Regenerative Ranching

At TKREF, we work to demonstrate the practices and benefits of regenerative ranching and support the research and tools that can help it spread. Over ten years of learning has shown us that rangelands can produce healthy food while also providing habitat for wildlife and pollinators, preserving scenic open space, filtering and holding rainwater, and housing a diversity of plant and microbial communities that can transform soils into sinks for greenhouse gases.

Photo Credit: Gabrielle Tigan

At TKREF, we work to demonstrate the practices and benefits of regenerative ranching and support the research and tools that can help it spread. We are learning that rangelands can produce healthy food while also providing habitat for wildlife and pollinators, preserving scenic open space, filtering and holding rainwater, and housing a diversity of plant and microbial communities that can transform soils into sinks for greenhouse gases.

Our Regenerative Ranching Methods

Ranch-wide Planning

Ranch-wide planning is critical for supporting productive and resilient ranches that produce food as well as the many co-benefits of a well-managed ecosystem. Land and livestock management affects not just food production, but also soil health, human well-being, wildlife, watersheds, and the stability of our climate. As such, regenerative ranching starts with creating a comprehensive management plan that identifies and optimizes for the fullest range of potential costs and benefits. We use a combination of planning tools including Holistic Management, REX Farm Planning, Carbon Farm Planning, and grazing and conservation planning.

Monitoring

As with business accounting, rigorous monitoring tracks the effects of ranch management choices and helps create our ranch-wide plans. Because regenerative ranching leverages dynamic natural systems, it requires reliable and actionable feedback to support quick decision making and adaptation. We support the expansion of monitoring as a critical tool for ranchers and participate in monitoring networks, including Point Blue Conservation Science’s Rangeland Monitoring Network and the Soil Carbon Challenge, and employ tools like the Quick Carbon hand-held soil spectrometer and Change Vector Analysis developed by the Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative.

Managed Grazing

At TKREF, we use livestock grazing to grow healthy soil, support diverse and vibrant rangelands, and produce nutritious food for our community. By carefully managing the location, timing, duration, and density of our grazing with low-stress animal handling and portable electric fencing, we use our 100 percent grassfed cattle herd to prune and encourage growing grasses in the spring and summer and trample aging grasses into a protective mulch for the soil in the fall and winter. We coordinate and record these mini-migrations using PastureMap so that we can easily correlate our monitoring data with our management records.

Rest and Recovery
Similar to exercising at the gym, growing stronger and more resilient rangelands requires a healthy balance of productive stress and recovery. Managed grazing helps cycle nutrients and prune grasses, but appropriate recovery is required for plants and rangelands to thrive. We avoid insufficient recovery and continuous grazing pressure which can stunt and damage plants, create bare ground vulnerable to erosion, and debilitate native and perennial grasses that evolved to thrive under heavy but intermittent grazing pressure of migrating herds of herbivores.
Biodiversity Stewardship

Biodiversity supports and reflects the health of the land. A diverse plant and animal community provides benefits such as forage packed with important nutrients, pollinators, and healthy soil. Trees and shrubs are havens for birds and other wildlife that keep cattle pests in check, and deep-rooted perennial grasses grow long into the dry season feeding the soil and the livestock and reducing the need to purchase costly hay. At TKREF, our grazing plans explicitly work to promote and support diverse flora and fauna.

Building Healthy Soil

Healthy soil is foundational and complex. As soil microorganisms help create organic matter, the ability of the soil to hold water increases, ultimately increasing plant production. Across an entire ranch, these effects add up: a 1 percent increase in organic matter helps the soil hold an additional 16,500 gallons of water per acre. With healthier soil, water infiltration rates increase, reducing erosion, improving water quality in streams, and replenishing aquifers. Healthy soils can help stabilize our climate by sequestering greenhouse gases. At TKREF, we can support healthy soils by applying compost to jumpstart underperforming soils and using manure and grazing impacts to maximize plant growth that returns food to soil ecosystems.

RANCH-WIDE PLANNING

Ranch-wide planning is critical for supporting productive and resilient ranches that produce food as well as the many co-benefits of a well-managed ecosystem. Land and livestock management affects not just food production, but also soil health, human well-being, wildlife, watersheds, and the stability of our climate. As such, regenerative ranching starts with creating a comprehensive management plan that identifies and optimizes for the fullest range of potential costs and benefits. We use a combination of planning tools including Holistic Management, REX Farm Planning, Carbon Farm Planning, and grazing and conservation planning.

MONITORING

As with business accounting, rigorous monitoring tracks the effects of ranch management choices and helps create our ranch-wide plans. Because regenerative ranching leverages dynamic natural systems, it requires reliable and actionable feedback to support quick decision making and adaptation. We support the expansion of monitoring as a critical tool for ranchers and participate in monitoring networks, including Point Blue Conservation Science’s Rangeland Monitoring Network and the Soil Carbon Challenge, and employ tools like the Quick Carbon hand-held soil spectrometer and Change Vector Analysis developed by the Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative.

