds when they consume our beef.
Mineral Content
Grass fed beef contains more vitamins, minerals and antioxidants than grain fed beef. Research has shown grass fed beef has increased levels of beta-carotene, which is a precursor to vitamin A. Higher levels of cancer fighting antioxidants (vitamin E, glutathione and superoxide dismutase) have also been attributed to grass fed beef.(4) Grass fed beef has also been shown to have higher levels of zinc, iron and vitamin B12 (5), all of which form important functions in our bodies.
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Organic and Grassfed
I fully support organic production of produce—and that’s how we choose to produce, free of pesticides, heavy metal residues and all the things that could otherwise accumulate in our food. You may like to know though, that just because some beef may be organically certified doesn’t mean it is grass fed. Organic meat can still be fed on grains— it’s just organic grains. This is great because you will avoid pesticides, but there will still be the issues associated with grain fed meats.Certified organic is also no guarantee of diversity in the pasture.
It Tastes Great!
It’s great to have healthy food to eat, but, we all also just want to have something that we enjoy the taste of, and this is what grass fed beef does. I especially love that thin layer of fat on the outside of a sirloin steak, or the divine taste of a scotch fillet (my favorite). You will also notice the taste come out in a slow cooked beef stew, when you use a collagen rich cut like chuck steak. The French refer to ‘terroir’, a set of environmental factors that affects the qualities and character of produce—like climate, soils, aspect etc. This is often referred to in relation to wine, but is increasingly being used when referring to other produce. In the case of grass fed beef— the feed that the animal consumes has a big influence on taste. This is why we graze our cows on diverse pastures and we say ‘you’ll love the taste difference’.
Conscious Choices means Better Health
Red meat has gotten some amount of bad press recently when related to human health. It’s a shame that things are simplified to this ‘black or white degree’ and there is no differentiation between whole red meat versus processed preservative containing meats, or how the animal was raised (grass fed versus grain fed), the style of cooking or the cuts of meats. More of you are realizing that we need to be more conscious in our choice of foods and we need to learn how to be more proactive about our own health. When I refer to the health benefits of grass fed beef—it’s obviously only useful when accompanied by other conscious eating. These choices, I know, will serve us well. Aside from the health aspects there are lots of other wonderful benefits of grass feeding animals, when they are managed well. They are a tool to heal and repair landscapes—something which can’t be done with animals in a pen. Holistic Management International (HMI) educates people to be able to manage animals for these outcomes. These positive land outcomes are another reason we produce the way we do—but that’s a whole other story and HMI can teach you that story! Kirrily Blomfield is a Holistic Management practitioner near Quirindi, New South Wales, Australia. She can be reached via http:// theconsciousfarmer.com.au/. This article first appeared as a blog at: http://holisticmanagement.org/blog/health-benefits-of-grass-fedvs-grain-fed-beef/ . References mentioned in this article can be viewed there.
DEVELOPMENT CORNER Improving Land Productivity in New Mexico
30 participants managing 14,030 acres participated in HMI’s Improving Land Productivity Series in Tucumcari, New Mexico. This 6-day series was taught by Holistic Management Certified Educator Kirk Gadzia, and holistic rancher Tom Sidwell provided on the ground application and information about how he is managing holistically at the JX Ranch outside of Tucumcari for 35 years. Tom has done a great job documenting his grazing planning and the results he’s achieved including the return of cool-season grasses coming back like western wheat grass. The series covered holistic Participants learning about goal setting, on-ranch decision grazing planning and land making, biological monitoring, health on the JX Ranch. grazing planning and land planning. Participants had the opportunity to learn from each other as well as work individually on their plans, as well as more experiential learning out in the field with plant identification and forage assessment and inventorying. This class was a diverse group of ranchers including members of the Mescalero and Navajo Nations, as well as ranchers who had Bureau of Land Management grazing leases. The operations ran from cow/calf to goats and chickens with a wide range of scale of operation as well as years of experience ranching. Particularly exciting was the inclusion of some younger producers fresh out of high school. Thanks to the Thornburg Foundation for their generous support of this event. Thanks also to our sponsors the Southwest Quay Soil and Water Conservation District and Rocky Mountain Farmers Union. Lastly thanks to the Sidwells and JX Ranch Natural Beef for their support of this event.
