The Prairie Farm Podcast

Matt Hatala of Prairie Rose Farms shares his unlikely path from adoption and military service to raising pasture pork in Iowa. He discusses regenerative hog production, farm marketing, local food systems, water quality, animal welfare, and why rebuilding agriculture requires courage, transparency, and healthier relationships with land, community, and risk.

 

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your CRP, Pasture Mixes, Habitat Mixes, Native Seed, and more)

 

Iowa Cover Crop (for all your cover crop mixes, forage mixes, small grain mixes)

In this Coffee Time episode, Nicolas, Kent, and Riley debate whether the Midwest really feeds the world, dig into commodity calories, exports, food security, environmental tradeoffs, and what prairie, local food, grazing, and conservation minded choices might mean for Iowa’s future.

 

Hoksey Native Seeds (for all your native seed needs: CRP, backyard pollinator, habitat, native pasture, and more)

 

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

 

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

Hal Herring joins The Prairie Farm Podcast to unpack American Prairie, grazing permits, public lands, ranching culture, and the hard history behind conservation in the West.

 

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your CRP, backyard prairie, Hunting Habitat, native grazing mixes, and more!)

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

In part 1 of our FAQ mini series, we answer the following questions.

1. How long does it take for a prairie planting to become established?
2. How do I prepare the site for planting?
3. Is tilling or breaking up the soil recommended before planting?
4. When is the best time of year to sow native prairie seeds?
5. How do I handle maintenance (mowing) in the first year? 
6. How high should I mow in the first two years, and when should I stop?
7. Should I water or fertilize my newly planted prairie?

 

hokseynativeseeds.com (for all your CRP, backyard prairie, native wildflowers and grasses, hunting habitat, and more)

 

Iowa Cover Crop (for all your cover crop, waterway mixes, small grains, and more)

 

McKay Insurance (for all your insurance and financial planning needs)

Andrew Di Alessandro of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service joins the Prairie Farm Podcast to discuss Neil Smith Refuge, prairie restoration, prescribed fire, bison and elk grazing, private lands conservation, funding challenges, and how landowners can connect money, recreation and legacy to meaningful habitat work across Iowa and Illinois.

 

Hoksey Native Seeds (for all your CRP, Backyard Prairie, Native Pasture, Hunting Mixes, and more)

 

McKay Insurance (for all your insurance and financial planning needs)

 

BirdHunterSupply.com (for all your bird hunting supply needs, and all your bird dog supply needs)