Today we’re bringing you a conversation from the exotic location of…San Diego!  The American Sheep Industry Association’s annual meeting this year was held in our home city, and we managed to be at home to catch it.  Today, we’re speaking with Scott Stuart, Managing Director for the National Livestock Producers Association.  He discussed how this national nonprofit organization helps its members through one of the more prickly parts of agriculture – the financial side of the equation.  Their mission statement includes words like “advocacy” and “fair, competitive markets,” not to mention the “financial services” part.  And who doesn’t smile when they hear something like “The Sheep & Goat Innovation Fund?”  Just imagine what that might include.  Small ruminants need new computers, too (Okay, maybe not, but you’ll find out when you listen).Two quick thank you’s on this one:  To Scott Stewart, for wearing that lovely vest.  Wow.  And to P.A. Emily, for our closing sound effects.  All of you sheeple will recognize that one from the barn at 3:00 a.m. in lambing season, I’m sure.Links:https://www.sheepusa.org/newsletter/2022-asi-annual-conventionhttps://nlpa.wildapricot.org/https://nlpa.wildapricot.org/Sheep-&-Goat-Fundhttps://nlpa.wildapricot.org/LeadershipSupport the show

We’re back from our trip to the San Juan Islands, which can comfortably be said to be one of the most beautiful places on the planet.  It’s full of natural beauty and interesting creatures, so on the way over to geographical bliss, you’ll stand on the windswept deck of the Anacortes ferry, viewing and smelling glorious the forested stretches of Sitka spruce, western red cedar and shore pines which blanket the shoreline of the Salish Sea and the Olympic Peninsula.  You’ll be amazed by the local residents – things like seals, Bald Eagles, migrating salmon, Orcas, and Akhal-Teke horses.  Wait.  What?  The beautifully exotic horse from Turkmenistan?  Yep, they were there too.  The ever-gracious Amrita Ibold set up an amazing visit, which not only included a visit to the so-friendly-they-could-be-dogs Akhal-Teke horses themselves (favorites from our last visit), but also a truly exotic interview with Gul Muhammet and his friend, representatives and leaders from the Turkmenian community in Seattle.  To top it off, there were authentic costumes and tack for our cameras to capture, and a beach and forest ride featuring the amazing equines.  As an experience, it will be hard to top this one in the BYGF universe.Turkmenistan is not too far from Ukraine, another place we hear a lot about these days.  As you listen to today’s podcast, we hope you might think about the people who can appreciate the current impact of all of those things we hear on the news, and write in history books.  Keeping the “Culture” part of agri-Culture is what it’s all about.  It’s the “living” part of our living history.Links:http://www.akhalteke.cc/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salish_Seahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkmenistanhttps://www.britannica.com/place/Turkmenistan/Turkmen-tribes-and-Russian-invasion Support the show

Fall might seem to be the beginning of the end for some things - leaves, the start of move toward the final season of the year, and a dormant time.  But for some, it is a time of beginnings;  a new school year, and the move toward a new life.  What do I want to do and where will I go?  Like farmers, the decisions that a student makes might impact their path for the next 50 years.We have one of those with us today.  Kyley Abrams is just starting her second year at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (SLO), as an Animal Science major.  She loves horses, is learning about goats and pigs, and got to castrate a sheep in her first year.  Things will only get more exciting from here.We're on the ferry to the San Juan Islands to visit Amrita Ibold on this visit, but stopped for a moment on the ferry to enjoy the ride and talk with someone who has the whole vast ocean of possibilities ahead.Links:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkmenistanhttp://www.akhalteke.cchttps://wsdot.wa.govhttps://www.calpoly.eduhttps://www.visitsanjuans.comSupport the show

David Kline is one of the Plain People, but to us he is anything but boring.  He’s a naturalist, writer, farmer and all-around interesting man.  He joined us at the 2021 Horse Progress Days exhibition in Mt. Hope, Ohio.  Links:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amishhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A7UPDPK/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1https://horseprogressdays.com Support the show

Last fall Elara and I had the opportunity to travel to Colorado and go to CSU in Ft. Collins. There we met up with  Professor Frank Dayan who teaches and studies Plant Physiology, Biochemistry, Mode of Action,  and Biosynthesis. He had a 20-year career as a research plant physiologist for the USDA-ARS, before coming to Colorado State University.  He and the team at the weed lab (no not that kind of weed) are a fascinating bunch, who love what they do. So, please enjoy our conversation with Frank Dayan and what you can learn from studying weeds.Links:https://agsci.colostate.edu/people/directory-page/personnel-information/?userName=fdayanhttps://agsci.colostate.edu/weedscience/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weed_scienceSupport the show

This week's episode is with guest interviewer ABGA  Executive Director Katie Carruth, as she speaks with Judge Phil Myers about the ins and outs of grading livestock in the ring.Links:https://www.abga.orgSupport the show

