What happens when you stop thinking of your acres as having just one job? In this episode, John Haskell talks with Greg Christiansen about how he has built a farming system that combines cash crops, cover crops, and livestock grazing across more than 2,000 acres. Greg shares how he got started with cover crops, why he continues to plant them on nearly every acre he can, and how grazing those crops adds another layer of value to the operation.

The conversation gets into the economics and practical management behind Greg's approach, including planting soybeans into standing cereal rye, using triticale for grazing, reducing fertilizer and weed control costs, and improving soil moisture and water infiltration. Greg also explains why managing the livestock to take advantage of the forage can be more challenging than growing it, and how treating the soil well ultimately supports the profitability of the whole operation.

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In this episode, we cover:

• How Greg integrated cover crops into a farming operation that also includes soybeans, wheat, and corn
• Why he uses cereal rye and triticale, and how grazing adds economic value to cover crops
• How planting soybeans into standing cereal rye can help with moisture retention, weed control, and soil health
• Why Greg has been able to reduce fertilizer and weed control costs as his soil and cropping system have changed
• How soil biology can make existing nutrients more available to growing crops
• The challenge of having enough livestock at the right time to capture the value of forage
• Why treating the soil well and maintaining profitability can go hand in hand

Connect with Greg:

• Follow on Youtube
• Check out his website
• Email him at greglchristiansen@gmail.com

Connect with Ranch Right:

• Subscribe on YouTube
• Follow on Instagram @ranchrightllc
• Follow on Facebook
• Check out the website
• Check out all of our past webinars here

Resources & Links:

• Book a Free Discovery Call to Learn More
• Ranching for Profit
• Ranching.FYI
• Wally Olson, Olson Ranch LLC

Mentioned in this episode:

At Ranch Right, we help producers build clarity around cash flow, margins, and risk so the decisions we talk about on Ranchonomics actually work in the real world. If you want fewer surprises and more control, that’s where to start. Click below to book a call today.

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