b'Growing Soil for a Regenerative FutureRegenerative Ag might be the new trending phrase, but the meaning goes back to the beginning of agriculture.Laura HandkeITS HARD TO OPENan agricultural publication thesetools to help grow better soil. And, for me, that is the heart of days without reading the words regenerative agriculture.regenerative agriculture regenerated soil. The words are new, but the practices are as old as agrarianLeveraging the experiences she garnered through her work civilization. The concept is easywork with nature rather thanwith North Dakota farmers, paired with a PhD in soil science and against it. The management practices, on the other hand, canher holistic view of the modern production agriculture paradigm, be as diverse as the farms that implement them.Nichols is regarded as a pioneering thought-leader on regenera-The premise of the movement values soil health above alltive agriculture.other components of the production agriculture equation, allow-ing that soil health is the foundation for every possible through- The Basicsput and output.Regenerative agriculture operates in multiple ways to produce a During her career as a Research Soil Microbiologist for thesoil health benefit. A systems approach that relies on the adher-United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Kris Nicholsence to principles rather than certifications and prescriptions spent more than 14 years working directly with farmers in centralguides regenerative agriculture implementation. North Dakota.The approach hinges on keeping soil covered, minimizing North Dakota was one of the first places that regenerativedisturbance, integrating a variety of plants to diversify life above agriculture started. One of the main reasons it started in thatand below the soils surface and the incorporation of animal, area is because of the extremely stressful environment, whichboth macroscopic and microscopic.also made for stressful financial margins, Nichols says.When I talk about integrating animals, it doesnt mean that Many of the farmers Nichols worked with practiced cropeveryone has to have a grazing animal, Nichols says. What it fallow, a practice that saw a cash crop planted on year onemeans is that you need to be thinking about the insects and the and the field lie barren on year two. The fallow is implementedmicroscopic animals as well as the wildlife. through chemicals, with the thought being that a fallow yearAnd implementing the system is not an all or nothing would store moisture and nutrients for the next years cash crop.approach, and context is an operative word that those looking Essentially, farms had to make enough money in one year toto begin their journey in regenerative ag will hear frequently. sustain for two. Regenerative agriculture was started by farmers who had As Nichols work in the area grew, she began to work withquestions and wanted to see if there was a different way of farmers to implement new cropping strategies where the soildoing things on their individual farms. Theres a lot of interest in was never without a managed cover. The science-based trialregenerative agriculture because food production, at all levels, and error was the foundation for what would become known asis under a lot of stress. But theres no one recipe to get there, regenerative agriculture in the United States, and helped thoseNichols says. Just like baking a cake is different if youre on who ascribed to the practices view agriculture through a the Atlantic coast; you cant just follow a recipe card. You have different lens. to respond to where you are and whats going on around you. I would always tell the farmers I worked with in North DakotaRegenerative ag is the same. You have to be able to respond that they were growing soil. The crop they were growing, theto weather projections, crop prices, and consumer demand. livestock they were placing on the cropthose things are justRegenerative ag allows you to have that dynamic response.60/ SEEDWORLD.COMINTERNATIONAL EDITION 2022'