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Introducing the 2025 California Farm Champions!

Caff

LEGACY FARMER OF THE YEAR: Russ Lester, Dixon Ridge Farms Russ Lester, co-owner of Dixon Ridge Farms and a fourth-generation California farmer, has been a pioneer in organic farming since 1989, shaping innovative practices for sustainable orchard management.

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Black Earth: A Family’s Journey from Enslavement to Reclamation

Civil Eats

In the months before Patrick Brown was born in November 1982, his father, Arthur, lay down on a road near the familys farm to prevent a caravan of yellow dump trucks from depositing toxic soil in his community. Patrick currently operates Brown Family Farms on the land that Byron worked as a sharecropper once he was freed.

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Almonds are Under Threat. The Key to Saving Them Could Be in the Soil

Modern Farmer

For Paddock, maximizing “ crop per drop ”—getting the most yield with the least amount of water—is important. It’a not just because it’s cheaper and not just because Capay Hills Orchard , his farm just north of Sacramento, is in an area of California that is increasingly drought-prone. The Atlantic took aim at almonds in 2014.

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A Win for Growers Who Protect Biodiversity on Agricultural Land

Modern Farmer

Without pollinators to fertilize berry crops, orchards or field crops such as squash, all of us eaters are also endangered. After the lupine was discovered on the Mallonee family farm, the Department of Fish and Wildlife told Maynard Mallonee to come up with a rotational grazing plan for his cattle that protected the lupine.

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BIOS Field Day at Chinchiolo Farms

Caff

Photo by Nolan Kirby) The Community Alliance with Family Farms (CAFF) held a Biologically Integrated Orchard System (BIOS) field day at Chinchiolo Farms on April 20th. Emily Ayala, CAFF’s Ecological Farming Program Manager, kicked off the event by introducing CAFF and highlighting CAFF’s many different program areas.

Orchard 52
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On the Ground with the Midwest Farmers Going All-In On Agroforestry

Modern Farmer

Agroforestry—the integration of trees and shrubs into crop and animal farming systems—has been used since ancient times to produce fruits, nuts, coffee, cocoa and medicinal herbs. Johnson found support through Practical Farmers of Iowa, a group dedicated to building resilient farms and communities. Johnson laughs.

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BIOS Field Day at Locke Ranch

Caff

Photo by Nolan Kirby) The Community Alliance with Family Farms (CAFF) held a Biologically Integrated Orchard System (BIOS) field day at Locke Ranch on May 23rd. Attendees were treated to a walk through the orchard with Chris and Christy Locke, who were participants in the original BIOS project over twenty years ago.