Open Gate Update
HMI has been busy collaborating with our Certified Educators on numerous Open Gates around the world. Here’s a brief report on a few of these popular events.
United Kingdom
HMI collaborated with RegenAG UK organized by Natasha Giddings for an Open Gate in June at Croome Court in Worcester where land manager Rob Havard has been practicing Holistic Management. Croome Court is a mid-18th century mansion in South Worcestershire that has been purchased by the National Trust in the late 1990s. Rob has 40 head of cattle that he uses to create the desired landscape for the Trust and the participants on the tour were amazed by the impact the grazing had had on producing large amounts of plant diversity that results in numerous pollinators enjoying that habitat. Participants were able to see the contrast between holistic planned grazing and conventional management when they viewed Croome Court land on one side of a river and the neighboring farm on the other side. The river bank on the Croome Court side had abundant grasses and trees holding the soil together. On the other side, the bank was
bare and eroded and the grass was short and had more weeds. There was also a presentation by Russ Carrington from the PastureFed Livestock Assocation (PFLA) in which he explained the relative costs of grazed grass versus feeding hay or silage (2.5 times more expensive), and grain (4 times more expensive) to ruminants. Holistic Management Certified Educator Phillip Bubb also presented on the Holistic Management decision-making process.
Canada
Carbon sequestration was a key topic of the HMI-sponsored Sunnybrae Acres Open Gate held on July 15th near Wawota, Saskatchewan, Canada. Holistic Management Certified Educator Blain Hjertaas led the Open Gate Field Day and helped people understand how this kind of land management can improve the health of the land in a way that is good for the agricultural producer and the consumer/ citizens that rely on these working landscapes to provide ecosystem services like carbon sequestration and improved water quality. Nearly 40 people were at the event to learn as well. Research from the Soil Carbon Coalition was presented at the event. The research showed that Blain’s ranch near Redvers showed that for every kilogram of greenhouse gas emissions that resulted from their farming practices, the Hjertaas family sequestered 17 kilograms. Another Holistic Management Certified Educator, Ralph Corcoran, was also part of the study and on his farm near Langbank he is sequestering 39 kilograms for every kilogram emitted.
Texas
Fifty-two people from 18 different counties gathered at Redeemer United Church in Zuehl, Texas to learn about healthy soil and healthy food as part of HMI’s Hickory Lake Open Gate. Together, participants manage more than 2,280 acres! Jim Rackley of Hickory Lake Beef was a huge hit, providing participants with a passionate overview of how and why he does mob grazing on his land. Out on the land, Jim showed participants his cattle moving pens designed by the late, low-stress stockmanship guru Bud Williams. Later, Betsy Ross helped participants understand the role of many different plants in highly diverse pastures, revealing her passion for reading the land. Her brother, veterinarian Joe David Ross, pointed out any plants that, when eaten in quantity, could be dangerous for livestock. Holistic Management Certified Educator Tracy Litle explained the Bullseye method of monitoring rangeland, by dividing participants into small groups, armed with targets and scoring sheets. Participants proceeded to evaluate an area of land to see how close to the ideal it was. For lunch, Chef Tobias Soto was busy cooking up some of the Rackleys’ grass-fed beef, along with some vegetable dishes made from organic, freshly harvested vegetables from My Father’s Farm, donated by Doug Havemann. After lunch and a panel discussion, participants headed out to Hickory Lake for a pasture walk led by Betsy Ross. The day concluded with Tracy providing participants with a brief description of the Holistic Management Decision-Testing process. HMI would like to thank all of our collaborators who helped make the day a success, including: Hickory Lake Beef, Sustainable Growth Texas, Chef Cooperative, Farm & Ranch Freedom Alliance, The Weston A. Price Foundation, Mesquite Field Farm, Sustainable Food Center, Humo of San Antonio and Chef Toby, and the Sustainable Ag Network.
