1- Armor On The Soil

On our ranch, you won't see bare soil EVER, ANYWHERE. You see, the living layer on top protects the soil like armor protects a warrior. 

Plant cover retains moisture in the soil. Plant cover prevents erosion. Plant cover regulates temperature. Plant cover provides protection from the wind and rain.

2- Diversity

You’ll never see a monoculture in nature! We welcome a variety of life, from the microscopic to itty bitty bugs to birds to large beef cattle. 

We even keep this in mind when we plant seed. We grow a variety of up to 20 species at a time on our cropland and have counted up to 75 different plant species on our native pastures. When we grow the grain for our chickens and pigs to eat, we mix oats, peas, and barley together to grow in harmony.

3- Living Roots As Long As Possible

We always have to have something growing. This keeps the soil alive. In turn that keeps the symbiotic relationships alive, too.

4- Animal Impact

Manure manure manure. For whatever an animal takes, they gift it back to the soil. This is how we haven't used any synthetic fertilizers since 2009. All of the "good stuff" in the soil comes from our regenerative system.

5- Minimizing Soil Disturbance

We never til our soil... ever. We rely on animals to naturally root and dig and stomp and peck the surface. And we rely on bugs to create holes deep within for better aeration. This makes for healthy, squishy soil.

6- Context

We know our unique ecosystem, our equipment, the breeds of our animals, our acreage, our growing seasons, our water usage, etc. We figure out our biggest concern, and focus on solving that problem naturally.

Adaptive Grazing

After a pasture is grazed, we allow it to have 360 days of recovery before it's grazed again. If we decide to graze it twice in one year, it would be once in the growing season and once in the off season.

We do our best to rotate where we put different animals. If beef were there last year, we’ll put chickens or pigs there this year. This helps naturally tend the land. For example, if cattle were bale grazing the previous winter, we can put pigs where cattle were. They'll burrow under the hay (to protect their precious fragile skin) and spread out whatever is left.

All animals follow a natural rhythm. They birth in sync with nature. Why do sheep naturally give birth in the spring? That's because they have the highest nutritional requirements and that spring growth offers max nutrition. Nature is amazing!

Certified by:

Regenified is a certification for regenerative farmers who are committed to building healthier soil, more biodiversity, cleaner water, and resilient ecosystems to revitalize communities, create a healthier planet, and better human health. Regenified believes in working in harmony with nature to create a positive global impact that benefits us all.

Regenified certification does a Haney test on our soil every year (honestly, since we have lots of people studying our ranch, our soil is tested way more than this). Depending on the results, we make a plan for improvement. We might seed specific plants to fix whatever's missing back into the soil, let a pasture rest longer, or choose certain animals to graze there next.