Ep 078 Bentwood Alpacas & Yaks: The New Bos – Not the Same as the Old Bos

We’re back from the cold and snowy north. Our trip to Mountain Meadow Mill in Buffalo, Wyoming was delightful, and today we’re bringing you a conversation with Karen Hostetler, its founder – who is also the matriarch of a fast-growing clan of Hostetlers. They were a truly nice bunch, and we’ll definitely want to go back again after this trip (even after next week’s podcast with Ben, aka Hostetler #2). The Wyoming and Montana regions are full of many things, even though many...

5 Mai 202238min

We’re back on the road, and we’re celebrating this Spring burst of energy with a giveaway from Premier 1 Supplies. Joe Putnam will give us a quick check in on the shipping news, and we tell you how to put your hat in the ring for the freebee. And next time…not just the old run of the mill. Literally. Links: https://www.premier1supplies.com/ https://www.ctlr.org/ https://www.abga.org/ https://www.milkingdevons.org/index.html https://www.sheepusa.org/ https://www.heritageyak....

28 Apr 202210min

In honor of all of us surviving an overload of people, places and holidays in the news this month, we’re giving you another conjunction – the FFA and the Collegian FFA and Farm Bureau Chapter Ag Club at SUNY Morrisville. And a Mustang. And a tractor. And 60,000 kids (okay, we didn’t have the 60,000 kids on the mic, but they were all there in the background somewhere in the building). The practice of agriculture is not just only a “raise either cows or pigs or wheat or corn” ...

21 Apr 202216min

Every once in a while life and art intertwine. This week we bring you James Reams, who is a musician and artist who started life off in Kentucky, traveled to Wisconsin and had a long career in New York. He has been named the Kentucky Songbird and the Ambassador of Bluegrass, but he started life off on a farm. We caught up with James in Arizona this week, where we sat down with him to talk about his background and how farming and music have some similarities. Both are an art form. Links...

13 Apr 202217min

This week we are in Oregon at Shepherds Lane and it's lambing season - again. There's no sleep for a shepherd at this time of year, and Joy Dally tells us all about it. A shepherd's life isn't an easy one, and we're getting a crash course in the glorious highs and sad lows of a real reality show - life on a farm. We are following her as she goes and we hope you follow along with us this Spring. We couldn't have a better shepherdess to guide us. Links: https://www.shepherds...

6 Apr 202210min

We've mentioned that we are going to start to periodically check in with some people we've met along the way, bringing you a moment of conversation. The ag update, so to speak. Sometimes it's a farmer, sometimes it's a research scientist, and sometimes it's a supplier. Today we are speaking with Joe Putnam from Premier 1 Supplies. Links: https://www.premier1supplies.com Support the show

30 Mar 202215min

In the spirit of that impromptu moment that often happens in the Bowman universe, today we're going to bring you a quick conversation that occurred at the National Western Stock Show this January. You might know that the draft horses hold a special place for me, and there are very few things that are as majestic and glorious as a full hitch at speed thundering around the ring. One of those hitches this year was driven by a woman named Audrey Popoff, from Colton, California. And since March i...

23 Mar 202210min

Small ruminants are the bedrock of agriculture in much of this little ball of rock we humans inhabit. That said, here in North America they can be an afterthought for much of the population. We think that's going to change. Whether they're used for meat or fiber (or even as pack animals these days for a trek through the wilderness), we believe the time has come for us to rexamine the "lost category" of small ruminants. This year, one of the themes we'll be following at Back...

15 Mar 202222min