A long-form feature article from The Rooted Journal profiling Nuss Farms and the multigenerational story behind its regenerative transition. Covers five generations of family farming history near Lodi; the asparagus boom and NAFTA-driven collapse; Dave Nuss’s openness to innovation; Tim and Tyler’s return to the farm via The Modern Acre podcast; the 2019 start of the regenerative transition; and the real-world challenges of applying regenerative practices (cover crops, livestock integration, reduced tillage) to specialty vegetable production in California’s Central Valley — where the techniques developed for Midwestern grain farms or West Coast orchards/vineyards don’t translate directly. Also details a 2023 USDA Partnership for Climate-Smart Commodities grant from Elevated Foods, side-by-side field trials of biological vs. conventional nutrient inputs on watermelons, banana peppers, tomatoes, and cucumbers, a planned 2025 pilot with MyLand (soil-native algae inoculants via irrigation), and on-farm conservation work including a conservation easement, native hedgerows, and riparian habitat restoration that has already drawn back quail, deer, turtles, and salmon runs.