MANAGED GRAZING

We use livestock grazing to grow healthy soil, support diverse and vibrant rangelands, and produce nutritious food for our community. By carefully managing the location, timing, duration, and density of our grazing with low-stress animal handling and portable electric fencing, we use our 100 percent grassfed cattle herd to prune and encourage growing grasses in the spring and summer and trample aging grasses into a protective mulch for the soil in the fall and winter. We coordinate and record these mini-migrations using PastureMap so that we can easily correlate our monitoring data with our management records.

REST AND RECOVERY

Similar to exercising at the gym, growing stronger and more resilient rangelands requires a healthy balance of productive stress and recovery. Managed grazing helps cycle nutrients and prune grasses, but appropriate recovery is required for plants and rangelands to thrive. We avoid insufficient recovery and continuous grazing pressure which can stunt and damage plants, create bare ground vulnerable to erosion, and debilitate native and perennial grasses that evolved to thrive under heavy but intermittent grazing pressure of migrating herds of herbivores.

BIODIVERSITY STEWARDSHIP

Biodiversity supports and reflects the health of the land. A diverse plant and animal community provides benefits such as forage packed with important nutrients, pollinators, and healthy soil. Trees and shrubs are havens for birds and other wildlife that keep cattle pests in check, and deep-rooted perennial grasses grow long into the dry season feeding the soil and the livestock and reducing the need to purchase costly hay. Our grazing plans explicitly work to promote and support diverse flora and fauna.

BUILDING HEALTHY SOIL

Healthy soil is foundational and complex. As soil microorganisms help create organic matter, the ability of the soil to hold water increases, ultimately increasing plant production. Across an entire ranch, these effects add up: a 1 percent increase in organic matter helps the soil hold an additional 16,500 gallons of water per acre. With healthier soil, water infiltration rates increase, reducing erosion, improving water quality in streams, and replenishing aquifers. Healthy soils can help stabilize our climate by sequestering greenhouse gases. We can support healthy soils by applying compost to jumpstart underperforming soils and using manure and grazing impacts to maximize plant growth that returns food to soil ecosystems.

