11/26/08 Supporting Conservation

Supporting Conservation. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. I was recently at the Farm Broadcasters convention in Kansas City and had the opportunity to sit down with a bit of hero of mine. Chuck Leavell is most known for being the keyboard player with bands like the Allman Brothers and the Rolling Stones. I too play keys in a classic rock band. But interestingly what we talked about were trees, tractors and alternative energy. LEAVELL: It's a pleasure to be with somebody who has not only shared concerns in the agricultural world but is a fellow keyboardist! I've partnered here with the folks from New Holland because of their support and interest in alternative fuels. In addition to being a keyboard player and working with the Rolling Stones and others throughout my career, I'm a tree farmer and so I have a very intense interest in agricultural issues, forestry issues, environmental issues. Leavell has become a spokesperson for the New Holland line of equipment. LEAVELL: I've just been so impressed with what New Holland has done being at the forefront of the use of biodiesel. They were the first company to warrant the use of 20% biodiesel in their equipment and now all the way to 100%. They warrant their equipment for that use. I think that's marvelous and that's the direction our country needs to be moving in. Leavell and his wife own and operate Charlane Plantation in Georgia and they have become very outspoken in regards to conservation. LEAVELL: Basically I married into it. My wife's family has been connected to the land in one form or another for generations. Her father was a farmer; tended cattle and also tended forest land. Her grandfather the same and actually some of the land that's in the family there where we live in Georgia goes all the way back to the King George the Third land grant days so you are talking about a heritage of stewardship of the land. Leavell spent a great deal of time learning about forestry and conservation even while still touring with the Rolling Stones and he has found that there is a lot more involved. LEAVELL: The thing that I like to discuss about the use of forestry is that it's not only the trees. When you are engaged in managing a forest, you are also managing everything inside the forest. Everything from insects to raccoons to deer to wild turkeys to quail to songbirds and everything that goes along with it. It's the biodiversity picture. All that and a darn good keyboard guy too. (music) That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.