Amid massive tracts of wheat and corn destined for global markets, some farmers are planting cover crop mixes designed to be harvested by their communities
Following in a summary/excerpt from an article that Daphne Miller wrote in the Civil Eats
On a recent Thursday, a group of farmers from Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska hosted a remote agriculture happy hour…The happy hour started with presentations about integrating livestock into cropping systems, but then things took a surprising turn: farmers began to discuss how they are feeding their families and communities.
In the midst of COVID-19 outbreak, many farmers in the region are now in a position to help feed their communities through a change in their practices over the past few years. Many area farmers rely on corn, soybean and cotton for their income. In between the cash crops, they generally plant alfalfa, ryegrass, or sorghum. which is used to build soil organic matter or for grazing. They have now switched to peas, squash, radish, okra, melons, sweet corn, and other edible plants.
“Mirroring the efforts of the Milpa farmers in Mexico, Guatemala, and elsewhere, many of these farmers now see their land as a way to preserve self-sufficiency while feeding farm families, neighbors, and building community,” said the article. Read full piece