Podcast appearances and mentions of seth watkins

Continuing the Iowa's Front Forty series, sponsored by the Iowa Soybean Association, we highlight Seth Watkins from Page County, Iowa about his conservation practices on his farm.

Thanks for joining us! As the year draws to a close, we often find ourselves evaluating the results of this year's harvest and reflecting on the systems and practices we've adopted to improve soil health. Some of our guests have shared with us that they've changed their practices not only for soil health and water quality but also because of a health event in their lives that prompted an examination of their current systems. Today, we're bringing you a medley of guests who explore the human health and soil health connection. We've picked out some great highlights, with Seth Watkins, a farmer and inaugural Iowa Leopold Conservation Award recipient in 2022. Anthony Corsaro, the Founder and Managing Director at Outlaw Ventures working on building a better food system for tomorrow. Dr. Stefan van Vliet a human physiologist studying the effects of food and physical activity on human health. and Erin Martin, gerontologist and founder of Conscious Aging Solutions. You'll find links to the full episodes of each of these guests in the podcast notes. There's no question that we're still learning about all of the human and soil health relationships and we remain committed to bringing you guests who contribute to our understanding of these connections. Full AgEmerge Podcast links for each guest can be found here: Seth Watkins https://youtu.be/qjXlJmpTjEY?si=oq6Uwt2N9oJP1gIe Anthony Corsaro https://youtu.be/iJvIjyJbSaU?si=_3ded2srFLEjWK1s Dr. Stephan van Vliet https://on.soundcloud.com/mWXaR Erin Martin https://youtu.be/fAIr5GyUSgU?si=Emxr7VeK6yqA5vkC Got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we'll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge stage or podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm we'd love to hear from you.

Testimony from MidAmerica Nazarene University student, Seth Watkins

No matter where or what you farm, your operation can benefit from cover crops. Planting covers improves soil biology, increases water infiltration, saves money and more. In this episode of the Cover Crop Strategies podcast, brought to you by Montag Manufacturing, Seth Watkins of southern Iowa joins us for a discussion about the benefits of incorporating cover crops into your operation specifically as a means to stay committed to improving soil health, conserving the land and keeping our waters clean.

Thanks for listening today! In case you didn't know, Ag Solutions Network entered the soil health game with biologicals almost two decades ago. We've seen farmers and our dealer network successfully impact more and more acreage with a soil health first approach. In 2019, AgEmerge began as an event idea where we gathered awesome speakers along with a dynamic group of growers to really challenge old paradigms and have conversations that resulted in system changes. Since the AgEmerge events, we expanded learning opportunities to our AgEmerge podcast. You can find podcast episodes and all the previous AgEmerge event speakers on our Ag Solutions Network YouTube channel, linked in the show notes. As the end of 2021 approaches, we're excited to bring you this podcast with some new content from a summer meeting where Monte Bottens talks about how ASN's Power2Gro System enables principle-based farming. And we've included some fun clips from the past year! Today's collection of podcasts brings you thought-provoking discussions from people who changed the way they see things when it comes to soil health. Our discussions come from growers, researchers, entrepreneurs, and other thought leaders who are passionate about all the aspects of regenerative agriculture. And we bring you people who've made life-changing decisions to improve not only their soil health but their personal health. As you know, at ASN and with our AgEmerge content, we don't just talk about what our speakers are doing, we talk about how they are making it work. And we don't sugar coat it, we discuss pain points, struggles and failures too. We think it's so important to remember that there will be ups and downs that pave the way to victory. So don't let those hard knocks stop you on this journey. The great news is, more and more growers are adopting soil health practices and we're all building networks to help each other adopt these systems by sharing ideas, strategies, and practices that work. It seems no one is holding their cards close to their vest when it comes to regenerative agriculture and we're all eager to help others get on board. And as always, if you'd like to learn more about what we're doing to help growers implement soil health practices, check out our website at asn.farm and there you can click on the links to follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linkedin. There's a lot of great things happening and always something to learn - thanks for listening! Check out all these clips: https://www.agsolutionsnetwork.com/agemergepodcast Featuring: Sarah Carlson, Practical Farmers of Iowa Dr. Pam Marrone, Marrone Bio Innovations Jeff Moyer, CEO Rodale Institute Jay McCaman, Author: When Weeds Talk Dr. Joel Gruver, Soil Scientist Western Illinois University Joe Bassett, CEO of Dawn Equipment and Underground Ag Dr. Fred Provenza, Professor Emeritus of Behavioral Ecology in the Department of Wildland Resources at Utah State University Dr. Stephan van Vliet Nutrition Scientist and Metabolomics Expert, Stedman Nutrition and Metabolism Center at Duke University School of Medicine Michelle Perro, MD, DHOM Blaine Hitzfield, CEO of Seven Sons Farm Dino Giacomazzi, the CEO of Giacomazzi Almond Company, Inc. Dr. Mike Bredeson, Research Agroecologist at the Ecdysis Foundation Mikayla Tabert, Trinity Creek Ranch, Inc. Seth Watkins, Farmer from Clarinda Iowa Will Harris, White Oak Pastures Ron Joyce, President and CEO of Joyce Farms Rick Bayless, Chef Frontera Grill, Topolobampo, Xoco, Tortas