News and Resources

  • Ash Sweeting, Agscent scientist.
    Event,Resource
    03/27/2024
    Agscent Testing at TomKat Ranch
    At TKREF, we approach regenerative agriculture from many angles. Where we...
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  • The flowing waters of Honsinger Creek, TomKat Ranch
    Article
    03/27/2024
    The Other Thing that Water Does
    Have you ever walked from a field or pasture into a...
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  • Map showing where farmer are aging out of practices.
    News,Resource
    03/27/2024
    Highlighting Trends in Ag and Finance:...
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  • Sam McDonald's sketched portrait
    Article,Opinion
    02/28/2024
    Our Sam McDonald Moment
    In honor of Black History Month, we would like to introduce...
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  • Allensworth Progressive Association
    Article
    02/28/2024
    Allensworth Progressive Association – Fostering Resiliency
    Allensworth, California’s first all-Black town established in 1908, is in Tulare...
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  • Article
    02/28/2024
    Ode to Insect
    When I first moved to Pescadero, the space where I lived...
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  • Article,Resource
    02/28/2024
    So Many Reasons To Like Dung...
    You might not find fresh manure very exciting, but it doesn’t...
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  • Wendy Millet and Sophie Noda
    Article
    01/29/2024
    Annual Christmas Bird Count
    At the end of 2023 on December 30th, Point Blue and...
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  • California Association of Resource Conservation Districts (CARCD) Conference in Sacramento
    News
    01/29/2024
    California Association of Resource Conservation Districts...
    In December, Mark Biaggi and Kevin Watt attended and presented at...
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  • Megan Shahan's Power of Principles - Woman sitting in yoga pose greeting the sunrise.
    Article,Opinion
    01/29/2024
    The Power of Principles
    When I moved to California after graduating from college, I did...
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  • Opinion,Resource
    12/20/2023
    Notes on Death
    I think about death a lot. It’s an integral part of...
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  • The traditional tanning method--stretching the hide. Good use of byproducts of carcass utilization.
    Opinion
    12/20/2023
    A Show of Respect: Utilizing the...
    Raising animals for food is extremely complex—logistically, ecologically, and emotionally.
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  • Article,Resource
    12/20/2023
    From Death Comes Life, Talking Compost...
    If you ask our master gardener, Susan, “What is compost” you’re...
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  • News
    12/20/2023
    Some Mantras from Women Transforming Food...
    I’m new/ish at TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation, just rounding out my...
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  • California RCD Conservation Planning at TomKat Ranch
    Article
    11/28/2023
    Pilot Training to Expand Access to...
    Conservation Plans have been used by Resource Conservation Districts (RCDs) and...
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  • Grazed and ungrazed pastures at Fifth Crow Farm.
    Article
    11/27/2023
    Grazing for Fire Mitigation at Fifth...
    California has seen many thousands of acres burn as catastrophic wildfires...
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  • Fearless Farmers website
    Resource
    11/24/2023
    Learning to be Fearless Farmers
    Regenerative agriculture is a movement gaining momentum worldwide, attracting scores of...
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  • Rangeland Management, Monitoring, and Policy
    Event,Resource
    10/31/2023
    Rangeland Management, Monitoring, and Policy
    In our work to scale regenerative ranching practices, we regularly engage...
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  • California FarmLink Website Page
    News,Resource
    10/31/2023
    Navigating Grazing Agreements with California FarmLink
    What is the best way to develop agricultural contracts? Our land...
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  • Seasonal Foods, including beef
    Article,Opinion
    10/31/2023
    Eating with the Seasons - Fruit,...
    As the weather shifts and days grow shorter, it's a valuable...
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  • Growing Our Capacity for Good Work: A Stockmanship Clinic with Marissa Taylor
    Article
    09/27/2023
    Growing Our Capacity for Good Work:...
    Through photosynthesis, it can be said that the whole world runs...
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  • Cows Eat Pampas Grass: An Interview with Mark Biaggi, TomKat Ranch Manager
    Opinion
    09/27/2023
    Cows Eat Pampas Grass: An Interview...
    Cows Eat Pampas Grass: An Interview with Mark Biaggi, TomKat Ranch...
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  • TomKat Ranch on Food for the Planet
    News
    09/27/2023
    TomKat Ranch on Food for the...
    In our ongoing “Gathering for Action” effort to engage the public...
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  • Sarah Pilla, Spectrum News 1
    News
    08/23/2023
    A Peek Into Regenerative Agriculture at...
    In May, we had the pleasure of hosting Sarah Pilla, a...
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  • Regional Food Summit, Sacramento, CA
    News
    08/23/2023
    Shifting Paradigms: The UC System and...
    This past June, over 110 participants, including staff from TomKat Ranch,...
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  • Soil Inventory Project Website
    News
    08/23/2023
    Exploring Soil Carbon at TomKat Ranch...
    Partnerships are central to the work that happens on TomKat Ranch...
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  • Horses ear sticking up over fence at TomKat Ranch
    Article
    06/27/2023
    Learning from Horses: Why Are Horses...
    There are many kinds of programs around the world where people...
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  • Oak tree on TomKat Ranch
    Resource
    06/26/2023
    Digging Deep: How Soil Mineralogy Influences...
