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4 The Soil: A Conversation

4 The Soil: A Conversation

By: Eric Scott Bendfeldt
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About this listen

 Soil. What is it, really? It’s more than the dirt under our feet and the ground we stand on.

Soil is living and life-giving.

Listen as we unlock the mysteries of soil by speaking with people at the forefront of the soil health movement.

“4 The Soil: A Conversation” is part of the 4 The Soil Awareness Campaign led by Virginia Cooperative Extension and the Virginia Soil Health Coalition. The campaign’s purpose is to raise awareness of soil as an agricultural and natural resource critical to social, economic, and environmental health.

Hear and learn from farmers, agricultural professionals, conservation leaders, master gardeners, and many more on how and why to be 4 The Soil.

The podcast is a collaboration of Virginia Tech's School of Plant and Environmental Sciences and Center for Food Systems and Community Transformation, Virginia Cooperative Extension, On The Farm Radio, USDA-NRCS, and the Virginia Soil Health Coalition with specific funding from the Agua Fund, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and Virginia Tech’s Department of Agriculture, Leadership, and Community Education’s Community Viability grant program.

Stay tuned for the release of our first episode in October!Copyright Eric Scott Bendfeldt Science
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Episodes
  • S5 - E9: Soil Health is Attainable with Anthony Beery of Beery Farms, Part I

    S5 - E9: Soil Health is Attainable with Anthony Beery of Beery Farms, Part I
    Apr 29 2025
    Soil health is attainable. Anthony Beery of Beery Farms and Cumberland Hay and Straw LLC shares that message with Mary Sketch Bryant and Jeff Ishee based on his farming experience and journey. Anthony grew up in the Shenandoah Valley where he and his father Danny raised dairy cows and poultry. Anthony benefitted from his father's mentorship and encouragement to be open to new ideas and experimenting.

    Anthony and his family moved to Cumberland County in 2018 to begin custom crop production and start Cumberland Hay & Straw LLC. Anthony received the 2024 Carl Luebben Soil Health and Water Quality Award at the Virginia Farm-to-Table Conference for his commitment, example, and mentorship of other farmers.

    If you are just starting your soil health journey, Anthony emphasizes taking a step and starting with the basics: learn the soil type and previous land use, test for nutrient content and pH, and understand the areas where nutrients are low and high. For Anthony, soil compaction was a limiting factor on his farm that started his commitment to earnest no-till farming, experimenting with diverse cover crop rotations, and continued devotion to core principles of soil health.

    As always, we encourage you to start your soil health journey and follow the four principles of soil health: 1) Keep the Soil Covered -- Cover crops are our friends; 2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage in your field or garden as much as possible; 3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity and life in the soil; and 4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation and/or livestock integration. Yes, soil health is attainable and we can all be 4 The Soil!

    To enjoy the recent We Are 4 the Soil song created by the Flip Charts, please visit https://www.4thesoil.org/#we-are-4-the-soil-video. For questions about soil and water conservation practices and outdoor educational activities for youth, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.
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    16 mins
  • S5 - E8: Ins and Outs of Compost Tea with Nicky Schauder of Permaculture Gardens, Part II

    S5 - E8: Ins and Outs of Compost Tea with Nicky Schauder of Permaculture Gardens, Part II
    Apr 15 2025
    In this episode, Nicky Schauder of Permaculture Gardens continues the conversation about permaculture and the ins and outs of compost tea with Mary Sketch Bryant, Marian Dalke, and Jeff Ishee. Nicky received two USDA-Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Producer Grants to specifically research the benefits of compost tea and its effects on plant growth, yield, soil biology diversity, and the stability of soil health. Nicky's research question was does compost tea make certain leafy vegetables grow bigger or not?

    To read the Permaculture Gardens blog and other resources about soil regeneration, compost tea, permaculture, and growing food yourself, please visit https://www.permaculturegardens.org/

    Bill Mollison's books Introduction to Permaculture and Permaculture: A Designer's Manual are available online or through your local independent bookstore. Information about USDA-Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education's (SARE) grant programs and their free publications are accessible at https://southern.sare.org/

    To learn about the Virginia Soil Health Coalition and join the Coalition's quarterly meetings, please visit https://www.virginiasoilhealth.org/. For questions about soil and water conservation practices and outdoor educational activities for youth, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.

    As always, we encourage you to join the 4 The Soil movement at https://www.4thesoil.org/ and follow the four principles of soil health: 1) Keep the Soil Covered -- Cover crops are our friends; 2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage in your field or garden as much as possible; 3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity and life in the soil; and 4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation and/or livestock integration. And please share your stories of how you are regenerating soil on your farm, in your garden, or backyard. Yes, we can all cheer "for" soil and be 4 The Soil!
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    19 mins
  • S5 - E7: Grow-It-Yourself (GIY) with Nicky Schauder of Permaculture Gardens, Part I

    S5 - E7: Grow-It-Yourself (GIY) with Nicky Schauder of Permaculture Gardens, Part I
    Apr 1 2025
    Nicky Schauder and her family started Permaculture Gardens to make permaculture and growing food accessible to everyone - especially families and children. Nicky shares her story and experience with learning, researching, and growing food with Mary Sketch Bryant, Marian Dalke, and Jeff Ishee. Nicky is constantly learning by experiment. Nicky is a two-time recipient of USDA-Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Producer Grants for Research and Experimentation with permaculture and compost tea.

    Permaculture Gardens' Grow-It-Yourself (GIY) program stems from Nicky's learning, experimentation, and efforts to debunk the idea that growing food is neither accessible nor possible. The Live Plant Your Pantry Challenge started this week March 31 - April 5 and can be joined at https://www.permaculturegardens.org/plant-your-pantry-challenge.

    To read the Permaculture Gardens blog and other resources about soil regeneration, compost tea, permaculture, and growing food yourself, please visit https://www.permaculturegardens.org/

    To learn about the Virginia Soil Health Coalition and join the Coalition's quarterly meetings, please visit https://www.virginiasoilhealth.org/. For questions about soil and water conservation practices and outdoor educational activities for youth, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.

    As always, we encourage you to join the 4 The Soil movement and share your stories of how you are regenerating soil on your farm, in your garden, or backyard. Yes, we can all be 4 The Soil.
    Show More Show Less
    17 mins

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