NRCS Soil Health Workshop: Jay Fuhrer

Jay is a graduate of North Dakota State University, in Agricultural Economics. He is employed by the USDA- Natural Resources Conservation Service and started his career with NRCS in 1980. He has worked as a Soil Conservation Technician, District Conservationist, and is currently working in Bismarck, ND as a soil health specialist on NRCS’s National Soil Health Cadre. Jay grew up on a small grain and livestock farm, Jay’s interests have always centered on agriculture. Jay emphasizes Soil Health as a foundation for cropping systems, grazing systems, cover crops, soil biology, pollinators, insects, wildlife, and quality of life. In addition, Jay uses cover crops and livestock integration to connect the cropping and grazing systems together, raising the soil health bar even higher.

[@leahwilkinson8256]

The only workshop I have viewed/attended on Soil Health in the 35 year tenure here at the agency via RUclips. I have been on a couple of field trips but they don't compare. This is well packaged and well delivered. Two Thumbs up for Jay! I especially like the use of tools used for delivery; the interaction between old school and new. Simple and yet quite effective in my opinion.

[@WolfGangMountain]

One of the best speechs about soil health I've seen so far!

[@KeikoMushi]

Whilst some of this material was touched on in my high school agriculture course during the early to mid-90s, it began to hit home after watching Gabe Brown's talk at Living Web Farms. Right now, Australian researchers are trying to find a solution to water issues. Some of these problems can be fixed by improving organic matter in soil through methods such as cover cropping. However, we also see some farmers pushed out of the field because they aren't allowed to irrigate during drier periods to kickstart many of these processes due to the certain government departments playing favourites to large corporations. This will likely be rethought given the recent issue with localised supply chains. In any case, I hope that these farmers are allowed to survive and thrive whilst also being able to implement best practices.

[@LtColDaddy71]

Don’t take me wrong, I am as green as they get. But there is an argument to be made that we are improving our winters, and weather in general. I do regenerative farming for the money, and the freedom I get from being more independent. I hope it makes the world a better place, but I know what it does to my bank account.