4 The Soil: A Conversation Podcast Por Eric Bendfeldt arte de portada

4 The Soil: A Conversation

4 The Soil: A Conversation

De: Eric Bendfeldt
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Soil. What is it, really? It’s more than the dirt under our feet and the ground we stand on.

Soil is living and life-giving.

Listen as we unlock the mysteries of soil by speaking with people at the forefront of the soil health movement.

“4 The Soil: A Conversation” is part of the 4 The Soil Awareness Campaign led by Virginia Cooperative Extension and the Virginia Soil Health Coalition. The campaign’s purpose is to raise awareness of soil as an agricultural and natural resource critical to social, economic, and environmental health.

Hear and learn from farmers, agricultural professionals, conservation leaders, master gardeners, and many more on how and why to be 4 The Soil.

The podcast is a collaboration of Virginia Tech's School of Plant and Environmental Sciences and Center for Food Systems and Community Transformation, Virginia Cooperative Extension, On The Farm Radio, USDA-NRCS, and the Virginia Soil Health Coalition with specific funding from the Agua Fund, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and Virginia Tech’s Department of Agriculture, Leadership, and Community Education’s Community Viability grant program.

Stay tuned for the release of our first episode in October!Virginia Tech Ciencia Ciencias Biológicas
Episodios
  • S5 - E24: Health and Nutrition Start with the Soil with Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot, Part II

    S5 - E24: Health and Nutrition Start with the Soil with Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot, Part II
    Nov 25 2025
    Health and nutrition start with caring for the soil. Food can and should be our medicine. Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot of the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health and Soil Health Labs shares his perspective on connections with soil health and public health with Eric, Mary, and Jeff in this episode.

    Buz reflects on his own research but also points out what he has heard from farmers and ranchers he has worked with through the years. Building on the idea that eating is an agricultural act and food can be medicine, Buz would like health professionals, agronomists, soil scientists, farmers, and ranchers to collaborate more on soil and public health research and education.

    In addition to your own research and study of soil and human health, Buz recommends reading Fred Provenza's book Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us about Rediscovering Our Nutritional Wisdom.

    As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles:

    1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies; avoid bare fallows;
    2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage as much as possible in your field or garden;
    3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and
    4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, high-quality food for soil and plants, farm enterprises, and livestock integration.

    The 4 The Soil team recently commissioned a new set of art posters to help people remember the four principles of soil health and celebrate that “We Are 4 the Soil!”. If you are personally or professionally interested in printing and framing the soil health artwork, the 16” by 20” posters are available for purchase and printing as single posters or a set of five posters.

    If you have questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and soil health principles and practices to restore the life in your soil, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.

    4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.

    Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.

    To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today’s program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.
    Más Menos
    17 m
  • S5 - E23: A Fundamental Overhaul and Paradigm Shift in Soil Science with Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot, Part I

    S5 - E23: A Fundamental Overhaul and Paradigm Shift in Soil Science with Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot, Part I
    Nov 11 2025
    Changing course is never easy, especially if the change requires a complete overhaul at the most basic, fundamental level. Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot of the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health and Soil Health Labs talks with Eric, Mary, and Jeff about this paradigm shift among farmers and within the soil science community.

    Buz explains how the shift in thinking and paradigms occurred. In many cases, people were focused more on the symptoms rather than the cause, for instance, soil loss through erosion or poor water infiltration. Understanding the underlying cause required a whole-system approach. For Buz, an open mind to farmers' stories and experiences, and a beginner's mindset as a scientist were required to truly grasp the dynamic nature of soil.

    If you are beginning your journey with soil health and cover cropping systems, the featured length Under Cover Farms video, Buz and his team produced, provides a good introduction and uplifts the initial experiences of farmers in South and North Carolina.

    As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles:

    1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies; avoid bare fallows;
    2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage as much as possible in your field or garden;
    3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and
    4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, high-quality food, farm enterprises, and livestock integration.

    The 4 The Soil team recently commissioned a new set of art posters to help people remember the four principles of soil health and celebrate that “We Are 4 the Soil!”. If you would like to learn about the history of the art posters and access a link to purchase an individual poster or the set of five 4 The Soil posters, please visit our recent blog post: Spreading the Message for Healthy Soil with Posters!

    If you have questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and soil health principles and practices to restore the life in your soil, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.

    4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.

    Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.

    To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today’s program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.
    Más Menos
    18 m
  • S5 - E22: Encouraging a Hospitable Habitat for Soil Microorganisms with Dr. Ashley Jernigan of Virginia Tech, Pt. II

    S5 - E22: Encouraging a Hospitable Habitat for Soil Microorganisms with Dr. Ashley Jernigan of Virginia Tech, Pt. II
    Oct 28 2025
    Did you know soil microorganisms of all sizes and shapes need water, air, shelter, and care to function and thrive? Dr. Ashley Jernigan, assistant professor and director of Virginia Tech's Sustainable and Organic Vegetable Crops Production Lab, returns to talk with Jeff and Mary about what farmers and gardeners can do to encourage a hospitable habitat for soil microorganisms.

    As a soil ecologist, Ashley recommends keeping track of your soil organic matter level and its aggregate stability, and how these soil health indicators compare to native biological systems. Soils, like people, need quality food in diverse and complex forms (compost, green manures, plant roots, etc.). Similarly, farmers and gardeners should avoid leaving the soil naked and bare. Being gentle and reducing the intensity of tillage is also key to maintaining a comfortable environment for soil critters and not disrupting the structures and networks that soil organisms establish.

    We would encourage our listeners to visit Andy Murray's A Chaos of Delight: Exploring Life in the Soil website and tour the gallery of photos of different soil microorganisms.

    As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles:

    1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies; avoid bare fallows;
    2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage as much as possible in your field or garden ;
    3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and
    4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, high-quality food, farm enterprises, and livestock integration.

    To enjoy recent 4 The Soil blog posts and additional soil health resources, please visit https://www.4thesoil.org/blog and https://www.virginiasoilhealth.org/. For questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and soil health principles and practices to restore the life in your soil, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.

    4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.

    Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.

    To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today’s program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.
    Más Menos
    17 m
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