Podcasts about new forest farm

In this session I hosted a discussion on the importance of restoring proper hydrological function in a landscape and the steps to achieving it with my friends and colleagues at Climate Farmers, a non-profit organisation working to advance regenerative agriculture in Europe. In this panel I got to speak with three of the most experienced and influential educators working on this from a farming perspective. Since landscape hydrology and its proper function is often overlooked in its importance in regulating global temperature, I wanted to focus on this specifically. I was lucky enough to bring together three of the experts that have most guided my learning in this field, Zach Weiss, Nicole Masters, and Mark Shepard. Don't forget that if you want to see the video of the full event, you can check it out on the Climate Farmer's Youtube channel through the link in the show notes for this episode. Zach Weiss is the protégé of revolutionary Austrian farmer Sepp Holzer, Zach is the first person to earn Holzer Practitioner certification directly from Sepp. Zach went on to create Elemental Ecosystems to provide an action-oriented process to improve clients' relationship with their landscape. Elemental Ecosystems is an ecological development, contracting, and consulting firm specializing in watershed restoration and ecosystem regeneration. The firm's work includes Aquaculture, Agroforestry, Water Retention Landscapes, Terrace Systems, Spring Development, Natural Building, and more. Mark Shepard is the CEO of Forest Agriculture Enterprises LLC, founder of Restoration Agriculture Development LLC and award-winning author of the books, Restoration Agriculture and Water for Any Farm. He is most widely known as the founder of New Forest Farm, the 106-acre perennial agricultural savanna considered by many to be one of the most ambitious sustainable agriculture projects in the United States. Nicole Masters is is an independent agroecologist, systems thinker, storyteller, educator and author of the book “For the Love of Soil.” With over 20 years of practical and theoretical experience in regenerative agriculture, she is also recognised as a knowledgeable and dynamic speaker on the topic of soil health. Her team of soil coaches at Integrity Soils work alongside producers in the U.S., Canada and across Australasia supporting producers and organisations who cover over 24 million acres, to take their landscapes to the next level in nutrient density, profitability and environmental outcomes.

In this episode of the Acres USA Podcast, Acres U.S.A. author Mark Shepard, engages in a deep discussion focusing on effective water management techniques in agriculture, emphasizing the importance of understanding ecological systems and the impact of water on soil and crop health. Shepard's key principles include the application of the keyline design and master line system, as well as examples from his home farm in WI, New Forest Farm. This episode also touches upon historical water management methods from Germany and their influence on modern practices in Australia and the USA. This in depth presentation provides valuable insights for farmers and ranchers looking to optimize their water usage and boost productivity while maintaining an ecological balance. Important Links from Today's Episode: https://members.acresusa.com https://www.acresusa.com/ https://bookstore.acresusa.com/collections/spotlight/products/water-for-any-farm

An audio tour of agroforestry and perennial farming systems at New Forest Farm in southwestern Wisconsin with farmer Mark Shepard, author of "Restoration Agriculture". 

My guest for this episode is Mark Shepard. I'm so excited to share this conversation with you because Mark has a perspective on viticulture and agriculture in general that is revolutionary… while also being incredibly common sensical. He's as funny as he is passionate and that passion comes from wanting to share an incredibly important message not only for producing wine, but also for our survival. Mark is the author of Restoration Agriculture which is a top 10 Amazon best seller in multiple categories. Restoration agriculture is his term for ecomimicry permaculture or multi-story perennial polyculture using what thrives naturally in your ecosystems. He practices this at scale on his 110 acre New Forest Farm in Wisconsin, and on several other properties, and he provides agricultural consulting around the planet. One of the quotes from his book that stood out to me is when he is talking about our conventional, monoculture approach, and says, “We have created the conditions under which pests and diseases thrive, while almost completely ceasing the improvement of the crops' own resistance to the threats we have created.” This is so true in wine, where we have a global monoculture of a handful of European grapes that have been propagated by cloning for two hundred years or more. And in the last 50 years we've spent literally billions of dollars developing chemicals to enable these clones to survive, while investing very little in breeding new varieties that don't need the chemicals… or in expanding the idea of wine to include other ingredients besides European grapes. Mark doesn't spray his fruit, whether it's apples or cherries or chestnuts or grapevines, he employs a kind of vitiforestry, and his approach to agriculture illuminates some incredible perspective shifts in how we could think about growing grapevines differently… as well as how we could think about wine differently… as one symbiotic element in a holistic perennial polyculture. Support the Organic Wine Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/organicwinepodcast Sponsor: https://www.centralaswine.com/

