Agricultural & Food Sciences

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Guns, Germs and Steel examines the rise of civilization and the issues its development has raised throughout history....

The Omnivore's Dilemma meets Fast Food Nation from a global perspective in this game-changing look at the science, economics, and history of ultra-processed food and the industry's effect on our health and planet....

"What should we have for dinner?" To one degree or another, this simple question assails any creature faced with a wide choice of things to eat....

Helen shares an honest portrait of rural life and an authentic exploration of both the hard work and reward of keeping a home and raising a family....

In Dirt to Soil, Gabe Brown tells the story of his ranch's amazing journey and offers a wealth of innovative solutions to our most pressing and complex contemporary agricultural challenge - restoring the soil....

Have you ever desired, deep within your soul, to make a comfortable full-time living from a farming enterprise? Too often people dare not even vocalize this desire because it seems absurd. It's like thinking the unthinkable....

The COVID pandemic propelled many people to change their lives in ways large and small. Some adopted puppies. Others stress-baked. Peggy Orenstein, a lifelong knitter, went just a little further....

For the last fifty years, we have been fighting a losing war on food. We have cut fat, reduced carbs, eliminated sugar, and attempted every conceivable diet only to find that eighty-eight million American adults are prediabetic....

In a day when mainline farm experts predict the continued demise of the family farm, the pastured poultry opportunity shines like a beacon in the night, guiding the way to a brighter future....

Twenty years ago, Joel Salatin wrote You Can Farm, which has launched thousands of farm entrepreneurs around the world....

To a degree both engrossing and alarming, the story of fast food is the story of postwar America. Though created by a handful of mavericks, the fast food industry has...

A revelatory history of one of Stalin's greatest crimes - the consequences of which still resonate today....

An extraordinary story of a girl, her grandfather, and one of nature’s most mysterious and beguiling creatures: the honeybee....

Introducing Clarkson's Farm favourite Kaleb Cooper's worldly wisdom on life's big issues, from the difference between straw and hay to the importance of having a hair perm....

This enchanting program collects some of the Yorkshire vet's favorite stories about one of his favorite animals, each tale as memorable and heartwarming as the last...

When we talk about human history, we often focus on great leaders, population forces, and decisive wars. But how has the earth itself determined our destiny? Our planet wobbles, driving changes in climate that forced the transition from nomadism to farming....

Ahhh, livin’ the dream. Your own delicious organic food forest growing right outside your window. A harvest so bountiful, it feeds you, your family, and the whole neighborhood. Year-round abundance.

Why did humans abandon hunting and gathering for sedentary communities dependent on livestock and cereal grains and governed by precursors of today's states? Find out....

Prepare to set aside what you think you know about yourself and microbes. Good health - for people and for plants - depends on Earth's smallest creatures....

Fossil fuels and livestock grazing are often targeted as major culprits behind climate change and desertification. But Allan Savory, cofounder of the Savory Institute, begs to differ....

The Market Gardener is a compendium of proven horticultural techniques and innovative growing methods....

A counter to heavy industrial farming, permaculture is all about conscious planning that caters to the human needs while also respecting and healing the natural environment. At its core, it involves drawing inspiration from nature to build an ecosystem that thrives just like any other....

Every time we eat, we have the power to radically transform the world we live in....

Maynard Murray was a medical doctor who researched the crucial importance of minerals—especially trace elements—to plants and animals. ...

More than 40 years before Gary Taubes published The Case Against Sugar, John Yudkin published his now-classic exposé on the dangers of sugar - now with a new introduction by Robert H. Lustig, the best-selling author of Fat Chance....

Your all-in-one guide to creating delicious pickled and fermented foods! Do you love pickled foods and want to know how to make your own? Have you ever wondered how easy it is to pickle veggies, make yogurt, sauces, and more? This book is your go-to guide for everything to do with pickling and fermenting! Pickling and fermenting are two of the oldest methods of preserving foods, which is why they have long been popular. They are tried and tested and offer a fantastic way to preserve an abundance of fresh foods and create delicious sides and flavorful condiments that bring a whole new ...

Dive into the captivating world of swine ranching with "The Landrace Pig Revolution", a groundbreaking eBook that provides an enlightening exploration about the role of Landrace pigs in the industry. This eBook will guide you through the unique journey from the historical perspective of pig breeding to the emergence of Landrace pigs, bringing forth unique attributes of these endearing creatures. With a focus on the biological overview of Landrace pigs, this eBook examines the importance of high fertility in swine ranching, delving into their adaptability and the physiology of fertility. ...

Dive deep into the exciting world of Australorp Chickens with 'Unleashing Australorp Power.' This comprehensive guide will take you through the journey of understanding, nurturing, and profiting from these black-feathered beauties. 'Unleashing Australorp Power' begins with a fascinating exploration into the origins and evolution of the Australorp breed, offering a comprehensive historical overview. Discover the distinct characteristics that set these chickens apart; it might surprise you how much they can differ from other breeds. The adventure continues as you delve into setting up the ...

