The depletion of soil is an ongoing problem of erosion by wind and rain. My dad practiced many good farming practices, contour terraces , buffer strips, crop rotation of corn, beans, oats, alfalfa and grassy waterways. But the pressure to grow more corn and beans led to some of his principles being compromised. Some of the waterways got plowed up, and drainage tiles added to gain more cropland. He did no till most years but there was always the wind. The loss of soil could be seen every winter in the black snow drifts in the roadside ditches. To get a feeling for the hardships of the dust bowl years read the great book by Tim Egan, "The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl."
Thank you, Keith. I really appreciate learning about your dad and his farming practices. He sounds like a really good one. Stories like this give me hope. My favorite part of working in soil conservation is the conversations with farmers and ranchers. The relationship building. The mutual learning with each other and from the land. I joke sometimes that my job today is often literally to watch grass grow (we planted about 500 acres of conservation grass and pasture this spring and more scheduled for the fall). But I’ve learned that grass grows a lot faster than the human mind and human heart changes, mine included. There are big economic and political forces that have the be addressed, but I also feel like the deepest work is in the slow speed of relationship building. Thanks again for sharing your story, the book rec, and for reading and joining our conversation. We really appreciate it and hope it continues.
Thank you for your note, Keith - I really appreciate you sharing your story in response to our stories. As Josh mentioned, conversations and stories are so necessary to action and cultural change!
What a great idea to team these 2 up for this important topic. I enjoy hearing what each one has to say, but together they amplify each other's voices. I look forward to more from each of them.
Thanks, Jill. Yes, Austen and Josh are terrific. They met through Emerging Voices. Each one deepens the other’s thoughts in soil. Stay tuned. Many other topics to explore.
The depletion of soil is an ongoing problem of erosion by wind and rain. My dad practiced many good farming practices, contour terraces , buffer strips, crop rotation of corn, beans, oats, alfalfa and grassy waterways. But the pressure to grow more corn and beans led to some of his principles being compromised. Some of the waterways got plowed up, and drainage tiles added to gain more cropland. He did no till most years but there was always the wind. The loss of soil could be seen every winter in the black snow drifts in the roadside ditches. To get a feeling for the hardships of the dust bowl years read the great book by Tim Egan, "The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived the Great American Dust Bowl."
Thanks for this insightful comment, Keith. “The Worst Hard Time” is a remarkable book. Your father was trying to do it right.
Thank you, Keith. I really appreciate learning about your dad and his farming practices. He sounds like a really good one. Stories like this give me hope. My favorite part of working in soil conservation is the conversations with farmers and ranchers. The relationship building. The mutual learning with each other and from the land. I joke sometimes that my job today is often literally to watch grass grow (we planted about 500 acres of conservation grass and pasture this spring and more scheduled for the fall). But I’ve learned that grass grows a lot faster than the human mind and human heart changes, mine included. There are big economic and political forces that have the be addressed, but I also feel like the deepest work is in the slow speed of relationship building. Thanks again for sharing your story, the book rec, and for reading and joining our conversation. We really appreciate it and hope it continues.
Thank you for your note, Keith - I really appreciate you sharing your story in response to our stories. As Josh mentioned, conversations and stories are so necessary to action and cultural change!
Thank you both for digging deep in this moving conversation.
Thank you Elizabeth! I feel like we barely scratched the surface - there's so much more to delve into!
What a great idea to team these 2 up for this important topic. I enjoy hearing what each one has to say, but together they amplify each other's voices. I look forward to more from each of them.
Thanks, Jill. Yes, Austen and Josh are terrific. They met through Emerging Voices. Each one deepens the other’s thoughts in soil. Stay tuned. Many other topics to explore.