Over the past year and a half, we have missed seeing our community on campus. Those rich conversations that we’ve had in person have transitioned to the virtual world through educational videos and live programs. You showed up in droves to say that you loved connecting with us through these live, free programs. So have we!
Now, there’s another way to plug into what’s happening from the source. In Climate Conversations, we will talk to farmers, green building professionals, and food systems advocates about what’s foremost on all of our minds: climate change. While we may not publish as frequently as we’d like, each conversation is guaranteed to be a fun, fruitful way to spend 20-25 minutes while you learn something new about our built environments and our food systems.
Cover Cropping for Climate Resilience
For our inaugural podcast, we wanted to highlight one year-round, essential aspect of our agroecological farm: cover cropping.
The benefits of cover cropping are numerous, including mitigating pest and weed pressures, capturing carbon, and nourishing the soil between food crops. Last fall, we wrote about the cover crops we used over the winter to revitalize the soil for 2021’s crops. In this podcast, Anthony and I walked through a mature 7-foot tall stand of rye, got covered in pollen, and talked about cover cropping as a farm practice.
Cover crops are well known by farmers and Project Drawdown as a way to responsibly steward their land and increase crops over the long term. But some farmers, even though they know the benefits, aren’t able to invest in cover cropping.
In this podcast, you’ll hear why Anthony Reyes, our Farm Operations Lead, “lives and dies by the cover crop” at the 21 Acres farm. You’ll hear us discuss some of the barriers to cover cropping on regenerative farms, talk through common cover crop questions, and discuss how the 21 Acres agroecological farm uses cover crops.
Then check out our one-page resource for more details about this valuablepracticethathelpsusgrowfoodandstewardourfarmlandresponsibly.
What do you think?
I’m curious about what you’re listening to and what you think of our first climate conversation. Do you have any ideas on what you’d like us to talk about? Shoot me an email (rebeccaj@21acres.org) to share your thoughts, or leave us a voice message.
About Becca Jordan
Becca Jordan is our Operations Manager at 21 Acres. Becca connects with visitors and keeps 21 Acres communications running smoothly. She has a variety of background experience, from science fiction writing and art to education, technical theatre, and costume design to horse care. She’s passionate about learning new things about the natural world and social and climate justice. In 2015 Becca participated in the Clarion Writer’s Workshop and graduated with an MFA from California Institute of the Arts in 2016. Becca originally hails from Escondido, California. Her favorite parts of the Pacific Northwest are the ancient trees and the plethora of life around every corner.
This time of year means that daffodils are blooming across the farm. Wear sturdy shoes and come for a walk. Mornings are glorious with all the birds flitting about. Late afternoons are thrilling with the sound of frogs calling one another. If you’re so inclined, check in at our front desk and borrow binoculars to see what you can see. Of course, we’d also love to see you in the Farm Market and talk all things food. Heads up, you’ll likely make new friends here — Cheers!
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