Thanks so much for joining us! Today Seth Watkins, a farmer from Clarinda Iowa, joins our podcast as he and Monte discuss what it looks like to think differently about our responsibilities as farmers. This summer Monte heard Seth's TEDx talk about his passion for stewarding his land and where he said what he really wanted was clean water, healthy soils and happy cows. You'll quickly hear that Seth wants to share what he's learned on his journey from both his farm and his family's perspective. Seth is the fourth generation to care for his family's heritage farm near Clarinda, Iowa. They raise beef cattle, corn, hay, oats, and various cover crops. He's passionate about stewardship, especially water quality, the restoration of prairie, woodlands, and riparian areas. Seth believes when you have a healthy and diverse landscape combined with the values of inclusion, equity, and accessibility you can accomplish anything. He also serves on The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation board of Directors and the Leadership Council for The Iowa Learning Farms. His wife Christy is an Early Childhood Specialist for Green Hills AEA. They have a son, Spencer, and a daughter, Tatum. You can watch Seth on the TedX Des Moines stage here: TedX link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJ0wP9FJU1s If you'd like to learn more about what we're doing to help growers implement soil health practices, check out our website at asn.farm and there you can click on the links to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linkedin. There are a lot of great things happening and always something to learn - thanks for listening! And, if you've got questions you want answered? Send them our way and we'll do our best to research and find answers. Know someone you think would be great on the AgEmerge 2021 stage or on the podcast? Send your questions or suggestions to kim@asn.farm We'd love to hear from you!

From our friends at Practical Farmers of Iowa, which Seth Watkins and Megan Filbert say is like a Tinder for cattle producers and row crop producers to find each other in order to work together in improving Iowa's water quality along with the bottom line. PLUS a couple key marks were achieved in the soybean market AND the Three Big Things You Need to Know.

The Farmers & Ranchers for a Green New Deal Podcast is a series of conversations with members of a national coalition representing more than 10,000 rural and urban farmers and ranchers in the U.S. The coalition is committed to advancing food and agriculture policies that support organic, regenerative and agro-ecological food production and land-management practices that restore soil health and reduce greenhouse gases.Learn more here: https://regenerationinternational.org/farmers-ranchers-green-new-deal/

Calvin and Jacobo are joined by the one and only Seth Watkins (@sethbysouthwest) to discuss Seth’s experience on a two year mission in Argentina and Paraguay and much more. The infamous “Hot Dog Water” Theory arises and we (surprisingly!) do not roast Jakobe. Enjoy the show! Time Stamps: Andrew Yang 2020 (01:00) Political Climate + Gun Control (13:45) Topic of the Show - Seth’s Mission (19:00) Hot Dog Water Tangent (34:10) Seth’s Mission Continued (39:35) Seth’s Return (43:00) Marvel Movies and Disney Plus (46:55) Follow Seth on all social media: @sethbysouthwest Euphoria Season 1 Pod coming soon! Twitter: @wwl_pod Insta: @wwlpod Email: wherewelandingpod@gmail.com

