Be Gobsmacked

This isn't rocket science. Cover the ground with plants. Try some new ones. Don't mess with the soil if you don't have to. Let your neighbor's cattle graze a piece. Give it a season or three and fertility goes up, weeds go down, yields go up, the soil holds more water. Mark tells it to us plain. Read on to find out why he was gobsmacked and why we should be too. 

Erin Meier, GLBW Director  

Mark Peterson, Bent Gate Farms, Stanton Iowa

Mark Peterson has been involved with agriculture all his adult life in one form or another. He and his wife Melanie farm about 500 acres of their own and rented land, growing conventional corn, soybeans, wheat, oats, and rye, and a rotation of single- and multi-species cover crops, along with what Mark calls “non-income producing livestock”: a dog, cats, and horses. Peterson is a past board president of Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI) and is in his final year as a board member.

We asked Mark about his cover crop rotation and how it insulates against unpredictability, and about where he finds hope these days. We have condensed and edited his words for length and clarity.

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GLBW Highlight
Elevating Diverse Voices in Agricultural Science

Like all of us, GLBW long-time funder, The Walton Family Foundation, has been inspired by the Civic Scientists we've been highlighting. They asked us to BLOG about it for their other grantees and broader community.
Thank you again, Civic Scientists, for your words, your work, and your leadership.  

GLBW Steering Committee Spotlight
Olga Lyandres, Senior Specialist, Delta Institute, Chicago, IL

Olga utilizes analytical approaches and data analysis and visualization to facilitate the development and implementation of projects in Delta’s Land Stewardship portfolio. She leads projects that connect innovative solutions and measurable outcomes on the landscape, particularly in freshwater ecosystems. Prior to joining Delta Institute, she served as the Research Manager for Alliance for the Great Lakes, providing analytical and research support for policy work and managing the academic network for the organization. Olga holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Northwestern University.

Click to view other members of our steering committee