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Certified
Educators
The following Certified Educators listed have been trained to teach and coach individuals in Holistic Management. On a yearly basis, Certified Educators renew their agreement to be affiliated with HMI. This agreement requires their commitment to practice Holistic Management in their own lives and to seek out opportunities for staying current with the latest developments in Holistic Management.
Kathy Harris Holistic Management International 5941 Jefferson St. NE, Suite B Albuquerque, NM 87109 505/842-5252 • kathyh@holisticmanagement.org NEW YORK Craig Leggett 6143 SR 9, Chestertown, NY 12817 518/494-2324 (h) • 970/946-1771 (c) craigrleggett@gmail.com Erica Frenay Shelterbelt Farm 200 Creamery Rd., Brooktondale, NY 14817 607/539-6512 (h) • 607/342-3771 (c) info@shelterbeltfarm.com Elizabeth Marks 1024 State Rt. 66, Ghent, NY 12075 518/828-4385 x107 (w) • 518/567-9476 (c) Elizabeth.marks@ny.usda.gov Phillip Metzger 120 Thompson Creek Rd., Norwich, NY 13815 607/334-2407 (h) • pmetzger17@gmail.com
* U N I T E D S TAT E S CALIFORNIA Lee Altier College of Agriculture, CSU 400 West First St., Chico, CA 95929-0310 laltier@csuchico.edu • 530/636-2525 Owen Hablutzel 4235 W. 63rd St., Los Angeles, CA 90043 310/567-6862 • go2owen@gmail.com Richard King 1675 Adobe Rd., Petaluma, CA 94954 rking1675@gmail.com • 707/217-2308 (c) 707/769-1490 (h) Kelly Mulville P.O. Box 23, Paicines, CA 95043 707/431-8060 • kmulville@gmail.com Donald D. Nelson 11728 Shafer Ave., Red Bluff, CA 96080-8994 208/301-5066 • nelson-don1@hotmail.com Rob Rutherford 4757 Bridgecreek Rd., San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 805/544-5781 (h) • 805/550-4858 (c) robtrutherford@gmail.com
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COLORADO
Joel Benson P.O. Box 4924 Buena Vista, CO 81211 719/221-1547 • joel@holisticeffect.com Cindy Dvergsten 17702 County Rd. 23, Dolores, CO 81323 970/882-4222 • 970/739-2445 (c) wnc@gobrainstorm.net Katie Miller 22755 E Garrett Rd, Calhan, CO 80808 970/310-0852 heritagebellefarms@gmail.com
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IOWA
& Erin Wilson *4375Torray Pierce Ave., Paullina, IA 51046-7401
712/260-6398 (Torray) • 563/419-3142 (Erin) torray@gmail.com • wilsonee3@gmail.com MAINE Vivianne Holmes 239 E Buckfield Rd., Buckfield, ME 04220-4209 207/336-2484 • vholmes@maine.edu
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MICHIGAN
Larry Dyer 1113 Klondike Ave, Petoskey, MI 49770 231/347-7162 (h) • 231/881-2784 (c) ldyer3913@gmail.com MISSISSIPPI
Sullivan *610Preston Ed Sullivan Lane NE, Meadville, MS 39653 prestons@telepak.net 601/384-5310 (h) • 601/835-6124 (c)
MONTANA Roland Kroos 4926 Itana Circle, Bozeman, MT 59715 406/522-3862 406/581-3038 (c) kroosing@msn.com Cliff Montagne Montana State University 1105 S. Tracy, Bozeman, MT 59715 406/599-7755 (c) • montagne@montana.edu
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NEBRASKA Paul Swanson 5155 West 12th St., Hastings, NE 68901 402/463-8507 402/705-1241 (c) swanson5155@windstream.net Ralph Tate 1109 Timber Dr., Papillion, NE 68046 402/932-3405 402/250-8981 (c) Tater2d2@cox.net NEW HAMPSHIRE Seth Wilner 24 Main Street, Newport, NH 03773 603/863-4497 (h) • 603/863-9200 (w) 603/543-7169 (c) seth.wilner@unh.edu NEW MEXICO