    Soil carbon plays a central role in helping to combat climate...
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  • Goat herd grazing at TomKat Ranch
    Article
    06/26/2023
    Thrifty Herd - Breeding for Successful...
    Regenerative agriculture seeks to mimic the Earth’s natural cycles. The planned,...
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  • A view of grass diversity at TomKat Ranch
    News,Opinion
    05/21/2023
    The State of our Grasses 2022-23
    Always on the lookout for landscape changes, we observed annual grasses,...
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  • Loren Poncia of Stemple Creek Ranch addressing attendees.
    Event,Resource
    05/21/2023
    Learning The Ins And Outs Of...
    Recently, on a beautiful sunny day in May, Beef2Institution held a...
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  • What Good Shall I Do Regenerative Agriculture Conference at ROAM Ranch
    Article,Event
    05/21/2023
    What Good Shall I Do Regenerative...
    On the rolling landscape of the Texas Hill Country, humans young...
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  • Matt Ricketts of Triple R Bar S Consulting at TomKat Ranch
    News,Resource
    04/26/2023
    Is It Possible for A Cattle...
    On March 22-23, 2023, Matt Ricketts of Triple R Bar S...
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  • Mukethe Kawinzi opens the fence for the next round of cover crop grazing.
    Article
    04/26/2023
    Bring On the Goats - A...
    The Land & Livestock team at TomKat Ranch utilizes cattle and...
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  • San Mateo County Producer Working Group
    News
    04/26/2023
    Food Hub It Is! San Mateo...
    In 2022, San Mateo Resource Conservation District (SMRCD), Kitchen Table Advisors...
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  • Plant and soil microbial communities play an important role in carbon sequestration. Biological indicators related to these communities may offer alternatives to direct carbon measurements in some scenarios, potentially helping to forecast future changes. Despite their significance, considerable work needs to be done to identify which biological indicators, if any, can accurately predict future trends in carbon across a landscape. To address this, Point Blue and TomKat Ranch teamed up with scientists from UC Santa Barbara to investigate the relationships between plant, fungal, and bacterial communities and soil carbon changes across space and time. We found that certain combinations of plants, fungi, and bacteria served as reliable indicators of soil carbon storage. Specifically, we found bacteria that metabolize carbon more slowly and efficiently are associated with sites that store more carbon in the long run. Decomposing fungi were also associated with enhanced soil carbon sequestration over time. On the other hand, bacteria that thrive in high carbon environments and are thought to “leak” more CO2 as they work, were associated with sites that showed carbon losses over time. While more research needs to be done, this work contributes to a growing body of knowledge around biological indicators related to soil carbon sequestration. Our findings offer valuable insights for further investigation, and our hope–as ever–is that they will help to build strategies that promote increased carbon storage in the soil, mitigate climate change, and build resilience into working landscapes for a more stable future.
    News,Resource
    04/26/2023
    New Point Blue Report: Plant and...
    Plant and soil microbial communities play an important role in carbon...
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  • Clouds and Grass as symbol of the Earth sky relationship
    Opinion,Resource
    04/26/2023
    What We're Reading - April 2023...
    Fifty-three years ago, the first Earth Day inspired and united 20...
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  • Water dispersing over woody debris
    Article,Resource
    03/20/2023
    Effective Rainfall: Putting All that Wonderful...
    In light of this particularly wet and cold winter, Part 2...
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  • Resource
    03/19/2023
    Introducing the Range-C Monitoring Program
    Last month, with support from the Foundation for Food & Agriculture...
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  • News
    03/18/2023
    TomKat Ranch Team Updates
    We would like to introduce you to our four new team...
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  • Article,Resource
    02/08/2023
    Atmospheric Rivers and Building Hydrological Resiliency...
    At any moment, the extreme power of Nature can leave us...
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  • Chef Isabelle Nunes preparing cabbage for fermentation.
    Article,Opinion
    02/08/2023
    Reflections from our Chef and Garden...
    I began my career in hospitality in an effort to heal...
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  • Article,Resource
    02/08/2023
    What We're Reading - February 2023
    In honor of Black History month this February, we wanted to...
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  • Article,Opinion
    12/15/2022
    A Series of Appreciation for Water:...
    How often do you stop to consider—really consider—the source of the...
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  • Article,Resource
    12/15/2022
    Regenerative Gardening at TomKat Ranch
    Over the past two years—motivated by the need in our community...
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  • Event,News
    12/15/2022
    Beef2Institution: Farm to Hospital Regenerative Ranch...
    Beef2Institution began in 2018 as a pilot program to address the...
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  • Pacific Hound's Tongue
    Opinion,Resource
    11/02/2022
    Shifting Paradigms
    It seems that in every sector, system, or structure of our...
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  • USDA Climate Smart Commodities
    News
    11/02/2022
    Celebrating Climate-Smart Investments on our Journey...
    On September 14th, seventy climate-smart agriculture and forestry pilot projects received...
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  • Kevin Alexander Watt
    Article,News
    09/07/2022
    Goodbye Note from Kevin Alexander Watt
    This August I left TomKat Ranch to be the General Manager...
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  • Cows swath grazing
