The Prairie Farm Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Ep. 410 Ground Water Scientist Explains the Draining of the Ogallala Aquifer and the Colorado River Nov 13, 2026

Show notes

Dr. Jim Butler of the Kansas Geological Survey joins us to talk about the Ogallala Aquifer. How fast is it draining, why rain takes years to reach it, and how one group of Kansas irrigators cut water use 25% without losing money. Plus water rights, proposed pipelines, and data centers.

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iowacovercrop.com (for all your cover crop mixes, waterway mixes, forage mixes, small grains, and more)

MckayInsAgency.com (for all your financial planning and insurance needs)

Ep. 409 (Coffee Time) Is Horsepower More Expensive and Fur Pelts Are Becoming Popular Again Nov 11, 2026

Show notes

Kent is in a tree for the rut, so we start with deer biology and why poaching is the one crime hunters never forgive. Then we dig into why new tractors cost up to $2,000 per horsepower, and how Iowa’s collapsed fur market left raccoons running unchecked across the landscape.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

BirdHunterSupply.com (for all your bird hunting supplies and dog hunting supplies)

Ep. 408 Do Virtual Collars ACTUALLY Make Sense for Livestock?? Nov 06, 2026

Show notes

Matt Vermeersch of Root and Raise Land and Livestock joins us to talk virtual fencing, Highland cattle, and grazing sheep under solar panels. We dig into whether Nofence collars pay off, why Matt’s beef tested at a 1.14 to 1 omega ratio, and what Iowa’s culture really looks like today.

Be sure to stay tuned for our new outro at the end of the episode- HUGE thanks to musical talents of Kenny Leiser, Augie Dougherty and the always generous Doug Duren.

Follow Kenny: @madisonviolin

Follow Augie: @augiedougherty

Follow Doug: @dougduren

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

iowacovercrop.com (for all your cover crop mixes, waterway mixes, forage mixes, small grains, and more)

Ep. 407 (Coffee Time) 1 Million Trees Cut Down for POLITICAL AD MAILERS Nov 04, 2026

Show notes

Election day at the shop, and the crew is drowning in political mailers. Nicolas, Kent, and Riley dig into the billions of pieces mailed this election season, how many trees that takes, and a contest to turn 2028’s mailers into art. Plus sports betting, fear, and Nicolas’s latest virtue signal.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

MckayInsAgency.com (for all your financial planning and insurance needs)

BirdHunterSupply.com (for all your bird hunting supplies and dog hunting supplies)

Ep. 406 $20M Non-Profit, HOAs, Data Centers, and The Future of Land Ownership Oct 30, 2026

Show notes

Hannah Inman, CEO of the Great Outdoors Foundation, joins Nicolas and Judd to talk about how a small Iowa nonprofit moves tens of millions of dollars into wetlands and water quality. They dig into why conservation has to pay, who funds it, data centers and water, and prairie in HOAs.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

BirdHunterSupply.com (for all your bird hunting supplies and dog hunting supplies)

Ep. 405 (Coffee Time) Balancing Hunting and Family, EcoData Centers, and Judd's Big Bucks Oct 28, 2026

Show notes

When does a hobby cross the line into selfishness? The Coffee Time crew digs into hunting, family, and sacrifice, then takes on EcoGPT, data centers, and whether we’d undo AI, social media, or smartphones. Plus Judd’s two missed bucks and a classic debate: solid colors versus camo in the deer woods.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

iowacovercrop.com (for all your cover crop mixes, waterway mixes, forage mixes, small grains, and more)

MckayInsAgency.com (for all your financial planning and insurance needs)

Ep. 404 What Do Trout Need for Habitat and The New Hoksey Marketing Manager Oct 23, 2026

Show notes

Pierce Nelles, Hoksey Native Seeds’ new marketing manager and a Driftless fly fishing guide, joins the crew to talk trout. Why cold water matters, how a prairie stretch ran three degrees cooler than pasture, Iowa stocking, spawning seasons, and what hunters and anglers really think about conservation right now.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