LINKS PODCASTING CHECKLISTS CLICK HERE Facebook Page:  World Organic News Facebook page. WORLD ORGANIC NEWS No Dig Gardening Book: Click here Permaculture Plus http://permacultureplus.com.au/   Topical Talks   CIVIL EATS |Silvopasture Can Mitigate Climate Change. Will U.S. Farmers Take it Seriously? https://civileats.com/2019/01/07/silvopasture-can-mitigate-climate-change-will-u-s-farmers-take-it-seriously/   Inside Climate News | Industrial Agriculture, an Extraction Industry Like Fossil Fuels, a Growing Driver of Climate Change https://insideclimatenews.org/news/25012019/climate-change-agriculture-farming-consolidation-corn-soybeans-meat-crop-subsidies Bill Mollison Silvopasture, Industrial Agriculture and Bill Mollison’s Response. This is the World Organic News for the week ending the 28th of January 2019. Jon Moore reporting! Decarbonise the air, recarbonise the soil! A little housekeeping. Some of you have noticed the website is still down. I’m still in discussions with my host about appropriate levels of performance and hope it will be back up soon. In the meantime I’m posting things to the Facebook page if you’re interested. And now to the show. From the site Civil Eats come a piece entitled: Silvopasture Can Mitigate Climate Change. Will U.S. Farmers Take it Seriously? A fair question! Quote: Steve Gabriel curls back a bit of flimsy net fencing and shakes a plastic bucket of alfalfa pellets. Immediately, a sweet-faced, short-fleeced mob of some 50 Katahdin sheep pull away from a line of young black locust trees on whose leaves they’ve been snacking and swarm around him. The sheep race after Gabriel as he strides across nibbled grass and out from the fencing, around a dirt path’s shallow curve, and into a shadier, overgrown pasture dotted with long standing black walnut and hawthorn trees. End Quote A sweet image and one that can be replicated across much of the world. It does require a mindset shift from those on the ground. Not the easiest of things but it is the people on the ground who can see the changes occurring as I write then read this.  There’s serious fires to the south of us here in Highclere. Emergency evacuations, watch and act alerts and very little sign of rain. Two days ago it was predicted we would receive between 20 - 40mm on Wednesday. Today, Monday, that forcast is now down to 1 - 5mm. I’ve seen this pattern too many times in my life. Rain forecast, clouds arriving and then nothing!. We’re fortunate here. We have a very small holding, 1.5 acres and a permanent bore. We can de-stock, focus on the vegetables and get through this. If this is not the new normal. Those on the ground see, I think we can all agree on that. It is the properties with multi-generational occupation with rainfall and temperature records that prove most useful. From small grape growers to corporate types the harvest dates, temperature at harvest and annual rainfall records all form part of their business IP. Those in the southern parts of the Australian mainland are and have been buying land in the southern island state of Tasmania. It is cooler here. Whilst the mainland has been under 40+ degrees celsius for most of January, our part has hit 30 once or twice. The southern parts of Tassie have hit the hit 30s and that’s where the fires are. So we have a dilemma. The rising temperatures and falling rainfall are a consequence of climate change. Silvo pasture as one variation of regenerative agriculture provides a solution in some cases. The nature of silvopasture is that it includes trees, obviously. Trees are a worry in bushfires. Now there are ways around this. Tagasaste is a species which is fire resistant as is, I believe, saltbush. There are ways around these things. Back to the piece sited: Quote Gabriel (the person in the above quote) is an agroforestry specialist at Cornell University’s Small Farms Program. He’s also the author of the book on silvopasture, a farming technique that’s touted as a way to sequester carbon by growing trees in livestock pastures. End Quote. Gabriel himself runs a 35 acre farm. He rotates meat sheep across once fields. Some of these have black locusts planted on them for feed, shade and nitrogen. These black locusts sequester between 1 and 4 tons of carbon per acre per year. It’s taken five years to convert the place from ru down to productive with huge improvement in soil organic matter and soil biology. All the work has been done by the animals. This is the bit I like, let the stock do the “work” for you by doing what they evolved to do. Stock go to the feed, they manure the ground and move on. The alternative, CAFOs, feedlots, chick and pig sheds bring the feed to the animals and take, eventually, the manures from the animals. All at the cost of fossil fuels. The differences are obvious. I understand that debt levels will affect decisions in on farm management. I also understand that not everywhere on the planet can stock be outdoors all year. These cases can be opportunities to collect organic matter but again the way is the most important. Slurry tanks and aerial spreading are not good, in a carbon sense, but are technologies worked out and powered by diesel. You can see the pattern. Everytime a technique is powered by a fossil fuel, it reduces the need for people and pumps carbon into the atmosphere. Silvopasture offers some opportunities dependant upon the landscape, the climate and the preferences of the farmer. To give you some idea of the wider range of possibilities for silvopasture, the piece goes on: Quote: For example, 14 miles south of the Gabriel farm, the 69-acre Good Life Farm has had success with a peach and apple orchard grazed by beef cattle and poultry, supported by salad crops. About 180 miles east, in Valley Falls, New York, first generation farmers Dustin and Kassie Gibson have converted 20 acres of what