Soil Guys Help Bring Back Core Fundamentals

Third generation Colorado potato grower Brendon Rockey of Rockey Farms has a passion for the soil and improving its health. A past National Potato Council Environmental Stewardship Award winner, Rockey shares his perspective on soil health is really a return to core fundamentals. They are doing things today on their farm that that his grandfather did two generations ago.

Rockey: "So it involves a lot of diversity on the farm, we have removed monocultures from our farm completely. Planting a lot of diverse cover crop mixes, planting companion crops in our potato crop. We started doing flowering strips for creating habitat for beneficial insects; bringing cattle back on the land to graze the cover crops — just another way to bring life back to the system. We've gotten completely away from synthetic fertilizers and harsh chemicals. All the products we use now it all about bringing life back to the soil."

Soil Guys is the company he is a part of that was a exhibitor at last week's Potato Expo. The focus of Soil Guys is to help other farmers who might be interested in pursuing biotic farming systems.

Rockey: "I feel like agriculture is at a place where a lot of people want some help and are are ready to make some changes. I just want to create the opportunity to share the experiences I've had to help others. I've been very fortunate in my life to be surrounded by great teachers and I've had a lot of help along my way too. So I understand the need for the support network to achieve goals. I want to be a part of that support network for these other farmers."

For more information go to soilguys.com