    Article,Resource
    09/07/2022
    Swath Grazing Trial 2022
    At TomKat Ranch, our livestock are a tool we use to...
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  • Culinary Skills Training with LHPUSD Food Service Staff
    News,Resource
    09/07/2022
    Culinary Skills Training with LHPUSD Food...
    Now that California has become the first state in the nation...
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  • Hand holding soil and worms
    Resource
    07/21/2022
    Summer of Soil
    Soil is the literal and metaphorical foundation of all we do...
    Read More
  • Article,Resource
    07/20/2022
    Kristyn Leach of Namu Farm
    There are so many interesting and hopeful ways to engage in...
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  • Soil Sampling and the Soil Health Tech Stack Event
    Event,News
    07/19/2022
    Soil Sampling and the Soil Health...
    Many landowners are interested in soil carbon inventories to help them...
    Read More
  • Honsinger Creek
    Article
    05/03/2022
    The Remarkable Benefits of Riparian Areas
    It’s springtime at the ranch and everywhere you go the birds...
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  • TomKat Ranch Goats grazing
    News
    05/03/2022
    The TomKat Ranch Grazing Plan Goes...
    You may have seen these caprine creatures creating fire breaks around...
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  • News
    05/03/2022
    EcoFarm 2022: Two Field Days Focusing...
    This year EcoFarm is hosting several field days during the Spring...
    Read More
  • A group photo of Women in Ranching
    Article,Resource
    03/30/2022
    Women in Ranching: The Story
    It all began in November 2016 at the Quivira Coalition in...
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  • Guide to Regenerative Grazing Leases: Opportunities for Resilience.
    News,Resource
    03/30/2022
    Guide to Regenerative Grazing Leases: Opportunities...
    As part of TomKat Ranch’s broader effort to develop a toolkit...
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  • February 2022 Prescribed Fire on TomKat Ranch burning hillside
    Article,News
    03/30/2022
    How We Monitor Land Systems Change...
    On Friday February, 11th, 2022, we conducted our second prescribed burn...
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  • Founding members of Bar-C and other stakeholders pose with USDA Undersecretary, Jenny Lester Moffitt
    News,Resource
    03/30/2022
    Bar-C Update - We’re In Business!
    BAR-C is an Animal Welfare Approved multi-species processing operation in the...
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  • Isabelle Nunes, TomKat Ranch
    News
    03/30/2022
    A Note From Our First Ever...
    My intention is to bring the story and voice of regenerative...
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  • Article,Resource
    02/07/2022
    Rain and Regenerative Management
    Ever wonder the speed of a raindrop falling? Raindrops typically fall...
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  • Katherine Berry is a research fellow at the National Science Foundation in Boston, Massachusetts.
    Article
    02/07/2022
    Growing Perspectives: Understanding Water's Role in...
    As a graduate student studying sustainable water management with a concentration...
    Read More
  • budding leaves
    News
    01/28/2022
    Three New Apprentices Join Our Team
    As with a transformation of foliage, or a noticeable swing in...
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  • TomKat Team Photo Collage
    News,Opinion
    12/20/2021
    2021: A Regenerative Year and Looking...
    A great deal of suffering comes from the false belief that...
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  • Richard's Hotdogs
    Article
    11/30/2021
    School Food Supply Chain Challenges and...
    I think it is fair to say we have all experienced...
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  • Article
    11/30/2021
    Apprentice Alex Michel’s Reflections on a...
    Since 2014, this remote place has hosted a prescribed fire training...
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  • Resource
    11/30/2021
    What We're Reading - A Synthesis...
    Regenerative agriculture is increasingly being recognized as an effective tool for...
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  • Regeneration Definition
    Opinion,Resource
    10/29/2021
    Social Regeneration
    Human beings are an integral part of our planet, inextricably linked...
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  • EcoFarm Photo
    News,Resource
    10/29/2021
    EcoFarm 2022: Pre-conference Field Day -...
    Next year (January 2022) will be the 42nd annual EcoFarm Conference!
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  • Resource
    10/29/2021
    What We’re Reading - Regeneration: Ending...
    Recently a colleague shared how much she enjoyed listening to an...
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  • Opinion
    10/14/2021
    October 2021 Prescribed Burn
    As you may know, TomKat Ranch has been working closely with...
    Read More
  • News
    10/01/2021
    Swath Grazing Harding Grass
    Swath grazing is a practice where forage is cut into a...
    Read More
  • News,Resource
    09/16/2021
    SCIENCE AT TOMKAT RANCH Sept. 2021
    Last Updated: Sept 13, 2021 by Chelsea Carey, Point Blue Conservation...
    Read More
  • Article
    08/31/2021
    Travel Journal of Regenerative Agriculture in...
    Over the past month, I got the chance to visit some...
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  • Regen Ranching Data Round Up
    News,Resource
    08/31/2021
    The Regen Ranching Data Round Up
    One particular area we have been exploring lately is data interoperability—the...
    Read More
  • News
    08/31/2021
    Growing the Table - Update on...
    The pandemic has highlighted long-standing inequities in our economic, social, and...
    Read More
  • Defending Beef
    Opinion,Resource
    08/31/2021
    Defending Beef - Revised and Expanded...
    Nicolette Hahn Niman’s first edition of Defending Beef, the Ecological and...
    Read More
  • News
    07/28/2021
    Upcoming Workshop with Nicole Masters at...
    Over the last couple of years, we at TomKat Ranch have...
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  • Opinion,Resource
    07/28/2021
    What We’re Reading: Regenerating soil, regenerating...