Kassie calls “useless woodland” to silvopasture that supports beef cattle and hogs, thereby expanding the number of animals they’re able to support on their 70 total acres. End Quote Now we come to piece from Inside Climate News entitled: Industrial Agriculture, an Extraction Industry Like Fossil Fuels, a Growing Driver of Climate Change. Quote: Industrial farming encourages practices that degrade the soil and increase emissions, while leaving farmers more vulnerable to damage as the planet warms. End Quote This pretty much sums up the dilemma. Yet there are, of course, people on the ground making a difference. Gabriel, quoted above is one such example. In this piece they bring us Seth Watkins. Quote: On his farm in southwestern Iowa, Seth Watkins plants several different crops and raises cattle. He controls erosion and water pollution by leaving some land permanently covered in native grass. He grazes his cattle on pasture, and he sows cover crops to hold the fertile soil in place during the harsh Midwestern winters. Watkins' farm is a patchwork of diversity—and his fields mark it as an outlier. His practices don't sound radical, but Watkins is a bit of a renegade. He's among a small contingent of farmers in the region who are holding out against a decades-long trend of consolidation and expansion in American agriculture. Watkins does this in part because he farms with climate change in mind. "I can see the impact of the changing climate," he said. "I know, in the immediate, I've got to manage the issue. In the long term, it means doing something to slow down the problem." End Quote. Seth is a hold out against the consolidation process that’s been occurring with increasing rapidity since WW2 but examples can be found as far back the Roman Republic and more recently with the clearances of the 18th century. Clearly there are economic advantages to consolidation and industrial agriculture but it is these very economic advantages which are driving climate changes. So it is time to do things differently. Quote: "The industrial food system presents a barrier to realizing the potential climate benefits in agriculture," said Laura Lengnick, a soil scientist who has written extensively on climate and agriculture. "We continue to invest in this massive corn and soybean and beef-making machine in the Midwest despite all that we know about the changes we could make that would maintain yields, improve farm profitability and deliver climate change solutions." This is happening as landmark government reports and ample academic research show that agricultural soils are critical for stabilizing the climate. End Quote There is, of course, a political element to all this. Where there are subsidies, there will be lobbyists and market distortions through price signals. These have led to investments based upon the subsidies, consolidation of farms, and then these rely upon the continued subsidies to maintain profitability. A self sustaining cycle. No problem if there’s no down side. In this case, there’s plenty. Fossil fuel use, soil erosion, water contamination and animal cruelty as a starting list. All because the subsidies point enterprises into growing corn, soyabean and beef. From the article: Quote: Agricultural policy has long emphasized over-production, propped up by government subsidies that favor certain crops. Lawmakers have been unwilling to change the system, largely because of a powerful farm lobby and the might of agribusinesses that profit from technological advancements. "Farmers are dictated in how to farm," said Adam Mason, a policy director with Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement. "They're locked into a system." This system has transformed agriculture into a business that resembles the fossil fuel industry as it extracts value out of the ground with relentless efficiency and leaves greenhouse gas pollution in its aftermath. End Quote I would see this as an implementation of Henry Ford’s factory methodology to the whole world. We can do things differently. Bill Mollison springs to mind in these cases. Quote. “Though the problems of the world are increasingly complex, the solutions remain embarrassingly simple.” ― Bill Mollison “The greatest change we need to make is from consumption to production, even if on a small scale, in our own gardens. If only 10% of us do this, there is enough for everyone. Hence the futility of revolutionaries who have no gardens, who depend on the very system they attack, and who produce words and bullets, not food and shelter.” ― Bill Mollison End Quotes And on that note I’ll draw this episode to a conclusion. Remember: Decarbonise the air, recarbonise the soil! Of course the podcasting checklists are still available over at Jon Moore Podcasting Services   Thank you for listening and I'll be back next week.

Kara Cook-Schultz from U.S. PIRG joins the show to talk about their recently released report, Reaping What We Sow: How the Practices of Industrial Agriculture Put Our Health and Environment at Risk, that breaks down the problems of industrial agriculture and offers common-sense solutions. Host Jenna Liut is also speaks with Seth Watkins, 4th generation Iowa farmer whose grandmother, Jessie Field Shambaugh, started 4H. Seth offers his experience in implementing the types of sustainable farming practices proposed in the report. Eating Matters is powered by Simplecast

In the 15th episode of the No-Till Farmer podcast, brought to you by Montag Manufacturing, we welcome Seth Watkins to talk about how he’s using conservation to benefit his farm and his community.

Seth Watkins farms his family heritage farm in southwest Iowa. He has a 600-head cow-calf enterprise and a whole farm approach to conservation: rotational grazing, wetlands, late season calving, and row crops integrated with prairie strips and cover crops.