Ann Adams Holistic Management International 5941 Jefferson St. NE, Suite B Albuquerque, NM 87109 • 505/842-5252 anna@holisticmanagement.org Kirk Gadzia P.O. Box 1100, Bernalillo, NM 87004 505/263-8677 (c) • kirk@rmsgadzia.com Jeff Goebel 1033 N. Gabaldon Rd., Belen, NM 87002 541/610-7084 • goebel@aboutlistening.com
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NORTH DAKOTA Joshua Dukart 2539 Clover Place, Bismarck, ND 58503 701/870-1184 • Joshua_dukart@yahoo.com SOUTH DAKOTA Randal Holmquist 4870 Cliff Drive, Rapid City, SD 57702 605/730-0550 • randy@zhvalley.com
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TEXAS
Bellows *NorthLisaCentral Texas College
1525 W. California St., Gainesville, TX 76240-4636 940/736-3996 (c) • 940/668-7731 ext. 4346 (o) lbellows@nctc.edu Guy Glosson 6717 Hwy. 380, Snyder, TX 79549 806/237-2554 • glosson@caprock-spur.com
Tracy Litle 1277 S CR 305, Orange Grove, TX 78372 361/537-3417 (c) • tjlitle@hotmail.com Peggy Maddox 9460 East FM 1606, Hermleigh, TX 79526 325/226-3042 (c) • westgift@hughes.net Katherine Napper Ottmers 313 Lytle Street, Kerrville, TX 78028 830/896-1474 • katherineottmers@icloud.com Peggy Sechrist 106 Thunderbird Ranch Road Fredericksburg, TX 78624 830/456-5587 (c) peggysechrist@gmail.com
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WISCONSIN Heather Flashinski 16294 250th Street, Cadott, WI 54727 715/289-4896 (w) • 715/379-3742 (c) grassheather@hotmail.com Larry Johnson W886 State Rd. 92, Brooklyn, WI 53521-9102 608/455-1685 • 608/957-2935 (c) larrystillpointfarm@gmail.com Laura Paine N893 Kranz Rd. Columbus, WI 53925 920/623-4407 (h) • 608/338-9039 (c) lkpaine@gmail.com
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These associate educators provide educational services to their communities and peer groups. For more information about or application forms for the HMI’s Certified Educator Training Programs, contact Ann Adams or visit our website: www.holisticmanagement.org.
I N T E R N AT I O N A L
AUSTRAILIA Judi Earl “Glen Orton” 3843 Warialda Rd. Coolatai, NSW 2402 +61 409 151 969 (c) • judi_earl@bigpond.com Graeme Hand 150 Caroona Lane, Branxholme, VIC 3302 61-3-5578-6272 (h) • 61-4-1853-2130 (c) graeme.hand@bigpond.com Dick Richardson “Spring Valley,” 165 Ironbark Lane Frogmore, Boorowa NSW 2586 61-0-429069001 (w) • 61-0-263856224 (h) dick@dickrichardson.com.au Jason Virtue P.O. Box 75 Cooran QLD 4569 61-0-754851997 • jason@spiderweb.com.au Brian Wehlburg Pine Scrub Creek, Kindee, NSW 2446 61-2-6587-4353 (h) • 61 04087 404 431 (c) brian@insideoutsidemgt.com.au CANADA Don Campbell Box 817 Meadow Lake, SK S0X 1Y6 306/236-6088 • 320/240-7660 (c) doncampbell@sasktel.net Ralph Corcoran Box 36, Langbank, SK S0G 2X0 306/532-4778 rlcorcoran@sasktel.net
September / October 2016
Blain Hjertaas Box 760, Redvers, Saskatchewan SOC 2HO 306/452-3882 • bhjer@sasktel.net Brian Luce RR #4, Ponoka, AB T4J 1R4 403/783-6518 • lucends@cciwireless.ca Noel McNaughton 5704-144 St NW, Edmonton, AB T6H 4H4 780/432-5492; noel@mcnaughton.ca Tony McQuail 86016 Creek Line, RR#1, Lucknow, ON N0G 2H0 519/528-2493 • mcqufarm@hurontel.on.ca Len Pigott Box 222, Dysart, SK, SOH 1HO 306/432-4583 • JLPigott@sasktel.net Kelly Sidoryk Box 72, Blackroot, A B TOB OLO 780/872-9761 (h) • 780/875-4418 (w) 780/872-2585 (c) • sidorykk@yahoo.ca
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KENYA Christine C. Jost ICRAF, Box 30677, Nairobi 00100 254-736-715-417 (c) • c.jost@cgiar.org NAMIBIA Usiel Seuakouje Kandjii P. O . Box 23319, Windhoek 9000 264-812840426 (c) • 264-61-244028 (h) kandjiiu@gmail.com Colin Nott PO Box 11977, Windhoek 9000 264-81-2418778 (c) • 264-61-225085 (h) canott@iafrica.com.na