    Many people ask our team at TomKat Ranch, “If regenerative agriculture...
    Read More
  • TomKat Ranch Interns and Apprentices
    News
    07/20/2021
    Regenerative Ranching Apprenticeship - Join Our...
    Work with TomKat Ranch Land & Livestock Team as an apprentice...
    Read More
  • News
    07/13/2021
    Gathering for Action Anew!
    After a long break from hosting gatherings on the Ranch due...
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  • Article,Study
    06/18/2021
    Bale Grazing - Stewardship During Drought...
    When fresh grass is not available in the winter across much...
    Read More
  • Article,Resource
    06/18/2021
    Joining the Savory EOV Program and...
    We recently completed the Savory Institute’s onboarding process for the Ecological...
    Read More
  • News
    06/18/2021
    Artist Day at the Ranch -...
    Welcoming people to TomKat Ranch so they can experience ranch life...
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  • News,Opinion
    06/17/2021
    Parting is Such Sweet... Oh, Grasshopper...
    Mel Preston, ornithologist and rangeland field ecologist with Point Blue Conservation...
    Read More
  • Photo of Wildebeest herd crossing a river in Africa by Jorge Tung.
    Opinion
    04/30/2021
    The Serengeti Symphony by Kat Taylor
    The magic of regenerative agriculture comes from how it works harmoniously...
    Read More
  • News,Resource
    04/30/2021
    Goats to the Rescue - Goatapelli...
    The research, from San Jose State University’s Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center, found...
    Read More
  • Article,Resource
    04/30/2021
    ‘No-Dig’ Gardening at TomKat Ranch
    Typically, landscaping at the ranch focuses on the care of flowers,...
    Read More
  • Lani Malmberg - Goatapelli
    Article
    04/30/2021
    An Interview with Goatapelli Foundation’s Lani...
    Fire prevention has risen in importance over the past few years....
    Read More
  • Article,Resource
    04/30/2021
    Notes from the Field: Managing Rangelands...
    As spring unfolds at TomKat and on ranches across California, we...
    Read More
  • Image of capital flow
    Resource,Study
    03/29/2021
    Transformative Investment in Climate-Smart Agriculture: Introduction...
    Increased attention and investment in agriculture is necessary and urgent....
    Read More
  • Fertility Flat Pasture before and after.
    Article,Resource
    03/29/2021
    Digging Deeper On Pasture Soils Trial:...
    We did a Q & A session with Ranch Manager Mark...
    Read More
  • Bar-C Founders
    Article
    03/26/2021
    Bar-C, the Why and How: A...
    At the peak of its local meat supply industry, California once...
    Read More
  • Catherine Perry at KPDO
    Article
    03/26/2021
    Prescribed Burns at TomKat Ranch -...
    We had a chance to sit down with Cathrine Perry, manager...
    Read More
  • Opinion
    02/26/2021
    February Newsletter Introduction by Wendy Millet...
    It is an exciting time for those of us who understand...
    Read More
  • News
    02/26/2021
    Update: Soil Health Trials at TomKat...
    For some ranchers, winter is a time to hunker down, but...
    Read More
  • News,Resource
    02/26/2021
    Virtual Sunday Brunch with Growing Table...
    It was inspiring to join Kat Taylor and the team from...
    Read More
  • News
    02/25/2021
    Meet Our 2021 Apprentices - Dillon,...
    In an effort to advance the careers of aspiring regenerative agriculture...
    Read More
  • Opinion
    02/02/2021
    Kat Taylor - Gov Newsom’s Executive...
    As many readers may have already heard, Governor Gavin Newsom recently...
    Read More
  • Resource
    02/02/2021
    Publication - UC Berkeley, Center of...
    Redefining Value and Risk in Agriculture: Policy and Investment Solution to...
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  • Article,Resource
    02/02/2021
    Article - Greener Farming Methods Don’t...
    In the most comprehensive study to date, researchers found that greener...
    Read More
  • News
    02/02/2021
    Report - Progress At The California...
    In 2017, California launched its ambitious Healthy Soils Program (HSP) to...
    Read More
  • Nature4Climate Website
    News
    02/02/2021
    New Website - Nature4Climate
    A beautiful new website called Nature4Climate.
    Read More
  • Opinion
    12/18/2020
    December 2020 Newsletter Introduction - Growing...
    In just a blink of geologic time, humans have created technologies...
    Read More
  • News
    12/18/2020
    Conference Recap - Climate Underground 2020...
    Last month, members of our team had the opportunity to attend...
    Read More
  • Article
    12/18/2020
    Thoughts on Regenerative Fire Mitigation Part...
    When thinking about a big problem like how to manage fire-prone...
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  • News,Resource
    12/18/2020
    What's Good Meat? Find out
    For the past nine months, I’ve been part of an incredible...
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  • News,Resource
    10/30/2020
    BAR-C: Breaking the Bottleneck
    As beef harvesting goes, California lacks enough USDA certified processing facilities...
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  • Article,Resource
    10/30/2020
    Groundwork - A Pilot Virtual Summer...
    Earlier this year as COVID-19 grew from a concern into a...
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  • News
    10/30/2020
    Local Food Security: Coops, Veggies, and...
    A large part of what we do at TomKat Ranch is...
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  • Article
    10/30/2020
    Thoughts on Regenerative Fire Mitigation Part...
    Log it, graze it, or let it burn.” It seems I...
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  • Kat Taylor Forbes Features Video
    Article
    10/27/2020
    Kat Taylor - A Forbes FEATURES...
    Kat Taylor using capitalism’s toolbox to fight systemic racism, environmental destruction...
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  • News,Resource
    10/14/2020
    Rising from the ashes - Growth...
    In the field of Positive Psychology, there is an important distinction...
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  • Study
    09/30/2020
    What We're Reading - Point Blue...
    Point Blue Methane Brief and Carbon Footprint Study of White Oak...
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  • News
    09/30/2020
    Growing the Table - Shifting Demand...
