Entries by ncat-admin

Episode 158. Conservation Easements and Ecosystem Service Markets

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In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Specialist Colin Mitchell interviews Chad Ellis, CEO of the Texas Agriculture Land Trust (TALT) and a board member of the Ecosystem Service Marketplace Consortium (ESMC). Colin works out of NCAT’s Southwest Regional Office in San Antonio, Texas, and among other projects works with NCAT’s […]

Avocados: Fruit Set Challenges and Propagation

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Like all plants, avocados have secrets to share; understanding the plants we grow can unlock their potential and bring a deeper understanding of the ecology in our own back yards. Here are a few considerations for your backyard avocados, as well as a propagation technique that can be used on a number of plants.
By Omar Rodriguez
NCAT Agriculture Specialist

Episode 157. Pandemic Adaptation

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In this episode of Voices from the Field, Martin Guerena, a sustainable agriculture specialist with NCAT’s Western Regional office in Davis, California, speaks with Hope Sippola and Shane Zurilgen of Fiery Ginger Farm in West Sacramento. Among other duties, Martin works with NCAT’s ATTRA sustainable-agriculture program. Their conversation includes a description of the operation, as […]

What the Brown Rot Hath Wrought

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I don’t grow peaches. That unhappy confession is despite the fact that I grow peach trees. And rot. I grow a lot of brown rot.
By Guy Ames, NCAT Horticulture Specialist

Dairy Goats for the Farm

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This week, I will be sending a young dairy goat named Caramel to a lovely family. The seven-year-old girl who will be in charge of the goat is so excited; she and her parents have planned for shelter, pasture, and feed.

NCAT Commits to Racial Justice

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Layered upon the pandemic and a national economic freefall, the murder of George Floyd and so many other Black Americans has sparked frustration, anger and sorrow across the country, not least here at NCAT.

Episode 156. Mississippi Minority Farmers Alliance

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In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT agriculture specialist Felicia Bell talks with Carolyn Jones of the Mississippi Minority Farmers Alliance. Felicia works in the NCAT Gulf States Office in Jackson, Mississippi, including work with NCAT’s ATTRA sustainable agriculture program. Felicia and Carolyn talk about engaging young people in agriculture and the importance […]

Beyond Fresh: Exploring Value-Added Food Enterprises

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By Mike Morris, Director of NCAT’s Southwest Regional Office A wise farmer friend once told me: “Over the years, we’ve learned that fresh vegetables are one of the least profitable things we do, for the amount of work they take.” Value-added enterprises are one way to increase the profitability of growing those vegetables. And, in […]

Root Propagation

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I developed a love of plants as a young boy, helping my father in his yard-of-the-month winning front yard. I hated pruning roses, but everything else was so amazing to me. I think the thing that really hooked me was propagation, although I didn’t know the word for it back then. When I realized I could make a whole new plant from just a piece of another, it did something permanent to my little mind that is still with me today.

By Justin Duncan, NCAT Agriculture Specialist

Episode 154: Using Cover Crops in an Organic Walnut Orchard

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In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT’s Rex Dufour interviews organic walnut farmer and processor, Russ Lester, at Dixon Ridge Farms in Winters, California. Russ shares some very practical thoughts about why he uses cover crops and explains how multi-functional cover crops are to his orchards. Rex Dufour has been a sustainable agriculture […]