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....

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....

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...

In 1637, one Dutchman paid as much for a single tulip bulb as the going price of a town house in Amsterdam. Three and a half centuries later, Amsterdam is once again the mecca for people who care passionately about one particular plant....

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....

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

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....

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

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....

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

Do you know the new rules for profit in today's land and livestock game? Using successful grass farmers as examples, Allan explains how leasing land can add up to profits with lower risk than ownership, and can be a means for young people to get into grassland agriculture today....

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....

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...

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....

Have you been looking for a resource that will take you through the ins and outs of livestock from start to finish? If so, this audiobook Raising Livestock: The Ultimate Guide to Raising Horses, Donkeys, Beef Cattle, Llamas, Pigs, Sheep, and Goats is exactly what you need....

The Backyard Beekeeper, 4th Edition is your complete honey bee resource, loaded with updated information on bee problems and treatments, measuring techniques, swarm control, harvesting, and using top bar hives....

Much like nature, this audiobook is both simple and complex. Zietsman has taken great care to create both a simple technical guide as well as a philosophic declaration about complex human and environmental nuances, all in one volume....

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....

We’ve been told that a vegetarian diet can feed the hungry, honor the animals, and save the planet. Lierre Keith believed in that plant-based diet and spent twenty years as a vegan....

Easy beekeeping for new-bees. Wouldn’t it be great to raise your own bees, have a fresh supply of honey, and bring thousands of healthy pollinators into your yard? Beekeeping for Beginners is a simple, step-by-step guide that helps you learn the fundamentals....

A tale of obsession so fierce that a man kills the thing he loves most: The only giant golden spruce on earth....

Some people's lives are entirely their own creations. James Rebanks' isn't.....

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

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...

Charles Wilber tells his personal story of learning to work with nature, and his philosophy and approach to gardening. He reveals for the first time how he grows record-breaking tomatoes and produce of every variety. There's no magic involved. Just a well thought out system that gives plants more than they could ever want, and makes it possible for them to reach their full potential. Wilber's compost is the cornerstone along with a wide circumference around plants layered with compost, alfalfa meal and mulch. Valuable pruning and watering details are given, too, as well as a new way of ...

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 ...

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.

Ideas such as "crop and soil weatherproofing," the "row support system," and the "tillage commandments," exemplify the practicality of the soil/root maintenance program that serves as the foundation for Schriefer’s highly-successful "systems approach" farming. Schriefer was a pioneer in developing an awareness of the relation of tillage to soil fertility, focusing on three major soil basics — soil aeration, soil water, and soil decay. This book covers such topics as soil chemistry, plant and soil dynamics, above- and below-ground plant management, row support fertilization, zone-tillage...

This booklet is packed with knowledge that will help you grow superior examples of this profitable crop. You will learn: how bacteria helps your crop grow better; how to drought-proof your soil; whether herbicides and pesticides are really necessary; and what place hydrogen peroxide has on your farm. This slender volume can lead soybean producers to fat profits!

Ask the Plant, based on the agronomy of K. Chandler, offers farmers and growers a better way to grow plants that involves reading the unique language of plants, utilizing leaf and petiole testing, and in turn knowing how to produce a better crop using only the fertilizers and soil-building ingredients that are truly needed, when they are most needed. Instead of following the decades-old conventional model where plants are given copious amounts of soluble nitrogen fertilizers aimed to force-feed the landscape green, Ask the Plant addresses how to build a healthy soil without excessive inputs...

A hands-on barn and field guide designed for quick and easy use, presenting a thorough examination of animals in the barn and then listing symptoms with many pictures of what the farmer is seeing, possible conclusions, and then giving a concise set of treatments. The treatments are ones that Dr. Karreman has found to work consistently well during 15 years in the trenches working with organic cows. Basic backgrounding in the fundamentals for organic and holistic thinking about livestock is included in the introduction. The companion guide to Treating Dairy Cows Naturally, this book includes ...

A practical guide to interpreting soil test results for farmers and other stewards of the earth wanting to understand what nutrients are available to plants and learn how to more effectively grow crops, turfgrass and other plants. This book, written by an experienced soil consultant, gives real-world advice about how to decipher the jungle of numbers found on soil and water test reports and shows how to comprehend what the numbers mean for your crop. McKibben gives clear, easy-to-understand information about how to choose the most appropriate testing protocol based on your specific soil ...

What is the most important plant in the world? In terms of nutritive content, function within the ecosystem, and even medicinal properties, the answer to this question may very well be grass. In this wide-ranging survey of grass forages and pastureland, Charles Walters makes the case that grass is not just for cows and horses — that in fact it is the most nutritious food produced by nature, as well as the ultimate soil conditioner. You will learn from traditional graziers who draw on centuries of wisdom to create beautiful, lush, sustainable pastures, as well as cutting-edge innovators ...

In this book, author and lifelong poultry keeper Kelly Klober turns his attention to alternative poultry ventures. The newfound interest in heritage breeds of chicken has created a unique opportunity for small farmers to reintroduce consumers to other types of poultry. Ducks, pigeons, and guinea were all once ubiquitous on the family farm, and the market is opening to them once again among influential chefs and foodies. From geese to quail to peahens to turkeys, Klober discusses the pros and cons of each and how to best fit an alternative poultry venture into your farming operation. Filled ...

From housing to feeding, from selection to breeding, this book covers everything the backyard farmer needs to know about poultry husbandry — including preventative and curative herbal medicines and homeopathics. The author takes a permaculture point of view in raising poultry, creating a diverse base of plant life for the birds to choose from, all cohesively fitting into the landscape and overall farm. Complete enough for the beginner, yet the experienced poultry farmers will find the book packed with techniques and ideas found nowhere else.

Drawing upon his own experiences of life in the American countryside of the 1930s and beyond, as well as a lifetime of reporting and writing on agriculture, agricultural policy and economics, Charles Walters has crafted a new work of fiction that brings the message of Acres U.S.A. to life in a new way. From whence comes this beast of muddy brain that trails a boy, a man, a family and a civilization through Century 20 into Century 21? The tale that unfolds in this intensely gripping, often instructive novel begins in the Dust Bowl of the 1930s and grows with its characters through war and ...

Hard-to-come-by, practical, hands-on knowledge for the biological farmer on growing healthy corn — America’s top cash crop. From selecting the right fertilizers to understanding open-pollinated benefits, this book touches on a wide array of topics.