Wiebke Volkmann P. O . Box 9285, Windhoek 264-61-225183 or 264-81-127-0081 wiebke@afol.com.na NEW ZEALAND John King P. O. Box 12011, Beckenha Christchurch 8242 64-276-737-885 john@succession.co.nz
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SOUTH AFRICA Wayne Knight Solar Addicts, P.O. Box 537, Mokopane, 0600 South Africa 27-0-15-491-5286 +27-87-550-0255 (h) +27-82-805-3274 (c) wayne@theknights.za.net Jozua Lambrechts PO Box 5070, Helderberg, Somerset West, 7135 +27-0-21 -851 5669 +27-0-08-310-1940 Ian Mitchell-Innes 14 Chevril Road, Ladysmith, 3370 +27-83-262-9030 ian@mitchell-innes.co.za UNITED KINGDOM Philip Bubb 32 Dart Close, St. Ives, Cambridge, PE27 3JB 44-1480-496-2925 (h) +44 7837 405483 (w) pjbubb99@gmail.com
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Annual Report Finances
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2
Summarized Statement of Financial Position Assets Cash and cash equivalents Investments Accounts receivable Prepaid expenses Unconditional promises to give Inventory Property and equipment, net Unconditional promises to give - long term Other Stock in closely held companies Mineral interest, net Total Assets Liabilities Accounts payable Accrued liabilities Deferred revenue Total Liabilities
2015
2014
701,555 1,919,739 121,548 21,396 775 11,542 25,079 1,000 3,000 534,287 1,112,342 4,452,263
750,362 1,925,398 220,296 17,860 7,250 14,674 36,968 2,000 3,000 502,291 1,213,453 4,693,552
53,092 22,317 64,658 140,067
48,347 19,050 11,965 79,362
Net Assets Unrestricted Temporarily restricted Total Net Assets
2,499,926 1,812,270 4,312,196
2,464,574 2,149,616 4,614,190
Total Liabilities and Net Assets
4,452,263
4,693,552
Educational Programs Grants Publications Mineral interests Contributions Investment income Partnership and trust income Miscellaneous income Net realized gains on sale of investments Unrealized loss on investments
2015 Income Sources
THE MARKETPLACE
ral Services, Inc.
E? R U T S A P E S N E D NUTRIENT
KINSEY Agricultu
How many animals truly receive feed that has been grown with correct nutrients added to the soil? 95+% of all pasture and hay soils we test do not have the fertility required to provide the animals that eat it with even close to good nutrition. What about yours? You can only manage what you correctly measure. Soil test as soon as conditions permit to add lime or other needed nutrients for pasture and hay crops.
For consulting or educational services contact:
Soil test as soon as conditions permit to add lime or other needed nutrients for pasture and hay crops.
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CORRAL CORRAL DESIGNS DESIGNS
Kirk L. Gadzia, Certified Educator PO Box 1100 Bernalillo, NM 87004 Pasture Scene 505-263-8677 kirk@rmsgadzia.com Investigation www.rmsgadzia.com
How can RMS, LLC help you? On-Site Consulting: All aspects of holistic management, including financial, ecological and human resources. Training Events: Regularly scheduled and customized training sessions provided in a variety of locations. Ongoing Support: Follow-up training sessions and access to continued learning opportunities and developments. Land Health Monitoring: Biological monitoring of rangeland and riparian ecosystem health. Property Assessment: Land health and productivity assessment with recommended solutions.