Mark Shepard is the founder of the Restoration Agriculture farming method and New Forest Farm, where Mark grows food in perennial polycultures, without using external fertilisers, with very limited management activities, whilst integrating animals. In this episode, Mark shares with us the results he has achieved by actively engaging with tree crop breeding on his farm - one of the foundations of his system. Mark is also the author of two books: ‘Restoration Agriculture: Real World Permaculture for Farmers' and ‘Water for Any Farm'. He is also the founder of Restoration Agriculture Development, an enterprises that catalyses Restoration Agriculture projects worldwide. We hope you enjoy the interview! TABLE OF CONTENTS02:15 How did you get to agroforestry? 10:44 What is restoration agriculture? 19:33 Low inputs and precocity of yield 31:29 Description of New Forest Farm40:10 How do you harvest? 45:42 Managing the system49:20 Biodiversity on the farm57:22 Process of plant selection01:02:40 Starting a nursery 01:07:28 Why haven't more people replicated your system? 01:12:00 Which cultivars to include in mass selection? 01:21:19 What is the key knowledge required to get started? • RESOURCEShttp://www.restorationag.com/https://restoringagriculture.com/https://www.forestag.com/https://newforestfarm.us/https://www.instagram.com/restoration.ag/?hl=enhttps://www.facebook.com/restorationagriculture/• GET IN TOUCH www.regenerativeagroforestry.org• SUPPORT US www.gumroad.com/regenagroforestry• FOLLOW US on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram• FUNDING FOR EUROPEAN PROJECTS https://explore.ecosia.org/regenerative-agriculture Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Shepard is my guest on Episode 142 of Inside Ideas with Marc Buckley. Mark is the CEO of Forest Agriculture Enterprises LLC, founder of Restoration Agriculture Development LLC and award-winning author of the book, Restoration Agriculture: Real-World Permaculture for Farmers. Mark has also been a farmer member of the Organic Valley cooperative, the worlds largest Organic Farmer's marketing co-op, since 1995. He is most widely known as the founder of New Forest Farm, the 106-acre perennial agricultural savanna considered by many to be one of the most ambitious sustainable agriculture projects in the United States. New Forest Farm is a planned conversion of a typical row-crops grain farm into a commercial-scale, perennial agricultural ecosystem using oak savanna, successional brushland and eastern woodlands as the ecological models. Trees, shrubs, vines, canes, perennial plants and fungi are planted in association with one another to produce food (for humans and animals), fuel, medicines, and beauty. Hazelnuts, chestnuts, walnuts and various fruits are the primary woody crops. The farm is entirely solar and wind powered and farm equipment is capable of being powered with locally produced biofuels. Trained in both mechanical engineering and ecology, Mark has developed and patented equipment and processes for the cultivation, harvesting and processing of forest derived agricultural products for human foods and bio fuels production. Mark was certified as a Permaculture designer in 1993 and received his Diploma of Permaculture design from Bill Mollison, the founder of the international Permaculture movement. He teaches agroforestry and Permaculture worldwide. Restoration Agriculture Real-World Permaculture for Farmers Water for any Farm Applying Restoration Agriculture Water Methods on Your Farm http://www.restorationag.com/

Mark Shepard is well known in the sustainable agriculture community for his unique large-scale New Forest Farm that puts in practice his restoration agriculture methods. We talk to him about the principles he believes in most and the possibility of taking these techniques more places.

