The Stockman Grassfarmer Podcast

In this episode, Greg Judy shares practical, field-tested insight into successfully grazing sheep and cattle together. Drawing from his experience managing South Poll cattle and parasite-resistant hair sheep across owned and leased farms in Clark, Missouri, Greg explains how multi-species grazing increases profitability, improves pasture health, and simplifies parasite management.

Rather than promoting sheep as a standalone enterprise, this episode demonstrates how integrating species creates biological synergy. Greg walks through sourcing adaptable breeding stock, training sheep to respect electric fence, rotational strategies, and even how combining bulls and sheep into a “flerd” can streamline winter management.

This conversation is packed with actionable lessons for cattle producers considering adding sheep to diversify income and strengthen pasture performance.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

Start with Adaptable, Hardy Sheep
Avoid sale barn shortcuts. Purchase forage-adapted, parasite-resistant breeding stock from reputable graziers. Breed your best, sell the rest, and cull sheep that fail to adapt.

Fence Training Over Heavy Infrastructure
Instead of overbuilding permanent paddocks, train sheep to respect a single poly-braid electric wire. Flexibility in paddock size improves grazing management and reduces labor and expense.

Parasite Cycle Disruption
Sheep parasites ingested by cattle are dead-end hosts — and vice versa. Each species helps “vacuum up” parasites, reducing overall pressure naturally.

Weed Control as Profit
Sheep prefer broadleaf plants and thorny species such as multiflora rose, honey locust, and autumn olive. They convert weeds cattle avoid into marketable lamb.

Seasonal Advantages
Sheep require no hay and often no water below 32°F when grazing stockpiled forage, reducing winter inputs.

Sequential Grazing System
Greg typically grazes cattle first, followed by sheep. At certain times of year, bulls are combined with the sheep flock to simplify winter rotation and management.

The “Flerd” Concept
Combining bulls and sheep reduces labor and improves efficiency during the non-breeding season. With proper training, even a single poly-wire can safely contain large bulls.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Start small — add 8–10 forage-adapted ewes and a ram before scaling up.

Focus on parasite-resistant genetics suited to your region.

Train livestock to respect electric fence early to avoid costly infrastructure.

Use sheep to convert nuisance plants into revenue.

Evaluate grazing order — cattle first, sheep second — to maximize forage utilization.

Be patient. Selection and culling over time build a resilient, profitable flock.

Greg emphasizes that the ultimate grazing system brings species together as many days of the year as possible. The biological benefits extend beyond livestock — pastures improve, weed pressure declines, and soil health builds.

📌 For more grazing insights, click here for books by Greg Judy, and access to the Multi-Species Grazing School, and much more

👉 Tune in with your favorite podcast app to The Stockman Grassfarmer Podcast for practical lessons straight from experienced graziers building profitable regenerative operations.

In this episode,Greg Judy shares a practical and encouraging roadmap for building a profitable farm business without owning land. The conversation explores how access to land — not ownership — is often the real gateway to opportunity, and how strategic leasing, relationship building, and enterprise focus can help producers launch and grow successful operations.

Rather than waiting to purchase property, this episode emphasizes controlling expenses, protecting capital, and building cash-flowing enterprises first. The discussion challenges the assumption that land ownership defines farming success and instead focuses on operational excellence, flexibility, and long-term resilience.

The episode details practical strategies for finding leases, negotiating agreements, building trust with landowners, and designing enterprises that fit leased ground. It encourages producers to think entrepreneurially, operate professionally, and focus on profitability before asset accumulation.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

Access Over Ownership: Farming is about managing land, not necessarily owning it. Leasing can accelerate growth while protecting working capital.

Building Relationships for Land Access: Most farm leases never hit public listings — they change hands through trust and community connections.

Keeping Capital Liquid: Purchasing land too early can starve the business of operating capital needed for livestock, fencing, water systems, and marketing.

Choosing the Right Enterprises: Mobile, adaptable livestock systems often work best on leased land due to flexibility and lower infrastructure investment.

