Firstly, an amuse bouche. This photo got 40,000 page impressions on Facebook last week. I have no idea why. People like plants maybe?
Anyways.
I studied soil science at university in the 80s. It was all chemistry – molecules, cations, anions. No biology at all. Apply fertilizer, yield go up. Until it doesn’t, and you can’t drink the water.
Now I’m doing it at our own farm, things look very different. Seems like the crazy permaculture hippies were right after all. Our “journey” into regenerative agriculture (if I say “at the intersection of”, please shoot me) was precipitated by a series of droughts from which our irrigated shade trees barely recovered. I’ve written a bit about that before, today I want to put together a list of what we’ve read and listened to that got us on our way.
One of the key challenges of this approach is that it’s very customized to your own situation. And there’s almost nothing written down about it for vanilla or cocoa. We’ve got a network of fellow travelers we Whatsapp and message daily with pictures and videos and suggestions, but the foundations came from some of the following sources. Even if you aren’t a farmer, they’re a great starting point to understanding where your food is coming from. None of these are screaming preachy tomes, rather, they’re stories about people who found new ways (and some very old ways) to address longstanding problems with soil fertility, and a lot of problems we didn’t even know about until recently.
From Dirt To Soil, by Gabe Brown. Yes, there’s a lot you can learn about regen ag in North Dakota that applies to Central America. He’s the guy in the Kiss the Ground movie, that brought this into the mainstream. Also try to find the companion documentary Common Ground, which I haven’t seen yet.
The Soil and Health: A Study of Organic Agriculture by Sir Albert Howard was published in 1947 and is considered the starter text on the topic. He went from the UK to India to teach agriculture and returned convinced that the Indian approach was better. It’s written in that rigid British Empire style of another age, so much so that I half expected Biggles to show up. Nevertheless, it’s a reminder that a lot of this was figured out a long time ago, in a lot of different places, and, well, buried until recently.
The Living Soil, by Lady Eve Balfour was written in 1943 by the founder of the UK based Soil Association. She set up the Haughley Experiment in 1939, comparing organic and conventional farming methods. When it ceased operation in the 1980s, the organic section had much higher soil carbon, lower soil temperature, and yes, more earthworms, among other things.
The Soil Will Save Us, by Kristin Ohlson – a highly accessible entry on how we got into this soil mess and stories about some of the people creating new biological systems that repair the soil and our food systems.
What Your Food Ate, by David R Montgomery and Anne Bikle – There’s a reason why those boxed salads look and taste so bland. One of the next paradigms to be addressed in the food system is nutrient density and its link to the soil.
Growing A Revolution, by David R Montgomery – I’ve read this more than once. You can apply a lot of this in your own backyard.
The One-Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka – who knew that a book about growing rice on a tiny farm in Japan would stoke a revolution. This is a beautifully written book, probably better for you than the latest Sally Rooney.
Entangled Life, by Merlin Sheldrake – not so much about farming, but a great read about the world of fungi. He’s also released a film this year narrated by Bjork called Fungi: Web of Life. It’s worth a look if you can find it.
I continue to dip into a lot of these books long after I read them for the first time. If I had to pick a starter book for a non-farmer, I’d recommend What Your Food Ate, and go from there.
I listen to a lot of podcasts on the way to and from the farm, mainly because I don’t know where all my digital music went, and the local radio station has about 4 albums on constant rotation. There’s a lot of good podcasts out there, many don’t survive too long, but here are my favorites:
Investing In Regenerative Agriculture - Koen van Seijen speaks to investors in large scale regenerative agricultural businesses, and other key players in the ecosystem. There’s a lot of quiet money being put to work in this area, and Koen does a great job of finding the best project managers to speak, and the challenges they are addressing.
Regenerative Agriculture Podcast by John Kempf – gets into the weeds literally. I’ve found myself sitting in the truck under the house listening all the way to the end of an episode. Will the hairy vetch live? Will the forbs get along with the brassicas? It’s a bit technical, but he has a strong following among farmers.
In Defense of Plants – this can get very sciency, and not always about plants grown for agriculture, but there’s nobody more enthusiastic about plants than host Matt Candelas. From orchid pollinators to tree rings, to fossil seeds, he’s got a speaker for you.
The Future of Agriculture with Timm Hammerich - he goes all over the food supply chain, looking at ways to incorporate tech into ag. I’m becoming a bit of a skeptic about a lot of ag tech, but that might be because I tried 6 times yesterday to download our local electricity app to find out when the power is going off, and I don’t want one more damned password to forget.
The Food Programme – BBC Radio 4 – highly entertaining romp through the food system, although the host Sheila Dillon can sound like a scary school principal at times. From food festivals, to gut microbes to dealing with food waste, there’s something interesting every episode.
Strong Source – this goes back to my commodity trading days. The two hosts interview a commodity trader every episode. It’s incredible to listen to them and realize how much the food supply chain has changed in the course of my career (anybody here remember telexes?). As the supply chain de-commoditizes, it’s going to be interesting to see how these trading and food companies adapt. Warning, it can be a bit blokey.
Dr Christine Jones - https://amazingcarbon.com/ - Australian like me, she has been a lead in soil health and carbon cycling for years. Look up her talks on YouTube as well. I wish I’d had her teaching my soil science classes. She details the cycles nitrogen, phosphorus and other key minerals in the soil that look so obvious once you listen to her. She’s going to save farmers millions of dollars in fertilizer costs.
If there’s one thing that agriculture teaches you, it’s that learning is lifelong. I’ve made it a priority this year to read more books, and stop doomscrolling. That can be difficult after a hot day dealing with broken stuff, but I’m finding I sleep better after reading. I hope you do too.
If you have any other books or podcasts on regenerative agriculture that you recommend, I’d love to hear from you.
Happy reading, Ruth
That's fantastic Ruth! It is a gorgeous photo!! I'll find you on FB. I'm forwarding your list on to my brother and sis-in-law who have an organic farm in Northern Calif.