Welcome to the seventh of the monthly expert panel discussions. As I mentioned before, each month I'll be hosting discussions and debates between some of the most prominent voices in regenerative agriculture, soil science, restoration land management and more. In this session I hosted a discussion on the importance of restoring proper hydrological function in a landscape and the steps to achieving it with my friends and colleagues at Climate Farmers, a non-profit organisation working to advance regenerative agriculture in Europe. In this panel I got to speak with three of the most experienced and influential educators working on this from a farming perspective. Since landscape hydrology and its proper function is often overlooked in its importance in regulating global temperature, I wanted to focus on this specifically. I was lucky enough to bring together three of the experts that have most guided my learning in this field, Zach Weiss, Nicole Masters, and Mark Shepard.Don't forget that if you want to see the video of the full event, you can check it out on the Climate Farmer's Youtube channel through the link in the show notes for this episode. Zach Weiss is the protégé of revolutionary Austrian farmer Sepp Holzer, Zach is the first person to earn Holzer Practitioner certification directly from Sepp. Zach went on to create Elemental Ecosystems to provide an action-oriented process to improve clients' relationship with their landscape. Elemental Ecosystems is an ecological development, contracting, and consulting firm specializing in watershed restoration and ecosystem regeneration. The firm's work includes Aquaculture, Agroforestry, Water Retention Landscapes, Terrace Systems, Spring Development, Natural Building, and more. Mark Shepard is the CEO of Forest Agriculture Enterprises LLC, founder of Restoration Agriculture Development LLC and award-winning author of the books, Restoration Agriculture and Water for Any Farm. He is most widely known as the founder of New Forest Farm, the 106-acre perennial agricultural savanna considered by many to be one of the most ambitious sustainable agriculture projects in the United States. Nicole Masters is is an independent agroecologist, systems thinker, storyteller, educator and author of the book “For the Love of Soil.” With over 20 years of practical and theoretical experience in regenerative agriculture, she is also recognised as a knowledgeable and dynamic speaker on the topic of soil health. Her team of soil coaches at Integrity Soils work alongside producers in the U.S., Canada and across Australasia supporting producers and organisations who cover over 24 million acres, to take their landscapes to the next level in nutrient density, profitability and environmental outcomes. Join the discord discussion channel to answer the weekly questions and learn new skills with the whole community Links: https://www.integritysoils.co.nz/ https://www.elementalecosystems.com/ https://www.waterstories.app/ http://www.restorationag.com/Check out some of the previous expert panels: https://regenerativeskills.com/the-broad-applications-of-the-holistic-management-framework-expert-panel-6/ https://regenerativeskills.com/farm-economics-with-mark-shepard-and-michael-ableman-expert-panel-5/ https://regenerativeskills.com/regenerating-the-biology-in-your-soil-expert-panel-4/

Welcome to the fifth of the monthly expert panel discussions. As I mentioned before, each month I'll be hosting discussions and debates between some of the most prominent voices in regenerative agriculture, soil science, restoration land management and more.  In this session, I hosted a discussion on farm business finances with my friends and colleagues at Climate Farmers, a non-profit organization working to advance regenerative agriculture in Europe. In this panel I got two of my favorite voices on the subject of farm economics and business advice to talk about how managing the whole ecosystem of their farms has saved them money and improved the profitability of their businesses. Since these discussions are longer than the regular weekly episodes, I'll keep the intro short and jump right into the introductions for our two panelists Mark Shepard is the CEO of Forest Agriculture Enterprises LLC, founder of Restoration Agriculture Development LLC and award-winning author of the books, Restoration Agriculture and Water for Any Farm. He is most widely known as the founder of New Forest Farm, the 106-acre perennial agricultural savanna considered by many to be one of the most ambitious sustainable agriculture projects in the United States. Michael Ableman: is a farmer, author, photographer and urban and local food systems advocate who has been farming organically since the early 1970′s and is considered one of the pioneers of the organic farming and urban agriculture movements. MIchael is the author of four trade published books: From the Good Earth, On Good Land, Fields of Plenty, and most recently Street Farm; Growing Food, Jobs, and Hope on the Urban Frontier.  Join the discord discussion channel to answer the weekly questions and learn new skills with the whole community Links: http://www.restorationag.com/ http://michaelableman.com/ Check out previous Expert Panel discussions https://regenerativeskills.com/regenerating-the-biology-in-your-soil-expert-panel-4/ https://regenerativeskills.com/exploring-regenerative-fashion-expert-panel-3/ https://regenerativeskills.com/the-potential-of-agroforestry-expert-panel-2/

Mark Shepard is widely known as an agroforestry and permaculture expert that is the CEO of Agriculture Restoration Development and the owner of New Forest Farm, a commercial-scale perennial agricultural system that uses the oak savanna as an ecological model. In this fascinating talk, Mark gets into the real estate side of things and how he has been successful at improving degraded real estate through restorative practices that mimic nature, and then stacking synergistic businesses that will increase the value of the property so that he can refinance his capital out and get infinite returns. This is a show that is certainly thought-provoking, inspiring, and actionable!

