Local food systems get help from University to put healthy food on the table, statewide
Broad roundup of UNR Extension/Experiment Station programs supporting Nevada farmers — drought-tolerant crop research, Nevada Farm Network, apprenticeships, food hubs, tribal agriculture, indoor farming.
Nevada-Grown Specialty Crops: Diversifying Farms through Novel Management Techniques
Dr. Felipe Barrios-Masias and DFI explore grafting and irrigation technologies with local growers; farmer Rob Holley cut water use in his tomato tunnels by 50%.
The University of Nevada at Reno’s Desert Farming Initiative is promoting climate smart farming practices
Profiles DFI, UNR’s student-run farm, showing how it advances the university’s sustainability mission via climate-smart practices, research, and event support.
Duvarita Vineyard – Kiss the Ground Farmer Feature
A Kiss the Ground farmer feature article (published May 27, 2022) profiling Brook Williams, owner of Duvarita Vineyard in Lompoc, CA. Covers Williams’ background as a 30-year winery professional who transitioned to vineyard ownership in 2012, his adoption of biodynamic practices beginning in 2014 (certified biodynamic 2017), and how his participation in Kiss the Ground’s […]
Long-Term Soil Strategies Drive Many Environmental Benefits at Park Farming Organics
A CalCAN (California Climate & Agriculture Network) Farmer Climate Leader profile on Scott Park and Park Farming Organics, detailing how decades of cover cropping and composting have dramatically increased soil organic matter and carbon sequestration, improved water retention and drought resilience (cutting the number of irrigations needed), reduced synthetic fertilizer and pesticide dependency by 90%+, […]
Turkovich is Agriculturalist of the Year
A feature article from the Winters Express (published February 26, 2024) profiling Tony Turkovich, named the 2024 Yolo County Farm Bureau Agriculturalist of the Year — the top agricultural honor in California. Turkovich is co-owner and general manager of Button & Turkovich LLC, a large farming operation in Winters. The article covers his 50-year partnership […]
Ferrington Vineyard Field Trial – North Coast Soil Hub
A detailed field trial profile page from the North Coast Soil Hub documenting the multi-year replicated cover crop and tillage management trial at Ferrington Vineyard in Boonville, Anderson Valley. Covers the vineyard’s background (167 acres, ~76 acres in vines, 63 acres of sheep-grazed oak-grassland hillsides), the trial design comparing multiple plant cover systems and tillage […]
Vineyard Field Trial Insights: Plant Cover Systems and Soil Health
A North Coast Soil Hub news/update post (published January 23, 2024) summarizing highlights from the Ferrington Vineyard Field Trial in Mendocino County. Links to a downloadable PDF of the October 2022 Ferrington Vineyard Field Trial Summary, which documents findings from a replicated field trial comparing cover crop and tillage management approaches and their effects on […]
Unruh Walnut Farms – Colusa County, California: A Soil Health Academy Case Study
An in-depth producer case study profiling Daniel and Rachelle Unruh’s 193-acre Chandler walnut orchard near Princeton, CA. Covers their transition from conventional to regenerative production starting in 2013, driven by an intractable nematode problem, and details their practices: diverse cover crop mixes (including mustard for nematode suppression), no-till, reduced synthetic nitrogen, pheromone mating disruption for […]
Diversified Drought-Tolerant Silvopasture in Oak Savanna Rangeland: PT Ranch Producer Case Study
A producer case study profiling PT Ranch in Ione, CA, documenting how ranch manager Molly Taylor implemented four silvopasture systems — a fruit orchard, pig fodder bank, olive orchard, and irrigated pasture hedgerows — to restore native oak savanna, sequester carbon, and diversify farm income through integrated tree-livestock systems.