I worked on a regenerative cattle farm in Alabama for a year — the year after I retired from the Army. During that year I was able to observe and learn many lessons about pasture-based farming.
Most importantly, I saw firsthand that rotational grazing works. It absolutely does improve soil and the animals themselves — when managed properly. That qualifier is of course vital — management and leadership are just as difficult on a farm as in the military, and it takes special skills and training to do it well.
I also learned that there are big differences between cowboys, stockmen and grass farmers. Good cattle farmers have the skills of all three.
But one thing that always bothered me was how we implemented some practices to improve microbial life in our soil and simultaneously did other things that, I thought, surely destroyed it. I have great sympathy for mixing regenerative and conventional practices — no one goes from a contemporary-farming mindset one day to a 100 percent holistic view the next — we’re all somewhere on that spectrum toward becoming more regenerative.
Yet what particularly vexed me was our practice of giving conventional wormers and fly treatments to our cattle. I understand the need — pests are rampant in hot, humid climates like Alabama, and to not treat sick animals in some form would be inhumane.
Yet … what were those chemicals — which are designed to destroy life — doing to all the beneficial microbes in our soil we wanted to foster? Were they really made inert by going through an animal’s digestive tract? Was it really necessary to use conventional chemicals instead of more natural alternatives? Everyone I ever spoke with on the farm said it was — or at least didn’t do anything to stop the practice.
But that never quite satisfied me. I often wondered what farmers in the Southeast did before the advent of modern treatments. One thing I’m fairly certain of is that farmers a hundred years ago didn’t try to raise black Angus in Alabama. The heritage Pineywoods cattle we had on the farm did just fine with almost no treatment. It’s just that their carcasses are suboptimal by modern standards.
The nice thing about now being the editor of a regenerative farming magazine is that I get to ask experts to explore these questions — for myself and for all of you. Will Winter does just that in this month’s issue.
In keeping with this magazine’s focus on soil health, several other articles touch on the intersection of livestock and soil. Steve Diver explores the role of fungal-to-bacterial ratios and their impact on pasture. Nathan Harman discusses the benefits of applying foliar sprays to pastures. And Dr. James White describes new discoveries in the roles of microbes on plant roots and leaves.
I hope this issue arms you to apply the principles of soil health on your farm — particularly the integration of livestock. And that’s the view from the country.