22 IN INPRACTICE PRACTICE 22
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Bud Williamsâ&#x20AC;? Livestock Livestock Marketing & Proper Proper Stockmanship with with Richard Richard McConnell & Tina Williams
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Learn how how good good stockmanship stockmanship can can make Learn make your livestock handling experiences your livestock handling experiences enjoyable, easier, and more profitable and how livestock livestock marketing marketing based based on on todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s price (no crystal ball) can help you price (no crystal ball) can help you realize realize your profit goals. Join us: September 7 - 9 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Brewster, NE May 25-26 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; 212 Day September - 15Stockmanship â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Exira, IA only, Dickinson, ND "My son and I sorted, loaded and delivered 33 May calves 30-June 1 â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Brian 3 Day feeder Saturday. saidMarketing/ we should send Stockmanship, Wawota, SKhandle you guys a Thank You Note each time we cattle. This was the smoothest and easiest itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Coming also to Alberta, Wyoming, ever gone. Price was good too. The only people and Iowa! who donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t like this method are the folks who have never taken the time to learn and try." â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ben www.handnhandlivestocksolutions.com www.handnhandlivestocksolutions.com info@handnhandlivestocksolutions.com info@handnhandlivestocksolutions.com 417-327-6500
e 2014
THE MARKETPLACE
THE MARKETPLACE
HMI 2016 GATHERING
Working with Natural Grazing Company
Training and consulting in the field of grazing management and managing grazing properties in Australia.
PAICINES, CALIFORNIA OCTOBER 14-16, 2016
Dick has also developed a standalone computer program for running stock flows and grazing planning. Dick Richardson Mobile 0429069001
home@grazingnaturally.com
CORRAL DESIGNS
Kelly Sidoryk J
T
By World Famous Dr. Grandin
Box of72 Originatorperformance of Curved Ranch Corrals Comparing conventional curved Lane makes filling a The wide Blackfoot, Alberta, Improvingthesoilcrowding health tub easy. Canada T0B 0L0 • Effective biological monitoring Includes detailed drawings for loading • Forage assessment 780-875-4418/872-2585 ramp, V chute, round techniques crowd pen, dip • Multi-species grazingPlus systems cell center vat, gates and hinges. sidorykk@yahoo.ca • The role dung beetles layouts andoflayouts compatible with • Brush control animalArticles impact on systems. electronic sortingusing • Thebehavior. connection between & human health HMI Certified Educator cattle 27 corralsoil layouts. $55.
Facilitating Holistic Management L Low Stress Cattle Handling Video $59.
On the ground learning with a community of inspired, passionate land stewards. Registration now open!
Brian Wehlburg Holistic Management Training
HMI T-Shirts
• Decision Making • Goal Setting • Land Planning •• Environmental Environmental Monitoring Monitoring • Grazing Planning • Grazing Planning
Training Individuals and groups Training Individuals and groups (Landcare, TAFE, CMA, etc.) (Landcare, TAFE, CMA, etc.) Contact: 61-2-6587-4353, Contact: 61-2-6587-4353 61- 04-087-4431 or 61- 04-087-4431 or 61-04087-404-431 (cell) Mid-North Coast NSW, Australia Brian@insideoutsidemgt.com.au www.insideoutsidemgt.com.au
Introchecks/money workshops;order Financial Send to:
planning;GRANDIN Grazing planning and Succession planning. LIVESTOCK SYSTEMS Rancher, writer 2918 Silver freelance Plume Dr., Unit and C-3 photographer, special event Fort Collins, CO 80526 organizer and speaker. 970/229-0703 www.grandin.com
SPEAKERS WILL INCLUDE: • Joel Salatin • Greg Judy • Brock Dolman • Owen Hablutzel • Richard Wiswall • Paul Kaiser • Jessica Prentice • Charlotte Smith • Dr. Thomas Cowan • Rebecca Burgess • Kelly Mulville • Joe and Julie Morris • Tina Williams • Allen Williams • Leslie Dorrance • Judi Earl
“I did this course with Brian and can thoroughly recommend it. It takes land management to a whole new level. He brings a wealth of experience to the table.” Martin Bartlett, Sydney
Live #LaVidaLocal Sport the latest in HMI wear while helping to spread the word about Holistic Management! Organic Cotton
$20 N um ber 169
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Nonprofit U.S POSTAGE
PAID Jefferson City, MO PERMIT 210
Healthy Land. Healthy Food. Healthy Lives.