Maynard Murray was a medical doctor who researched the crucial importance of minerals—especially trace elements—to plants and animals. Beginning in 1938 and continuing through the 1950s, Dr. Murray used sea solids—mineral salts remaining after water is evaporated from ocean water—as fertilizer on a variety of vegetables, fruits and grains. His extensive experiments demonstrated repeatedly and conclusively that plants fertilized with sea solids and animals fed sea-solid-fertilized feeds grow stronger and more resistant to disease. Sea Energy Agriculture recounts Murray's experiments ...

Nature is complex, elegant, and infinite in its wisdom. Farmers who are truly successful learn nature's many facets and her intricate dance; they crack the code of how to honor and feed this boundless natural system while coaxing the production needed for the survival of a modern farm. Natural product formulator and farm consultant Jerry Brunetti wraps together a lifetime of learning and his uncanny observations in this fascinating volume on the interconnected dynamics in place on a farm -- the farm's geology, biology, and diversity of life forms. Learn to look at -- and manage -- your farm...

This valuable collection of essays in volume 6 reveals the insights of a brilliant soil scientist who was ahead of his time in connecting the relationship between soil, plants and animals. Read about Albrecht’s substantiated theory and observation that insufficient soil fertility was responsible for poor crops, weeds and thereby a poor diet for the cow in terms of her food choice and her output.

This 25th anniversary edition, updated by the author, reveals the miraculous communication systems present in nature. Learn how plants and insects communicate through emissions in the infrared frequency range and why poisonous pesticides do not solve the real problems facing agriculture. In this breakthrough book Phil Callahan uncovers why certain insects are attracted only to certain plants, the role of pheromones' work in nature, and how plants under stress literally signal insects to come devour them. Long out of print . . . classic Callahan!

The cornerstones of ranch profitability are rooted in herd health, which in turn is rooted in soil fertility and animal nutrition, cattle breeding for better feed efficiency, and cattle breeding for longevity. Longevity, Newman Turner writes, is the most critical factor for success in livestock breeding and production. In this book, Newman Turner explains that livestock illness is a result of bad farming practices and that real livestock health begins with true natural farming disciplines such as composting, biodiverse pastures with deep-rooted forages and herbs, and sub-soiling, as well as...

Holistic practitioners have been using contact reflex diagnosis, muscle testing, and dowsing to improve human health for centuries. For lifelong alternative medicine practitioner Carrie Eastman, applying these methods to her goat herd was just common sense. All living things are made up of electrical energy. Learn how to harness this energy to work with your goats in a way that is convenient, inexpensive, and safe for your herd. The Energetic Goat provides step-by-step instruction on the basic techniques, including common variations, as well as guidance on how to adapt other techniques to ...

A resurgence of interest in heritage poultry breeds has invigorated poultry raising on family farms and backyards across the country. These are the birds that can and should be producing for today’s marketplace – for consumers that have come to value locally bred and grown, historically significant agricultural food. This book offers valuable insight into rare, heritage and heirloom breed selection, chick raising, breeding and marketing so you can start your own fully sustainable heritage chicken flock and raise eggs or meat for your family or small farm business.

Do you know ... how to grow great alfalfa and other forages? How can a healthy stand of alfalfa be established? What is most important in promoting vigorous forage growth - soil life, weed control, or balanced soil fertility? Is high potassium necessary for high quality? Does high tonnage automatically mean good feed for livestock? When should forages be cut - pre-bloom, first bloom, mid bloom? How can you measure forage quality? This book has these answers and more!

This book represents the combined experience and wisdom of two leaders in sustainable cattle production. Gearld Fry offers a lifetime of practical experience seasoned by study and observation. Charles Walters draws on his own observations as well as interviews with thousands of eco-farmers and consultants over the past four decades. The result is an insightful book that is practical in the extreme, yet eminently readable. In this book you will learn: how to “read” an animal, what linear measurement is, why linear management selects ideal breeding stock, the nuances of bull fertility, ...

This is a concise yet complete handbook for starting a successful organic farm based on the community supported agriculture concept. Written for farmers and non-farmers alike, the book illustrates how two middle-aged novices are making a decent living on less than two acres of land. Bob and Bonnie found few resources applicable to their situation when they began researching making their farm dream a reality, and the book originally stemmed from their own desire to help others by sharing universal guidelines on small farm start-ups. The model explained in the book is an updated version of ...

Join longtime ecological farming author/researcher Harold Willis as he explains the foundation concepts of natural farming and issues the call for cleaner forms of food and fiber production. In this single volume, the author details the interconnections between soil chemistry, microbial life, plants and livestock. He discusses the current problems in agriculture and suggests how lessons from nature provide the roadmap to efficiency, effectiveness and profitability. This book does not stop at providing recipes of what farmers need to do to farm better, but also passes along an understanding ...

New Zealand grazing consultant Peter Bacchus shares a lifetime of experience on applying biodynamics to pastures. His multi-pronged approach considers balance of fertility elements, organic matter levels, soil life, and particularly soil life forces. Through biodynamic preparations and other tools he seeks to produce optimum grass quality and production for grazing animals. Also covered are biodynamic methods of pest and weed control.