"Soil Microbes & Citizen Science: Farming from the Ground Up"
NOFA Podcast
Join our host, Tony Kennette, our staff soil scientist Ruben Parilla, and guests William Padilla-Brown and Jake Tulius in a discussion about Soil Microbes & Citizen Science! From tardigrades, and algea, to mycorrhizal networks, this crew will get you salivating for successful soil! This Episode has been brought to you by MDAR PERTINENT LINKS:
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SEASON 7: Ep1: Voices of The Winter Conference
NOFA Podcast
This episode is a culmination of voices and stories of our NOFA community members that visited the in person Winter Conferences. For those of you who don’t already know, most of the NOFA state chapters host an annual Winter Conference. Some are jam packed single days, others are weekend long intensives, and others have been held in a more virtual online format. None-the-less the Winter Conference is filled with workshops, presentations, and experiences for Farmers, Gardeners, Foodies, Chefs, and Agricultural and Environmental Policy advocates. And it’s one of the...
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Season 6 Ep. 2 Closing the Mushroom Production Loop
NOFA Podcast
Closing the Mushroom Production Loop: Evaluating Soil Microbe Changes Following Field Application of Compost Inoculated with Spent Mushroom Substrate with host, Tony Kennette, Ruben Parilla Soil Tech Coordinator and Education Dir NOFA MASS and Elizabeth Almeida of Fat Moon Farm. In this episode we discuss the use of compost inocullated with "spent" mushroom substrate, and the scientific discoveries found regarding increased fungal activity in the soil when applied. This podcast episode is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, through...
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Season 6 Ep. 1 Grass-Fed Cattle Are Solving Problems
NOFA Podcast
In this episode I am joined by Central Massachusetts cattle farmer, Ridge Shinn to discuss the amazing possibilities that good management of cattle can have on soils and land as a whole. Ridge Shinn is the founder of Big Picture Beef in Hardwick Mass. Big Picture Beef is an aggregator of grass-fed cattle and an educational resource for cattle farmers interested in a Grass-Fed paradigm. Ridge is also frequent and long time contributor with us at NOFA and most recently co-author with Lynne Pledger of the book Grass-Fed Beef for a Post-Pandemic World. This podcast episode is supported...
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Season 5 Ep. 11 Clover As Living Mulch
NOFA Podcast
In this episode I am joined by my colleague Ruben Parilla our NOFA/Mass Soil Tech Coordinator and together we interview Lincoln Fishman of Sawyer Farm in Worthington, MA. Lincoln is presenting at our upcoming NOFA/Mass Winter Conference happening the weekend of January 14th & 15th, 2022. Lincoln Fishman is co-owner/operator of Sawyer Farm. In 2010 they started raising vegetables and livestock, and using only draft power. In 2020, Sawyer Farm started experimenting with no-till systems and an the spring of 2022, sold their team and bought a tractor to allow them to fully explore...
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Season 5 Ep. 9 Farming for Biodiversity
NOFA Podcast
In this episode I interview Mary Sage Napolitan and Evan Abramson about their collaborative work on re-establishing ecologically diverse landscape to the properties of Island Grown Initiative in the town of Vineyard Haven on the island of Martha’s Vineyard. Mary Sage and Evan are presenting their work on this project at our upcoming NOFA/Mass Winter Conference happening the weekend of January 14th & 15th 2022. Mary Sage Napolitan is the Regenerative Landscape Manager at Island Grown Initiative. Born and raised on the island, her work focuses on collaborative design, farms as...
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Season 5 Ep. 9 Winter Cover Crop Killing Strategies
NOFA Podcast
NOFA/Mass Winter Conference Highlight - When and How To Kill (Winter) Cover Crops With Arthur Siller In this episode we’re drawing another highlight from our annual NOFA/Mass Winter Conference that happened remotely in January 2022. We join University of Massachusetts at Amherst PhD student Arthur Siller as he outlines four different cover crop killing strategies that we can employ, and he also overviews our primary winter cover crops and their management strategies. Arthur Siller is a PhD student in the Hashemi lab at University of Massachusetts at Amherst’s College of Natural Sciences...
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Season 5 Ep. 8 Bioremediation Project Update
NOFA Podcast
In this episode I interview my colleague Andrew Laurion to discuss the bioremediation project underway in Springfield, MA. We talk about the changes in the soil, the properties and the community now that this project has been underway for two years. Andrew Laurion is the Bioremediation Project Coordinator for NOFA/Mass and the Youth Program Coordinator of the food justice organization Gardening the Community (GTC) in Springfield, Massachusetts. Andrew is also an avid urban grower, a woodworker and loves his role mentoring the youth and helping to create healthy, sustainable communities...
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Season 5 Ep. 7 Microscopy of Soil and Compost
NOFA Podcast
In this episode I am joined by two of my NOFA colleagues Monique Bosch from our CT NOFA chapter as well as Ruben Parilla of NOFA/Mass and they introduce us to the world of microscopy. We discuss the advantages of looking at your soil and compost under the microscope to determine the state of affairs and influence your soil management strategies. Monique Bosch, is the Organic Land Care Coordinator and the Soil Health Technician at CT NOFA and an avid microscopy enthusiast. Ruben Parilla, is the NOFA/Mass Soil Tech Coordinator and is also an avid microscope enthusiast. Microscope...
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Season 5 Ep. 6 Assessing Soil Health at Assawaga Farm
NOFA Podcast
In this episode I am joined again by our NOFA/Mass Soil Tech Coordinator, Ruben Parilla. We interview Yoko Takemura of Assawaga Farm in Putnam, CT. This material is based upon work supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, through the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program. Yoko Takemura owns and operates Assawaga Farm with her husband Alex Carpenter in Putnam, CT. Since 2016 they’ve grown organic vegetables with an emphasis on Japanese varieties, flowers and fruits on less than an acre using no-till and...
info_outlineIn this episode I am joined again by my NOFA/Mass colleague, Soil Health Projects Manager, Christine Manuck. We interview Meryl Latronica, Director of Farm Operations at Just Roots in Greenfield, MA. We continue our conversations with farmers working within our Compaction Mitigation grant as a collaboration with an MDAR 2020 Specialty Crop Block Grant titled Accelerating Soil Health Through Compaction Mitigation: A Data-Supported Peer-to-Peer Farmer Learning Project.
Meryl Latronica is the Director of Farm Operations at Just Roots. She is a dedicated and experienced production farmer, farm-based educator, community organizer, mentor to new farmers and devoted member of the New England farm community. She has been focusing her work on balancing intensive organic vegetable production with a commitment to building strong communities around food and farms.
Just Roots provides educational programming on the farm, in schools and in the community and has a mission to create equitable access to healthy local food in Western Massachusetts, and work toward just, vibrant, and sustainable farm and food systems everywhere.
You can find more info Meryl and Just Roots and the various programs they support at JustRoots.Org
To find more information on the Northeast Organic Farming Association chapter in your state please visit us at NOFA.org
For additional information on upcoming workshops, articles and NOFA/Mass project updates, please follow our NOFA/Mass Facebook page and join our mailing list.
NOFAmass.org
Music by Matt Jatkola
https://mattjatkola.bandcamp.com/
Music by Jason Valcourt
https://www.jasonvalcourt.com/
NOFA Podcast produced and edited by Jason Valcourt