Grazing Grass Podcast sharing Regenerative Ag Stories

Hayden and Taylor Sievers of Sievers Blumen Farm in the Brussels, Illinois area share how their farm has evolved from a cut-flower business into a growing grazing-focused cattle operation, alongside grain and hogs, while keeping an eye on family, profitability, and building a system that works on limited acres.
In This Episode, We Explore:
How Sievers Blumen Farm got its name and the cut-flower beginnings behind the brand
Farming in Calhoun County between the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers, and what that landscape means for grazing
Converting a heavily tilled, flood-prone 80 acres into pasture over time while still cash cropping part of it
Challenges of establishing pasture on heavy “black stick” clay and lessons learned with broadcast seeding and needing timely rain
Using wheat followed by cover crops and pasture as a transition plan away from cash cropping
Infrastructure choices including high-tensile perimeter fence, step-ins, reels, and thoughts on central alley layouts
Moving from Dexters to South Pole-influenced cattle and what they noticed with fly pressure, forage efficiency, and easy-keeping traits
Using cow-calf as a base herd while considering stockers and sell-buy marketing to capture excess forage
Takeaways from stockmanship training, including receiving calves and getting them grazing quickly by focusing on mental and emotional state
Raising meat chickens (including Red Rangers) and layers, plus building and using a chickshaw-style coop
Taylor’s path into indie publishing, what she writes, and the discipline of finishing books while raising a family

Why This Episode Matters
If you are trying to make grazing work on limited acres or on land that is less-than-ideal, this conversation is a practical look at how a young family is building infrastructure, improving soil over time, selecting cattle that fit their system, and staying focused on profitability and quality of life instead of chasing too many enterprises at once.
Resources Mentioned
Joel Salatin (Joe Rogan Podcast)
Greg Judy (grazing and fencing approach)
Jim Elizondo and total grazing concepts
Hand ’n Hand sell-buy marketing class (Tina and Richard)
Stockman Grass Farmer
Working Cows podcast
Ranching Returns podcast (formerly Herd Quitter podcast)
Bud Williams stockmanship (referenced through stockmanship training)
Dirt to Soil
Braiding Sweetgrass
For the Love of Soil
The Creative Penn podcast (Joanna Penn)
Wish I’d Known Then podcast
The Two Authors podcast
Justin Rhodes Chickshaw (mobile coop design)
O’Brien step-in posts
Taragate reels
Meyer Hatchery
McMurray Hatchery
August Horstmann's Ranch (Missouri)

Find Out More
Website | https://sieversblumenfarm.com
Instagram | https://instagram.com/sieversblumenfarm
Facebook | https://facebook.com/sieversblumenfarm
YouTube | https://youtube.com/@sieversblumenfarm
Here is a discount code for our farm shop (https://sieversblumenfarm.com/shop) that listeners can use for 10% off. The code expires in July. GRAZINGGRASS26

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 Explore the Grass Based Genetics directory.
Upcoming Grazing Events

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Noble Research Institute
Redmond Agriculture

Grazing Grass Links
Website
Community (on Facebook)
Original Music by Louis Palfrey

Jonathan Kilpatrick of Red Lantern Ranch and Kilpatrick Land & Livestock joins Cal to share what changed since he first appeared back on episode 2, including moving from Oklahoma to west central Minnesota (Alexandria area) and rebuilding a grazing operation from the ground up with sheep, goats, and pastured poultry.

In This Episode, We Explore:
What prompted Jonathan and his family to move from Oklahoma to Minnesota and restart their operation
Lessons Jonathan took from the Ranching for Profit School and how they shaped his decision-making
Starting a grazing operation with a clean slate and building genetics that match the environment
Grazing sheep and goats together and using goats as part of a buckthorn control strategy
Outwintering sheep and goats with minimal infrastructure and what that requires
Using adaptive grazing decisions that fit real life, time constraints, and family priorities
Expanding from a 45-acre grazing lease by adding tillable acres and converting some to perennials
Partnering with a regenerative crop farmer for strip-till or no-till, cover crops, and added grazing opportunities
Mobile range coop pastured poultry production, daily moves, and labor efficiency
Processing options, state-inspected processing, and why time is often the limiting resource
Marketing channels including direct-to-consumer, wholesale, and opportunities in ethnic markets

Why This Episode Matters
If you are building or rebuilding a grazing business, Jonathan lays out a realistic path that balances production, business management, and family life. This conversation is a good reminder that experience matters, time is a real constraint, and matching livestock, grazing, and marketing to your context is what keeps the whole system working.

Resources Mentioned
Ranching for Profit School
Executive Link program (Ranching for Profit)
Google Sheets
Excel
ChatGPT
Gemini
P.L. 90-492 (Poultry Products Inspection Act exemption referenced in the discussion)
Find Out More
Red Lantern Ranch website | https://redlanternranch.com
Kilpatrick Land & Livestock website | https://www.kilpatricklandandlivestock.com
Sustainable Farming Association (SFA) | https://sfa-mn.org

Looking for grass-based breeders?
 Explore the Grass Based Genetics directory.
Upcoming Grazing Events

Visit our Sponsors:
Noble Research Institute
Redmond Agriculture

Grazing Grass Links
Website
Community (on Facebook)
Original Music by Louis Palfrey