Professionalism in Agreements: Clear communication, defined expectations, and written agreements protect both farmer and landowner.

Operations Build Wealth; Land Secures Wealth: A strong operation generates cash flow. Land can later serve as a wealth-preservation tool.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Start with marketing and customer relationships before expanding production.

Build local networks — attend meetings, connect with landowners, and maintain strong community ties.

Design enterprises that require minimal permanent infrastructure.

Keep expenses lean and focus on profitability before asset ownership.

View farming as a business first — measure margins, manage risk, and protect capital.

📌 For more insights, practical grazing strategies, and business-building resources, visit us for our latest specials and exclusive offers

👉 Tune in with your favorite podcast app to The Stockman Grassfarmer Podcast and discover practical, real-world lessons to help you build a resilient farm business — whether you own the land or not.

In this episode, Ben Sargent and Mary Lin discuss their book Mootopia: How to Easily Fix Human Health and Heal the Planet, exploring the profound connections between grazing animals, ecosystem health, and human wellbeing. Their work examines how regenerative grazing restores soil fertility, supports microbiome diversity, and strengthens the natural feedback loops that sustain resilient landscapes.

Drawing from their experience running a Colorado food co-op and extensive scientific research, Ben and Mary Lin highlight how grass-fed livestock influence everything from soil carbon and plant diversity to atmospheric biology and rainfall patterns. Their integrative approach challenges conventional thinking and offers a compelling case for restoring ecological balance through regenerative grazing systems.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

The Microbiome Connection Between Animals, Land, and Humans: Diverse grassland ecosystems foster beneficial microbes that strengthen livestock, soil, and human health through interconnected biological relationships.

How Grazing Animals Restore Soil and Ecosystem Function: Dense, moving herds contribute to fertility through the “chomp and stomp” effect—fertilizing soil, stimulating plant growth, and increasing biodiversity.

The Role of Grazing in Climate and Water Cycles: Grasslands influence atmospheric processes through plant biology, soil microbes, and moisture cycling, helping restore rainfall patterns and ecosystem resilience.

Why Diversity in Grazing Systems Matters: Integrating multiple species, including horses and cattle, strengthens soil fungal networks, enhances carbon storage, and accelerates regenerative outcomes.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Focus on building plant and microbial diversity in pastures to improve soil fertility and livestock health.

Use adaptive grazing strategies that mimic natural herd movement to stimulate ecosystem recovery.

Recognize livestock as essential partners in restoring ecological balance and long-term land productivity.

📌 For more insights and resources, be sure to visit us here for our latest specials and exclusive offers



👉 Tune in with your favorite podcast app to the Stockman Grassfarmer Podcast and discover how regenerative grazing can help rebuild healthy soil, strengthen livestock performance, and restore resilient ecosystems from the ground up.

In this remastered episode, Dr. Allen Williams challenges conventional thinking around livestock genetics by making a bold case: true genetic performance begins in the soil. Rather than focusing solely on EPDs, DNA markers, or breed selection, this episode dives deep into how regenerative agriculture and soil biology drive epigenetics, animal health, and productivity.

Dr. Williams explains how functioning ecosystems—built on living soil, active microbes, and adaptive grazing—unlock the genetic potential already present in livestock. This episode connects soil health, forage quality, and animal performance in a practical, systems-based framework that producers can apply immediately.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

Why Genetics Start With Soil
Healthy soil biology determines whether livestock genetics can fully express themselves, regardless of how “elite” the genetics appear on paper.

The Four Ecosystem Processes
Energy flow, water cycle, mineral cycle, and community dynamics—and how damage to these processes leads to broken genetics and poor performance.

The Soil Food Web & Microbial Balance
Why 90% of soil function is mediated by microbes, and how fungi-to-bacteria and predator-to-prey ratios influence epigenetics.

Targets for Healthy Soil Biology
Specific benchmarks for bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes, earthworms, and insects per acre—and what regenerative systems are achieving in real-world conditions.

