New Agrarian Voices
Learn about the impressions and experiences of each year's cohort of apprentices in their own words.
Peter Feehan, APPRENTICE, Seacross Ranch, MT
REFLECTIONS AFTER THE FIRST MONTH
I am certain that I am dedicating my life to agriculture. The specifics of this, however, are still unknown to me. I would like to have a regenerative farm or ranch. Where do I want to live? What type of operation do I want to have? What knowledge do I need to make this possible? These are the general questions that I am asking myself as I move toward realizing this vision and that have been guiding my work in agriculture.
Cliched though it may be, “Agriculture is a way of life” still rings true: when you work on and for the place that you live, it becomes impossible to separate the personal from the professional. Only with some answers to these things can I begin to see my own potential place as a resident and agrarian of that location.
That is the broad vision for what I want to get out of this apprenticeship and its relationship to my long term goals. But much specific knowledge is needed for me to have a regenerative agricultural operation of my own, knowledge that can only come from hands-on experience and mentoring. What does properly managed grazing look like for this land and climate in order to encourage soil and native plant health? What is the process for running this financially-sustainable operation? Through this internship I hope to learn the answers to as many of these questions as possible. I don’t expect to be able to turn around and apply this gained knowledge directly to my own future operation because of the importance that location plays into proper regenerative agriculture. Some things, like financial planning, fall more in the realm of hard skills that can be reapplied elsewhere, but the specifics of something like making those finances work, such as finding markets for potential products, is far more site specific. With knowledge and training such as that, I hope to learn how it has been successfully applied by my mentors so that I can apply it myself.
More Voices
New Agrarian Voices – Tyler Vandermark
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New Agrarian Voices – Susan Elder
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New Agrarian Voices – Rex Rutledge
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New Agrarian Voices – Natalie Berkman
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New Agrarian Voices – Megan Schmidgall
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New Agrarian Voices – Jeane Stafford
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New Agrarian Voices – Brady Lux
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New Agrarian Voices – Sam Schmidt
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New Agrarian Voices – Noelle Mcdonough
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New Agrarian Voices – Julia Loman
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New Agrarian Voices – Ian Trupin
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New Agrarian Voices – Dylan Jones
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New Agrarian Voices – DeAnne Gabriel
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New Agrarian Voices – Dave LeFavre
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New Agrarian Voices – Christopher Mellen
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