In this episode of Talkin’ Dirt, I sit down with Jennifer and Scott Beddard, former owners of Beddard Berry Farm in Washington’s Yakima Valley.

Jennifer and Scott share the story of building their berry farm from the ground up, learning as they went, raising a family alongside the farm, and eventually making the difficult decision to close the operation.

From there, we dive into a side of agriculture most people rarely get to see: commercial pollination. Jennifer and Scott spent years working with fruit growers throughout the region, collecting blossoms, extracting and testing pollen, and helping orchardists make sure their trees actually produced a crop. We talk about the surprisingly complicated science behind pollination, why different varieties of fruit trees depend on one another, and just how much can go wrong during the short window when an orchard is in bloom.

After selling their commercial pollination business, Jennifer and Scott found another way to put all of that experience to use. They started PollenPro, where they now provide small quantities of commercial-grade fruit tree pollen specifically for backyard growers. Toward the end of the episode, we talk about how that idea came together and how home growers can use supplemental pollen to help get fruit from trees that might otherwise struggle with pollination.

Learn more about PollenPro and their pollen for backyard fruit trees here:
https://www.pollenpro.com/

We also zoom out and talk about what Jennifer and Scott have witnessed happening in agriculture around the Yakima Valley; the challenges facing smaller farms, the increasing pressure from larger operations, and what it takes to make a living in farming today.

It’s a conversation about starting a small farm, walking away from it, finding a different place within agriculture, and seeing firsthand just how complicated the system behind our food really is.

If you enjoy Talkin’ Dirt, follow the show, leave a rating or review, and share this episode with somebody who might enjoy it. Every little bit of support helps more people find these conversations.

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In this episode of Talkin’ Dirt, I sit down with Pete Temrowski of Full Heart Farm, a one-acre farm in Carnation, Washington.

Pete’s path to farming took him from growing plants as a kid in Atlanta, to working in the cannabis industry, to eventually starting a farm of his own in the Snoqualmie Valley. Today, he’s building Full Heart slowly and intentionally, growing vegetables, herbs, flowers and perennial crops while experimenting with seed saving, composting, low-till practices and ways to improve the health of his soil.

We talk about what it actually takes to start a small farm with limited resources, the importance of community among local farmers, why Pete has become so interested in saving and adapting seeds, and the realities of trying to make a living on a one-acre operation.

Pete is refreshingly realistic about what he’s building. He’d love to farm full time someday, but he also recognizes that farming may always be something he does alongside other work. For him, it’s less about getting big and more about growing good food, feeding his family and community, and getting to spend his life working with plants.

This is a great conversation about small-scale farming, soil, seeds, community, and simply doing something because you love it.

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In this episode of Talkin' Dirt, I sit down with Graham Redfern, founder of Redfern Hemp, and Joe Domino, the company's research director. Graham's path into agriculture wasn't a traditional one. After careers in construction and banking, he became convinced that industrial hemp had the potential to transform everything from building materials and textiles to wellness products and sustainable manufacturing. What followed was years of farming, research, product development, and advocacy as Redfern Hemp grew into one of Virginia's leading hemp companies.

Our conversation begins with the story of how Redfern Hemp came to be but quickly expands into the complex regulatory landscape surrounding hemp production in the United States. Virgina's laws regarding hemp are changing on August 15th of this year. Graham and Joe explain how Virginia's changing hemp laws are reshaping their business, why full-spectrum hemp products have become the center of a growing legal debate, and what it's like trying to build a company when the rules governing your industry continue to evolve. Along the way, we discuss the promise of industrial hemp, the realities of running a vertically integrated agricultural business, and the practical challenges facing farmers trying to invest in an uncertain future.

More broadly, this conversation explores a question that reaches far beyond hemp: What happens when regulation becomes one of the defining forces shaping an agricultural industry? We talk about the relationship between public policy and innovation, the growing cost of regulatory compliance, and whether changing rules unintentionally make it harder for small producers to compete. Regardless of where you land on the issues discussed, this episode offers a thoughtful look at how agriculture, entrepreneurship, and government policy intersect—and why those conversations matter for the future of farming.

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