Donate to The Permaculture Podcast Online: via PayPal Venmo: @permaculturepodcast My guest for this episode, which originally aired in 2014, is Mark Shepard, owner of New Forest Farm and author of Restoration Agriculture. This is the final piece in a series of three interviews Mark and I recorded to talk about Restoration Agriculture practices and to answer listener questions. In this episode we discuss four topics based around listener questions. What is Mark's “Oil Cartel?” What place does keyline design have on a small scale site? What techniques does Mark suggest for water retention on a flat area? What tips does Mark have for starting seedlings where you are unable to water daily or weekly? I enjoyed these conversations because of the different voice and perspective that Mark brought to the table. These really expanded my thoughts on how we can practice permaculture in many different ways underneath the same umbrella. Mark focuses on large scale agricultural restoration. My focus is on communication and outreach. We each have a role to fill. Where do you see your niche in the permaculture community? Where do you fit into this big puzzle of creating a better world? Is there any way I can help you find your fit? I'd love to hear from you. Visit our Partners VerdEnergia Pacifica Food Forest Card Game The Fifth World Support If you value this show and the work of the podcast in spreading the word of permaculture to the world, lend your assistance in supporting these projects. Share links to your favorite episode with your friends. Leave reviews on iTunes or your favorite podcast sites. The show can also use your financial support, either as a one-time or ongoing monthly contribution. Find out how to do that at: www.thepermaculturepodcast.com/support. Get In Touch E-mail: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast with Scott Mann The Permaculture Podcast Resources Restoration Agriculture with Mark Shepard (Part I) Restoration Agriculture with Mark Shepard (Part II)

My guest for this episode, which originally aired in 2014, is Mark Shepard, owner of New Forest Farm and author of Restoration Agriculture. This is the final piece in a series of three interviews Mark and I recorded to talk about Restoration Agriculture practices and to answer listener questions. In this episode we discuss four […] The post Restoration Agriculture with Mark Shepard (Part III) appeared first on The Permaculture Podcast.

Donate to The Permaculture Podcast Online: via PayPal Venmo: @permaculturepodcast (Originally Aired: 17.September.2014) My guest for this episode is Mark Shepard, owner of New Forest Farm and author of Restoration Agriculture. This is the second of three pieces that Mark and I recorded together to talk about Restoration Agricultural practices and to answer listener questions. In this episode we discuss four topics based around listener questions. Mark's nursery techniques. Grafting vs. Seeding. What tools and infrastructure are needed to start a nursery project? How Mr. Shepard markets his tree crops locally or otherwise. We also discuss the importance for each of us, that means you and me, to be growing, selecting, and breeding our own plants from seed. To make this easier Mark shares his STUN method of seeing what plants are best. What does STUN stand for? Sheer Total Utter Neglect. After listening to this episode, even if you don't have a green thumb, there's no reason to not be playing with plants on a variety of scales. Here is another discussion about how to bring profit and entrepreneurship into permaculture. It is something I continue to work on and struggle with at times, but it is something we can do. As Mark said, we do this and then ask other systems to try and keep up with us as we create a better world now and for the future. This is not a game or something we play at, but real work to make a difference. We can do it. To support that, I have some interviews that will come out over the coming months with people like Ethan Roland to discuss the Eight Forms of Capital and Regenerative Enterprise and how we can apply permaculture to business. Then Carol Sanford joins me to discuss how we can apply business to permaculture, find the essence of our entrepreneurial work, and grow what it is we are doing to bring functional permaculture models into the mainstream. Support the Podcast If you value this show and the work of the podcast in spreading the word of permaculture to the world, lend your assistance in supporting these projects. Share links posted to the Facebook page, facebook.com/thepermaculturepodcast, with your friends or followers. Retweet messages sent from @permaculturecst. Leave reviews on iTunes or your favorite podcast sites. The show can also use your financial support, either as a one-time or ongoing monthly contribution. Find out how to do that at: www.thepermaculturepodcast.com/support. Get In Touch E-mail: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast with Scott Mann The Permaculture Podcast Twitter: @permaculturecst Instagram: PermaculturePodcast

(Originally Aired: 17.September.2014) My guest for this episode is Mark Shepard, owner of New Forest Farm and author of Restoration Agriculture. This is the second of three pieces that Mark and I recorded together to talk about Restoration Agricultural practices and to answer listener questions. In this episode we discuss four topics based around listener […] The post Restoration Agriculture with Mark Shepard (Part II) appeared first on The Permaculture Podcast.