Zach (first-generation) and Kacie (fifth-generation) Scherler-Abney are ranchers operating Re:Farm and Re:Supply in Cotton and Tillman Counties in southwest Oklahoma, running a cow-calf herd with some stockers while also managing land for others and operating retail stores in Norman, Oklahoma and Wichita Falls, Texas.  
In This Episode, We Explore:  
- How a personal health scare led them back to the family place and into raising their own food  
- Using an autoimmune protocol diet as a catalyst to question food labels and sourcing  
- Learning regenerative grazing through books, YouTube, and early hands-on trial and error  
- Grazing in a more brittle, variable rainfall environment in southwest Oklahoma and north Texas  
- Ultra high-density, non-selective grazing and why recovery time is the key variable for them  
- What polywire taught them, and why quality of life and labor forced a change  
- Building water systems with HDPE poly pipe, quick couplers, and central lanes for flexibility  
- Leasing strategies including Oklahoma state school land (CLO) and BIA tribal land leases  
- Transitioning to Halter virtual fencing and what changed in daily management and stress  
- How their cattle buying philosophy shifted to phenotype, productivity, and pounds per acre  
- Marketing reality checks: balancing direct-to-consumer beef with current sale barn economics  
- Why they built brick-and-mortar stores and how non-perishables help stabilize cash flow  
- Community-building through retail and sourcing other local products beyond their own beef  
Why This Episode Matters  
This conversation is a practical look at matching grazing goals to real life, especially when labor, family time, leases, and cash flow are all limiting factors. Zach and Kacie share what worked, what wore them out, what they changed, and how they think about staying flexible without abandoning the core principles that keep land and livestock improving.  
Resources Mentioned  
- Halter virtual fencing system  
- Passon quick couplers  
- Oklahoma Commissioners of the Land Office (CLO) grazing leases  
- Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) grazing leases  
Find Out More  
- Instagram | re:farm  
- Website | Re:Farm Market  
- Facebook | Re:Farm 

Looking for grass-based breeders?
 Explore the Grass Based Genetics directory.
Upcoming Grazing Events

Visit our Sponsors:
Noble Research Institute
Redmond Agriculture

Grazing Grass Links
Website
Community (on Facebook)
Original Music by Louis Palfrey

Matt Goble joins the Grazing Grass Podcast to share how he’s built a profitable, resilient wool sheep operation in a high-elevation mountain valley using entirely private and marginal land. While working a full-time W-2 job, Matt manages 450 ewes with a strong focus on grazing efficiency, soil health, and thoughtful breeding decisions. His system blends management-intensive grazing, cover crops, and perennial pastures, all adapted to a short growing season and limited irrigation.

In this episode, we cover:
Grazing irrigated pasture and marginal land in a mountain valley
Using cover crops to build soil before establishing perennial pasture
Managing sheep with daily and multi-day grazing moves
Lambing systems, jug management, and efficiency at scale
Breeding strategies for maternal traits and terminal lambs
Using ear notching and simple visual systems to reduce decision fatigue
Predator pressure and why net fencing matters for sheep
Balancing stocking rates during drought years
Adding chickens and turkeys to improve soil and diversify income
Matching enterprise scale to land capacity and lifestyle goals
Why This Episode Matters:
This conversation is a clear example of how management, not acres, often determines success. Matt shows how intentional grazing, simple systems, and observation can double productivity without doubling land or inputs. His practical insights into lambing efficiency, breeding decisions, and drought planning offer valuable lessons for anyone managing livestock on limited or challenging ground.

Resources Mentioned:
The Soil Owner’s Manual by John Stika
The Art and Science of Shepherding (Premier 1 Supplies)
Field Area Measure (mobile app)
Find Out More:
Facebook: Dry Bottom Farms
Snow College Agriculture Department (Utah)

Looking for grass-based breeders?
 Explore the Grass Based Genetics directory.
Upcoming Grazing Events

Visit our Sponsors:
Noble Research Institute
Redmond Agriculture

Grazing Grass Links
Website
Community (on Facebook)
Original Music by Louis Palfrey

In this Field Notes episode, Cal slows things down to share a simple way to think about soil health principles that actually sticks when you’re in the pasture. Instead of another list to memorize, this episode introduces CRADLE, a practical framework that organizes well-known soil health principles into something easier to remember and apply in real-world conditions.

In this episode, we explore:
Why soil health principles are easy to understand but hard to recall in real-world decision moments
How context shapes the way soil health principles are applied on different operations
How the core soil health ideas fit together through the CRADLE framework
Where disturbance, soil cover, diversity, living roots, and livestock fit within that bigger picture
A simple way to step back and diagnose what might be missing when things aren’t working as expected
What CRADLE stands for:
C — Context
R — Reduce Disturbance
A — Armor on the Soil
D — Diversity
L — Living Roots
E — Embrace Livestock
Why listen to this episode?
If you understand soil health principles but struggle to recall or apply them under real-world pressure, this episode gives you a mental model you can actually use. CRADLE helps move soil health from theory into day-to-day decision-making — without adding complexity.

Looking ahead
Next week’s Field Notes tackles a listener question on low-cost corral options, focusing on what actually matters, what you can skip, and practical ways to work animals safely without overspending on infrastructure.

Thanks to our partners
Field Notes is made possible by the continued support of Noble Research Institute and Redmond Agriculture. Their commitment to soil health education and stewardship helps make these conversations possible.

More grass. Better soil. Happier livestock.
Keep on grazing, and we’ll see you next week.

Looking for grass-based breeders?
 Explore the Grass Based Genetics directory.
Upcoming Grazing Events

Visit our Sponsors:
Noble Research Institute
Redmond Agriculture

Grazing Grass Links
Website
Community (on Facebook)
Original Music by Louis Palfrey