    During this crisis, a number of ‘farm to family’ programs have...
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  • Stemple Creek’s Petaluma Market meat department
    Article
    09/30/2020
    Regenerative Ranching Circle NORCAL -...
    Even though the regenerative ranching community in California is small and...
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  • TomKat Ranch Apprentices
    News
    09/28/2020
    Regenerative Ranching Apprenticeship - Join Our...
    Work with the TomKat Ranch Land & Livestock Team as an...
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  • Article,Resource
    09/17/2020
    A Regenerative Food System Can Only...
    A Regenerative Food System Can Only Be Realized When There is...
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  • News,Resource
    09/11/2020
    CZU Lightning Complex Fire - Our...
    The swiftness and destructive power of a catastrophic wildfire is staggering.
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  • Article
    06/01/2020
    Prescribed Burning for Wildfire Prevention and...
    Prescribed burns have multiple potential benefits, including reducing catastrophic wildfire risk...
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  • News
    05/29/2020
    Breeding Birds Update by Mel Preston...
    In Pescadero (and the rest of the northern hemisphere), bird nesting...
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  • Article
    05/29/2020
    15-year program to study prescribed burning...
    As part of our Profiles in Land and Management series, this...
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  • Resource
    05/28/2020
    Point Blue Issue Brief 2019: Methane...
    The purpose of this document is to provide Point Blue staff...
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  • Resource
    05/27/2020
    Fire Management and Prescribed Burns at...
    A collaboration between CalFire and TomKat Ranch. Prescribed Burns for Public...
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  • News
    05/01/2020
    Resilience & Regenerative Ag in the...
    At TomKat Ranch, we have the immense privilege of operating as...
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  • News
    04/29/2020
    California Healthy Soils Initiative - Grant...
    Calling all California farmers and ranchers! Healthy Soils Grant Program applications...
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  • News,Resource
    04/28/2020
    Science at TomKat Ranch: An Update
    For many practitioners, regenerative agriculture is a hands-in-the-dirt affair.
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  • Elk Glade Ranch
    Article
    04/28/2020
    Elk Glade Ranch demonstrates myriad ways...
    Elk Glade Ranch demonstrates that there are myriad ways to benefit...
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  • News
    02/26/2020
    Goat Herd as Ecosystem Reclamation Tool...
    <  Back to All...
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  • News
    02/26/2020
    EcoFarm 2020
    This past January, the Ecological Farming Association (EcoFarm) held its...
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  • Resource
    02/26/2020
    SOIL: Soil Microbe Guide and Nicole...
    Water and minerals - the yin and yang of life on...
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  • Summer interns at TomKat Ranch 2020
    News
    02/12/2020
    2020 Regenerative Ranching Internship - Apply...
    We are accepting applications for TomKat Ranch Regenerative Ranching 2020 Summer...
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  • Article
    01/24/2020
    Using Regenerative Practices to Create Meaningful...
    As part of our Profiles in Land and Management series, this...
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  • News
    01/24/2020
    A Win for California Healthy School...
    The recent release of California Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposed 2020-21 budget...
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  • News
    01/24/2020
    Regenerate Conference 2019
    This past November, our team was thrilled to see Mark Biaggi...
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  • News
    01/24/2020
    Dear LeftCoast GrassFed Customers
    Dear Friends and Customers, due to a renewed focus on getting...
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  • Article
    12/17/2019
    Aspiring to Regeneration - A Thank...
    Aspiring to Regeneration - A Thank You to Skeptics from our...
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  • There is a growing urgency to understand and address how the food we serve in public schools impacts the personal health of students, the performance and resilience of communities, and the well-being and sustainability of our environment.
    News
    12/17/2019
    California Food for California Kids
    There is a growing urgency to understand and address how the...
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  • Study
    12/16/2019
    Adaptive Planned Grazing Reduces Fire Fuel...
    Adaptive Planned Grazing Reduces Fire Fuel Load - Profiles in Land...
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  • Resource
    12/16/2019
    Monitoring The Multiple Benefits Of Regenerative...
    Rangelands are an essential part of the health and integrity of...
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  • Article
    12/16/2019
    The Re-Generation: An Apprentice’s Perspective on...
    I struggled to write this piece for the newsletter. Not because...
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  • Article
    12/16/2019
    Regenerative Grass-fed Beef
    Grass-fed beef is so much more than delicious! As part of...
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  • Resource
    10/29/2019
    Profiles In Land and Management -...
    As part of our Profiles in Land and Management series, this...
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  • Article
    10/29/2019
    Celebrating our Coastal Fibershed
    A day of regenerative agriculture education for food and fiber.
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  • Changes in Soil Carbon at TomKat Ranch
    Article,Study
    10/13/2019
    Changes in Soil Carbon at TomKat...
    46% of the points monitored at TomKat Ranch gained soil carbon...
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  • Article
    09/30/2019
    Where are they now? Didier Bolaños...
    A question and answer session with our former intern Didier Bolaños...