Mark Shepard is the CEO of Forest Agriculture Enterprises, founder of Restoration Agriculture Development, and award-winning author of the book, Restoration Agriculture: Real-World Permaculture for Farmers. He is most widely known as the founder of New Forest Farm, the 106-acre perennial agricultural savanna considered by many to be one of the most ambitious sustainable agriculture projects in the United States.   On this podcast episode, Mark sheds light on why we need to stop trying so hard to realize a world based on our persistent concepts and ideals that we made up and instead, get out more to observe and learn from how natural ecosystems really function; what is problematic about how we've developed a food system based mostly off of annual crops versus perennials; how he's been able to utilize a hands-off approach to growing food regeneratively, which he calls the 'STUN method', or Sheer Total Utter Neglect; and more.   Episode notes: www.greendreamer.com/166 Weekly solutions-based news: www.greendreamer.com  Support the show: www.greendreamer.com/support  Instagram: www.instagram.com/greendreamerpodcast

Our guest today is Mark Shepard from New Forest Farm, author of Restoration Agriculture and founder of Restoration Agriculture Development. Mark was kind enough to take the time to talk with us during the 2019 MOSES Conference, where he was playing as a part of Synister Dane and the Cosmonauts. Together, we’ll be discussing the impact and legacy of Restoration Agriculture, the STUN Method on scale, pest control, Mark’s adventures homesteading in Alaska, and much more. Shownotes: Mark Shepard was one of the first booths at the MOSES Organic Farming Conference. Instead of the engineering degree, Mark became an Ecologist. With the final year of the homestead act in Alaska, Mark set up a claim and tested raising plant community types in the sub arctic. Checkout More Show Notes @ https://intellectualagrarian.com/markshephard Connect With Mark: https://newforestfarm.us/ https://www.amazon.com/Restoration-Agriculture-Mark-Shepard/dp/1601730357 https://www.forestag.com/ Follow Us: https://intellectualagrarian.com https://www.instagram.com/intellectual.agrarian https://www.facebook.com/intellectualagrarian

Learn more at permaculturevoices.com/91 Support the show at permaculturevoices.com/support THIS EPISODE IS A REPLAY OF PREVIOUS PUBLISHED EPISODE. This show is a conversation that I had with Mark Shepard about the process of starting up his farm, New Forest Farm, in Viola, Wisconsin. How did he start? What was the process like - both on the land and off? What were the real life financial struggles and challenges that he went through and faced? Hint... It wasn't easy. Learn more at permaculturevoices.com/71 Support the show at permaculturevoices.com/support THIS EPISODE IS A REPLAY OF PREVIOUS PUBLISHED EPISODE.

Learn more at permaculturevoices.com/b39 Support the show at permaculturevoices.com/support Today's episode is a replay of the presentation that Peter Allen gave at PV2 in March 2015.. The presentation is titled Grazing the Savanna: Lessons from New Forest and Mastodon Valley Farms. In this talk Peter will share the lessons he learned establishing and managing multi-species rotational grazing operations in a well-established permaculture setting at Mark Shepard’s New Forest Farm, and now in a newly emerging setting, at Mastodon Valley, where he is planting tree crops, grazing a suite of animals, thinning forest, constructing an off-grid homestead, and building a broad-acre permaculture farm. Learn more at permaculturevoices.com/b39 Support the show at permaculturevoices.com/support

Mark Shepard’s New Forest Farm, in Viola, Wisconsin, isn’t your average farm. After twenty-one years of an intentional conversion from 106 acres of corn, beans, and overgrazed pasture to a chestnut, hazelnut, and apple mimic of the oak savannah, New Forest Farm presents an alternative to just about every way of thinking about agriculture that you’ll find out there. Mark, the author of Restoration Agriculture, is not just a nuts and fruits guy: he used the cash flow from his low-input vegetable operation to boot strap his longer-term plantings. In addition to getting into some of the basics of Mark’s approach to creating a permanent agriculture, we dig into his personal history, how he came to his farm in southwest Wisconsin, issues of scale and finance, and how Mark managed his vegetable operation during the startup of his perennial polyculture. We also spend some time talking about how to take some of Mark’s ideas and apply them to a more conventional market farming setup. I’ve had the good fortune to work with Mark in various capacities for over fifteen years now, and I’ve been to his farm a few times over the years, and I can tell you, it’s a pretty cool place. And Mark’s got some ways of looking at things that will likely challenge at least a few of the ways you’re looking at your farm and the whole farm and food system. The Farmer to Farmer Podcast is generously supported by Vermont Compost Company.

