On-Farm: Conversations with Practical Farmers Practical Farmers of Iowa

In this episode, we talk with Jorgen Rose, who is the habitat and policy coordinator for Practical Farmers of Iowa. We talk a little about what PFI is up to in the habitat world, why we started doing habitat programming at PFI, and how people can get involved. You can learn more about creating wildlife habitat on farms by checking out Bringing Back the Edges on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/PFIvideos.

In this episode, we talk with Adam Janke, who is the Wildlife Extension Specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. We talk a little about what wildlife habitat actually means, how the landscape has changed and how that has affected wildlife, and a few things that landowners or farmers can do to improve wildlife habitat on their farms. You can learn more about creating wildlife habitat on farms by checking out Bringing Back the Edges on our YouTube channel at youtube.com/PFIvideos.
 

In this episode, we talk with John Rock, who raises cattle and row crops in northwest Iowa near near the picturesque Little Sioux River. We chat about his experience grazing cattle on neighboring land owned by The Nature Conservancy and cedar tree removal and native prairie restoration on his own farm. John was just featured in a new video series from PFI - Bringing Back the Edges: Creating Wildlife Habitat on Farms. You can check out the video on grazing native plants here: https://youtu.be/tj_FdU-a7CY.

In this episode, we talk with Mark Quee, the Farm Manager at Scattergood Friends School, a boarding school near West Branch. The farm there raises organic fruits, vegetables and animals that the staff and students eat.
We talk about beneficial insects, integrated pest management, flowers and the wonderful mysteries of ecological processes.
Mark was just featured in a new video series from PFI - Bringing Back the Edges: Creating Wildlife Habitat on Farms. You can check out the video on beneficial insects here: https://youtu.be/p8lySv3oHkc.

In this episode, we talk prairie strips with northeast Iowa farmer Dick Sloan. We talk about why Dick decided to plant prairie strips, what they are, and what it takes to install and manage them. He was just featured in a new video series from PFI - Bringing Back the Edges: Creating Wildlife Habitat on Farms. You can check out the video on prairie strips here: https://youtu.be/NSCxiIQ7mI8

In this special bonus episode in three acts, PFI member Gina Nichols  weaves together the fiction and the non-fiction, science and art, past and future to paint a portrait of one of farming’s most important resources in “Consider the Soil.”  If you’re curious about the soil, and you like a good story, you’re going to love this episode.