a publication of Holistic Management International 5941 Jefferson St. NE, Suite B Albuquerque, NM 87109 USA
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Donor Profile—
Martha Holdridge
Martha Holdridge and her husband John bought West Wind Farm in 1979 as a retreat from city life and to enjoy the beauty of rural West Virginia. As they spent more time there, they became involved in the land management of the farm and learned about the cattle industry. In doing so they became aware of the importance of grass. They learned that if you manage both grass and cattle just right, your cattle could gain weight and your pastures gain fertility. Over the years they learned about Holistic Management and how holistic planned grazing could actually help the soil sequester more carbon. As retired civil servants they wanted to share that knowledge with others to influence both national and UN policies concerning climate change. Whereas they had done conventional grazing and selling into feedlots through the ‘80s and ‘90s, they knew there had to be a better way. When they attended a Stockman Grassfarmer conference in Roanoke, Virginia in 2000, they had a chance to learn about that better way from farmer Joel Salatin. Following his lead, they began buying yearlings in Spring, grazing them for a season, and then selling their grassfed “Mountain Pastured Beef” to families and individuals. At West Wind Farm (WWF) all animals were raised with no grain, no antibiotics, no hormones, and with no chemical fertilizers or pesticides used on the pastures. Steers were moved daily to fresh pastures. Between 2002 and 2007, Martha regularly sent WWF soil samples to the West Virginia University (WVU) Soil Test Lab. To 9.00% 8.00% 7.00% 6.00% 5.00% 4.00% 3.00% 2.00% 1.00% 0.00%
2002
2004
WWF Organic Matter Soil Tests by WVU Soil Test Lab
2007
“I had some Disney stock with large capital gains. The work HMI does is so important. Donating some of these stocks directly to HMI allowed me to give more than I could with a cash gift. That is because I didn’t need to sell the stock and then pay capital gains tax before making my donation.” — Martha Holdridge, Maryland her surprise, results showed a remarkable increase in soil organic matter—more than double—over one 5-year period. In 2008 the WVU Soil Lab supervisor calculated that Martha’s 4 tons/acre increase in soil organic matter meant that in 5 years, each acre of pasture on WWF had drawn about 15 tons of CO2 from the air into the pasture. Later in 2008 a USDA/ARS scientist estimated that because of the high quality of WWF pastures, methane and nitrous oxide emissions were minimal, and therefore WWF had a net carbon sequestration. This was the time period when the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Global Warming and Climate Change was saying that the cattle industry was causing a big increase in global warming due to methane discharges from the animals. As Martha noted, “I was excited to think that the system I used to manage our steers at WWF was effectively and naturally reducing CO2 in the atmosphere!” For that reason she wrote letters to the President and other government leaders. She created a website, Grass Power and Climate Change, at http://www.grasspower.org/. And she is currently supporting the French “4/1000 Initiative for Food Security and Climate,” which was introduced at COP21 December 2015 in Paris, and which will be confirmed at COP22 November 2016 in Morocco. She wants to help both governments and citizens learn about the important difference good soil management can make in addressing climate change. She also has chosen to support HMI as we train others in these types of practices. Ultimately, Martha wants what we all want, regenerative agricultural practices that are: “…good for the animals, good for soil fertility, good for the farmer, good for supplying ample nutritious food for the consumer, and good for the environment and our climate.” —Martha Holdridge
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