MckayInsAgency.com (for all your financial planning and insurance needs)

BirdHunterSupply.com (for all your bird hunting supplies and dog hunting supplies)

Ep. 403 (Coffee Time) 17 Ag Grants and Programs You've Never Heard Of Oct 21, 2026

Show notes

Kent tells the story of the cleanest kill of his life, a muzzleloader buck stalked through standing corn on the wind. Then Nicolas runs through 17 little-known programs that help beginning and small farmers get started, from savings matches and apprenticeships to cost shares, and why marketing matters for farmers.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

iowacovercrop.com (for all your cover crop mixes, waterway mixes, forage mixes, small grains, and more)
1. PFI Savings Incentive Program: https://practicalfarmers.org/programs/savings-incentive-program/
2. PFI Labor4Learning: https://practicalfarmers.org/programs/labor4learning/
3. PFI Cost-Shares:
Grazing Infrastructure: https://practicalfarmers.org/programs/grazing-infrastructure-cost-share/
Extended Rotations: https://practicalfarmers.org/programs/cost-share-for-extended-rotations/
Produce Safety: https://practicalfarmers.org/programs/produce-safety-cost-share/
4. Land Stewardship Project Farm Beginnings: https://landstewardshipproject.org/farmbeginnings/
5. Minnesota Down Payment Assistance Grant: https://www.mda.state.mn.us/downpayment
6. Nebraska NextGen Beginning Farmer Tax Credit: https://nextgen.nebraska.gov
7. Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship: https://www.dga-national.org/programs/dairy-grazing-apprenticeship
8. North Central SARE Farmer Rancher Grant: https://northcentral.sare.org/grants/apply-for-a-grant/farmer-rancher-grant/
9. Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund: https://farmvetco.org/fvfellowship/
10. American Farmland Trust Brighter Future Fund: https://farmland.org/brighterfuture
Farm to Stay (with Airbnb): https://farmland.org/farm-to-stay
11. Organic Farming Research Foundation Farmer-Led Trials: https://ofrf.org/research/farmer-led-research-trials/
12. Oregon Farm Corps: https://www.oregonfarmcorps.org/apprenticeship
13. California Healthy Soils Program: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/oars/healthysoils/
14. Washington Sustainable Farms and Fields: https://www.scc.wa.gov/sff
15. Tennessee Agricultural Enhancement Program (TAEP): https://www.tn.gov/taep.html
16. Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund: https://www.kyagr.com/agpolicy
17. NC AgVentures Farm Grant: https://agventures.ces.ncsu.edu/application-for-ag-ventures-grant

Ep. 402 Why Walmart Will Never Tell You Where Your Food's From And Why Food Hubs Fail or Succeed Oct 16, 2026

Show notes

Tommy Hexter bought a tiny local food market at 20 and grew it to nearly seventy Iowa producers. We talk food hubs, pay-what-you-can groceries, why Walmart can’t tell you where your eggs came from, running for the statehouse at 24, and why Iowa’s soil should make it America’s food capital.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

iowacovercrop.com (for all your cover crop mixes, waterway mixes, forage mixes, small grains, and more)

MckayInsAgency.com (for all your financial planning and insurance needs)

Ep. 401 (Coffee Time) What Happened to All The Different Tractor Companies?? Oct 14, 2026

Show notes

Harvest has the Hoksey crew running on fumes and fighting old combines, so naturally we’re talking tractors. Nicolas, Kent, and Judd dig into how John Deere, Case IH, Allis-Chalmers, Oliver, and Ford got where they are, why farmers stay loyal to one color, and what right to repair means today.

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your native seed, backyard prairie, hunting mixes, CRP mixes, native pasture mixes, and more)

BirdHunterSupply.com (for all your bird hunting supplies and dog hunting supplies)

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