Regenerative Dry Farming A S U N + E A R T H C E R T I F I E D I N T E RV I E W W I T H T H E H U M B O L D T D R Y FA R M I N G A L L I A N C E WORDS HEATHER DUNBAR
PHOTOS LA OSA & BIOVORTEX
Regenerative Organic Dry Farming – The Future of Cannabis? The evidence of climate change is revealing itself all around
savannas long before wells and sprinkler systems were invented. The idea and evolution of dry(land) farming go back to the
us. It can be seen in accelerated sea-level rise, melting ice caps
19th century, has been used in various parts of the world,
and glaciers, intense heatwaves in some areas, and extreme
and has evolved and adapted to the lack of moisture in
flooding in others. Some of the most recent events range from
certain climates. This type of farming uses land management
deadly floods in central China and Europe, huge wildfires in
practices that retain precipitation on the land, make use of
the United States, an extreme heatwave in Canada and the
the stored moisture in the soil, and cultivates crops without
Pacific Northwest, to fires blazing in the Siberian tundra.
irrigation. Crops that have adapted to become drought
There is no shortage of signs and signals that the climate is changing, and we are all affected in diverse ways. One
tolerant and tend to be explosive in flavor and nutrition. To dive deeper into dry farming practices, I sat down with
critically important way that communities across the
Rosie Reynolds (Sensiboldt Organics), Chrystal Ortiz (High
globe are impacted by climate change is how we’re able
Water Farm), and Jill VanderLinden (Organic Medicinals);
to farm and produce food. Shifting weather patterns
three Sun+Earth Certified farmers who are multi-generational
are causing extreme weather events that are disrupting
cannabis and food producers. These three amazing women
agricultural productivity, and cannabis is no exception.
are also leaders and frontline activists in the cannabis
Many of our legacy Sun+Earth Certified farms are located
community and advocates for regenerative organic farming
in northern California, which has been suffering from ongoing
practices. Together, they formed the Humboldt Dry Farming
drought conditions that are only getting worse. Eyes are on
Alliance in 2020 to educate farmers on the science and benefits
California, as agriculture accounts for 80 percent of water use in
of regenerative organic dry farming and to advance these
the state. But what if we could grow food and cannabis without
important farming practices in the cannabis industry.
water? Which sounds like a crazy concept. But dry farming
Sun+Earth: Rosie, your father has a rich history as a pioneer
has a long history, with humans planting and harvesting in
in the organic food movement and has been dry farming for many
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