The Role of Mycorrhizal Fungi
How glomalin improves aggregation, water infiltration, nutrient uptake, and carbon storage—while supporting stronger plant and animal performance.

Shared Microbiomes Across Soil, Plants, and Livestock
In healthy ecosystems, the microbiome beneath the soil mirrors the microbiome in animals and people above it.

Hidden Costs of Chemical Interventions
How dewormers and other inputs harm beneficial organisms like dung beetles and earthworms, weakening ecosystem function and long-term resilience.

Indicator Species That Signal Soil Health
Earthworms, dung beetles, insects, arthropods, and spider webs as visible signs of balanced predator–prey relationships.

BRIX Levels & Livestock Performance
Why higher BRIX equals greater nutrient density—and how every 1% increase above 3% can boost average daily gain by 0.1 lb.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Focus on rebuilding soil biology before investing heavily in genetics.

Measure and improve fungi-to-bacteria and predator-to-prey ratios in your soil.

Reduce reliance on chemical dewormers to protect beneficial insects and soil life.

Use BRIX readings to evaluate forage quality and animal performance potential.

Apply adaptive grazing to increase microbial diversity and nutrient cycling—without changing plant species.

📌 Important Note:
This episode is the first module of the full course Grassroots of Grazing, available on DVD and streaming in our store.
👉 Be sure to check the show notes for a special sampler price if you’d like to go deeper.

👉 Tune in with your favorite podcast app to the Stockman Grassfarmer Podcast and continue building resilient soil, healthier livestock, and more profitable grazing systems—straight from the pasture. 🌾

In this episode, Rebekah Pierce, author of Agri-Energy: Growing Power, Growing Food, joins Carolyn Nation to share her hands-on experience with agrovoltaics—the practice of grazing livestock under solar panels. Rebekah currently manages seven solar grazing sites across four counties in upstate New York, transforming underutilized land into productive agricultural systems while providing vegetation management for solar companies.

The conversation explores how solar grazing works in practice, how farmers can find and secure contracts, and why sheep have become the go-to species for these systems. Rebekah also addresses common concerns around farmland loss, food safety, and soil health, offering a grounded, farmer-first perspective on integrating renewable energy with agriculture.

🔑 Key Points Covered:

Getting Started with Solar Grazing
Rebekah explains how she landed her first solar grazing contract in 2022 and how farmer-to-farmer connections opened the door to rapid growth.

Finding Opportunities in the Solar Industry
Solar grazing requires “detective work”—from tracking construction projects and attending town board meetings to navigating the divide between solar builders and maintenance companies.

Land Use, Soil Health, and Public Concerns
Many solar sites are built on non-prime or previously degraded land. Through managed rotational grazing, these areas can improve significantly while remaining in agriculture for 20–40 years.

Livestock Compatibility with Solar Sites
Sheep are the most practical option today, but Rebekah discusses emerging possibilities for cattle, poultry, and other livestock as panel designs evolve.

Farming Under the Panels
Beyond grazing, farmers are growing vegetables, hay, sweet corn, tomatoes, peppers, and even cranberries under and around solar arrays as equipment and layouts adapt.

Economics Without Subsidies
Payments for vegetation management come directly from solar companies, providing steady income that has been transformative for Rebekah’s first-generation farm.

Safety, Food Quality, and Environmental Reality
Rebekah addresses concerns about contamination, panel materials, and food safety, pointing to research showing no issues with meat from solar-grazed sites.

🌱 Actionable Insights:

Start tracking local solar projects by attending town meetings and monitoring planning notices.

Build relationships with solar developers, operations companies, and cooperatives like United Agrovoltaics.

Consider sheep as a low-barrier entry point for solar grazing systems.

Use intensive rotational grazing to improve soil health while meeting vegetation management requirements.

Stay persistent—solar grazing contracts often require repeated follow-ups and long timelines.

📌 Resources & Links:

Agri-Energy: Growing Power, Growing Food by Rebekah Pierce

United Agrovoltaics Cooperative

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