James Reams (1956-2022)So many songs to sing; and so little time to sing them. That was the mantra of James Reams, beloved and well-known Bluegrass performer and song writer. Because of his driving promotion of Bluegrass and Americana music, he had earned several nicknames durning his lifetime that reflected his contributions to the genre; Kentucky Songbird, Father of Brooklyn Bluegrass, and Ambassador of Bluegrass. Unfortunately for those of us who loved him, and the many people who were impacted by his zest for life and music he has passed on. On June 17th at 4:30 in the afternoon he passed away, at home surrounded by family and friends who loved him. Just a few days before his death, he commented to those sitting by his bed, “Dying – this gives me an idea of a new song.”James who was raised in the hills of Appalachia, was exposed to bluegrass from the time he could walk. At an early age he showed a talent for writing and performing the music of the region. James spent many an hour watching the regional variety show “Cas Walker Farm and Home Hour”.  The Farm and Home Hour featured many of the pioneers of bluegrass and launched many emerging stars. This, along with his father’s love of bluegrass had a profound effect on him.Kentucky SongbirdJames earned the nickname Kentucky Songbird by building an extensive library of work during his three-decade career and ten album releases. IBMA nominated him as Emerging Artist of the Year. The same year he was also nominated for Recording Event of the Year for his album James Reams, Walter Hensley and the Barons of Bluegrass.His latest album release occurred early in 2022. It is a massive 2 CD release with thirty songs - Like a Flowing River & Soundtrack Album on Mountain Redbird Music. This highly anticipated project follows the release of a documentary film from the previous year. The documentary celebrates the long musical performing and song writing career of James.Father of Brooklyn BluegrassThis James identifier was conferred on him because of his role in being a founding father of the Park Slope Bluegrass Oldtime Music Jamboree in Brooklyn, New York. This music event started in 1998, was organized by James, along with his long-time partner Tina Aridas. The event was a glorious celebration of bluegrass music. It accomplished this by combining live performances and workshops over a two-day period in September each year. The event was popular and attracted top performers from the northeast, and hundreds of participants every year.Ambassador of BluegrassJames promoted the spread of bluegrass beyond the release of his albums and extensive touring. A major accomplishment of his was the releasing of two documentary films that sought to spread the music he loved to people who otherwise not had an opportunity to sample this foot-stomping music. In 2021 the documentary of James’ bluegrass life in was released, Like a Flowing River: A Bluegrass Passage. The film that captures the spirit of what it means to be a musician, documenting all of the twists and turns that occur on a musician’s journey.On top of the previously mentioned accomplishments, James was also an ex-president of the Arizona Bluegrass Association. James has been a busy contributor to bluegrass from the early days of his career. His passion for music can be seen in his everyday life. You can be sure if there is a kitchen table in heaven, James will be sitting at it singing a soulful tune.Music from Mountain Redbird MusicLinks:http://www.jamesreams.comhttps://bluegrasstoday.com/james-reams-passes/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Reamshttps://www.youtube.com/user/MrJamesReamsSupport the show

We won’t be bringing you our typical podcast for the next few weeks, because we’re doing a Bowman left.  Those of you who are regular listeners might remember that that’s the swerve in plans we tend to do if we find something interesting to pick up.  Sometimes that’s sudden, sometimes expected, but either way it’s a departure from our norm.We’re about to get on a plane to head to Grand Island, Nebraska, because this week is the 2022 American Boer Goat Association’s National Show.  Last year we had an exhausting but truly fun time running around filming all week in the barns, and the show ring and the surrounding farms, all on behalf of the ABGA. Links:http://triplewgenetics.com/https://www.abga.org/Support the show

The Chowchilla FFA has earned the title of State Champions for Dairy Cattle Evaluation, and we have two of those proud titleholding individuals with us today.  Mr. Brad Bitter, FFA Advisor, and his student Sydney Alexander politely allowed us to waylay them for a quick conversation amid the bustling halls of the 2021 FFA Convention.  Staying true to the nature of Californians, there’s no shortage of topical variety - Though we are Californians, after all, so we did include drought, fire, water, cows, and dropping off the western coast in the next big one (okay, not that last part, but yes to the rest).It takes all types to make a world, and California has examples of nearly everything.  Variety is the spice of life.Links:https://sites.google.com/chowchillahigh.org/chowchillaffa/home https://sites.google.com/chowchillahigh.org/chowchillaffa/ffa-advisors?authuser=0 https://convention.ffa.org/Support the show

We met up with Paul and Darlene  Miller from Windy Creek Farm in New York while we were at the  annual North American Suffolk Horse meetup at the Ashtabula County fairgrounds in Ohio. As usual we were on our way to Horse Progress Days and decided to take a Bowman left. There aren’t that many Suffolk Punch horses around anymore.  It’s really a shame, because a rich history, smarts, and hardworking traits all in one compact package aren’t as common as you would hope anymore.  We enjoyed our get-together for many reasons last Fall at The North American Suffolk Horse association’s annual gathering – the Punchers, we might call them.  But the thing that truly made it memorable was to meet a group of people who encapsulate those characteristics that we see in the horse itself.  They show an appreciation for the history of their breed.  They’re hardworking, but not showy about it; And they do it all with intelligence, compassion and grace, in one small but mighty organization.  We’re looking forward to the Fall, Ralph, and we plan on meeting up with you, Ken and Val, the (this couple’s name here), and the rest of the small but mighty Suffolk Punchers at the Ashtabula County Fairgrounds in October.  And if you arrange to have us experience that thundering rain again, we’ll turn up the microphones.Links:https://www.suffolkpunch.comhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suffolk_Punchhttps://ricelandmeadows.comSupport the show