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  • News
    09/30/2019
    Gathering of Women in Culinary
    Chefs play a vital role in our food systems. They are...
    Read More
  • Study
    09/30/2019
    What We’re Reading - Soil Wealth...
    In July, the Croatan Institute, Delta Institute, and Organic Agriculture Revitalization...
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  • Article
    09/30/2019
    Western Landowners Alliance Gathering
    Since its beginning, TomKat Ranch has invested in creating networks and...
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  • Resource
    09/30/2019
    Profiles In Land and Management -...
    As part of our Profiles in Land and Management series, this...
    Read More
  • Article
    08/28/2019
    Regenerative Ranching Day at TomKat Ranch
    Earlier in the month, TomKat Ranch held a Regenerative Ranching Day...
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  • Resource
    08/28/2019
    Profiles in Land and Management -...
    Profiles in Land and Management Series this month - Sieben Live...
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  • Article
    07/30/2019
    Profiles in Land and Management -...
    This month our Profiles in Land and Management Series explores regenerative...
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  • Article
    06/28/2019
    Soil Journeys - a Soil Trials...
    Soil health journeys are like onions, they have a lot of...
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  • Resource
    06/28/2019
    What We’re Reading: “Regenerative Ranching: Maximum...
    There are a lot of resources out there for those interested...
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  • Article
    06/21/2019
    Profiles in Land and Management -...
    This month we are excited to re-share our profile of Flying...
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  • Article
    05/29/2019
    Grassfed Alliance: Coming Together to Promote...
    For years, TomKat Ranch has proudly marketed our grassfed beef under...
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  • Article
    05/29/2019
    Profiles in Land and Management -...
    This month we are sharing our profile of the Grupo La...
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  • Article
    05/24/2019
    A Day in the Field with...
    Nicole Masters has been a visitor to our ranch this year....
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  • News
    04/24/2019
    Where are they now - Evan...
    A question and answer session with our former intern, Evan Watson.
    Read More
  • News
    04/24/2019
    What We're Reading - Women Ranchers...
    In January, the New York Times published a beautiful photo essay...
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  • Article
    04/24/2019
    Native Perennial Grasses Continue Expanding Across...
    As part of our regenerative management program, Point Blue Conservation Science...
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  • Article
    04/24/2019
    Profiles in Land and Management -...
    Over the last year, TomKat Ranch has traveled around the American...
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  • Article
    03/16/2019
    What We're Reading - March 2019
    Regenerative Agriculture Initiative at California State University, ChicoThis month we enjoyed...
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  • News
    03/15/2019
    EcoFarm 2019 - Recap
    Kathy Webster has been attending the EcoFarm conference for more than...
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  • News
    03/14/2019
    Equine-Assisted Learning Gathers for Action
    In January, during one of our biggest storms of the season,...
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  • Resource
    02/13/2019
    What We’re Reading - January 2019
    Draft of California 2030 Natural and Working Lands Climate Change Implementation...
    Read More
  • Resource
    02/13/2019
    What We’re Reading
    Natural climate solutions for the United States - Joe Fargione
    Read More
  • News
    02/13/2019
    Soil Up Learning Lab at Paicines...
    Recently, two of our staff joined 35 healthcare providers, soil scientists,...
    Read More
  • Resource
    02/13/2019
    What We're Reading - The Soil...
    Kristin’s Ohlson’s The Soil Will Save Us offers hope in the face of...
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  • Article
    02/12/2019
    Carbon Farming Workshop for RCDs
    This month TomKat Ranch had the pleasure of hosting 18 of...
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  • Resource
    02/12/2019
    What We Are Reading - Kiss...
    During my summer as a Regenerative Ranching Intern at TomKat Ranch,...
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  • Resource
    08/06/2018
    Accessing the Total Impact of TomKat...
    This document explains the methodology applied to assess the total impact...
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  • Resource
    08/05/2018
    Growing Abundant Rangelands
    A TomKat Ranch-produced guide to growing abundant rangelands and the benefits they...
    Read More
  • Resource
    08/05/2018
    California Rangeland Plant Guide
    This plant guide is a result of requests from many NRCS...
    Read More
  • Study
    06/26/2018
    Case Study - Flying Diamond Ranch
    The Johnson Family began practicing adaptive planned grazing on their ranch...
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  • Resource
    06/15/2018
    What We Are Reading - Politics...
    Rangelands are unforested and uncultivated land on which grazing is the...
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  • Study
    06/05/2018
    Fungal Inoculant Project - Update
    I am sure you have been holding your breath waiting to...
    Read More
  • Article
    03/08/2018
    Coyote Brush Control: Goats
    Over the years, we have tried many different ways of controlling...
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  • Study
    02/22/2018
    Fungal Inoculant Project
    Growing up on a ranch in Paradise Valley, MT, I never...
    Read More
  • Article
    01/18/2018
    Grazing Plan for 2018
    Each year, the Land and Livestock Team sits down with colleagues...
    Read More
  • Article
    01/11/2018
    Regenerative Talks: Photosynthesis and Organic Matter
    Through photosynthesis, it can be said that the whole world runs...
    Read More

Photo Credit: William Milliot