This week’s featured farmer is Tyler Hess. Tyler has been an apprentice of various organic farms for several years, and is now growing produce at New Forest Farm in Wisconsin. A recent college graduate and avid traveler, he hopes to continue facilitating land-based projects as leverage points for the times ahead. This program was brought to you by Heritage Foods USA. “We need people doing commercial market farming!” [18:00] “We [young farmers] need to collaborate and hold each other in this space!” [26:00] –Tyler Hess on Greenhorns Radio

This show is a conversation that I had with Mark Shepard about the process of starting up his farm, New Forest Farm, in Viola, Wisconsin.  How did he start? What was the process like - both on the land and off? What were the real life financial struggles and challenges that he went through and faced? Hint... It wasn't easy. Show Notes: permaculturevoices.com/91 PV2: permaculturevoices.com/pv2

Donate to The Permaculture Podcast Online: via PayPal Venmo: @permaculturepodcast My guest for this episode is Mark Shepard, owner of New Forest Farm and author of Restoration Agriculture. This is the final piece in a series of three interviews Mark and I recorded to talk about Restoration Agriculture practices and to answer listener questions.   Restoration Agriculture with Mark Shepard (Part I) Restoration Agriculture with Mark Shepard (Part II) In this episode we discuss four topics based around listener questions. What is Mark's "Oil Cartel?" What place does keyline design have on a small scale site? What techniques does Mark suggest for water retention on a flat area? What tips does Mark have for starting seedlings where you are unable to water daily or weekly? I enjoyed these conversations because of the different voice and perspective that Mark brought to the table. These really expanded my thoughts on how we can practice permaculture in many different ways underneath the same umbrella. Mark focuses on large scale agricultural restoration. My focus is on communication and outreach. We each have a role to fill. Where do you see your niche in the permaculture community? Where do you fit into this big puzzle of creating a better world? Is there any way I can help you find your fit? I'd love to hear from you. Support If you value this show and the work of the podcast in spreading the word of permaculture to the world, lend your assistance in supporting these projects. Share links posted to the Facebook page, facebook.com/thepermaculturepodcast, with your friends or followers. Retweet messages sent from @permaculturecst. Leave reviews on iTunes or your favorite podcast sites. The show can also use your financial support, either as a one-time or ongoing monthly contribution. Find out how to do that at: www.thepermaculturepodcast.com/support. Get In Touch E-mail: The Permaculture Podcast The Permaculture Podcast with Scott Mann The Permaculture Podcast Facebook: Facebook.com/ThePermaculturePodcast Twitter: @permaculturecst (Episode: MarkS3)

Mark Shepard is an agriforester and permaculturist He founded and manages Forest Agriculture Enterprises and runs New Forest Farm an 106-acre commercial scale perrennial agricultural ecosystem that was converted  to a self suffecient food forest from a row-crop annual grain farm. Trained in mechanical enigineering and ecology, Mark has combined these two passions to develop equpment and processes for the cultivation, harvesting and processing of forest-derived agricultural products for human foods and biofuel. Mark is a certified permacultlure designer  who took his training directly from permaculture founder Bill Mollison .  As a student of Mollison, Mark brings a robust masculinty into his permaculture work, working with the larger patterns of the land rather than focusing on the rather dainty features that are often put  forward  by American permies. Mark teaches agroforestry and permacluture around the world. He lives with his family in Richland County Wisconsin Mark is the author of Restoration Agriculture, Real World Permaculture for Farmers which was published by ACRES USA this past year. It's a remarkable work of agricultural writing, one that I hope everyone will make the time to read in the near future.  You can pick up a copy from Amazon through the show notes at www.bdnow.org I want to thanks Anders Skarlin bdnow and Steve Diver of bdnow and agri-synthesis.com for submitting questions for Mark that made this conversation more valuable for everyone.  As usual, if you'd like to hear more of these podcasts, please take the time to leave a positive comment at bdnow.org or at the bdnow podcast page at itunes which you can link to through the show notes at bdnow.org Around the globe most people get their calories from annual agriculture - plants that grow fast for one season, produce lots of seeds, then die. Every single human society that has relied on annual crops for staple foods has collapsed. Restoration Agriculture explains how we can have all of the benefits of natural, perennial ecosystems and create agricultural systems that imitate nature in form and function while still providing for our food, building, fuel and many other needs - in your own backyard, farm or ranch. This book, based on real-world practices, presents an alternative to the agriculture system of eradication and offers exciting hope for our future.