Education

And I loved this episode of A Way to Garden with Margaret Roach… makes me want to try grafting!! And order everything from Seed Savers Exchange!!

heritage apples: grafting, identification by dna and more, with jamie hansonWHEN I BOUGHT my place decades ago, it was nestled in a tiny piece of former farmland with a little 1880s house and no garden. There were, however, five giant apple trees, at least a

PS you all know I am a big fan of Rebecca McMackin…. Here is her latest substack (also available in a podcast)

Grow Like Wild! Beaver MoonLeaf propaganda, camouflage, and many studies from China.

November 9, 2026

Please join Kathleen’s updated Cover Crop class on line at Lyngos: Wednesday Nov. 12 1:00 to 3:00pm. You must register https://www.lyngsogarden.com/community-resources/

Please take an hour to watch Terry’s class...Excellent… please hear every word. From Apri 12, 2025 Maintaining Garden and Raised Bed Soil: https://www.lyngsogarden.com/community-resources/maintaining-garden-and-raised-bed-soil-the-soil-and-plant-relationship-2/

Mark your calendars for your last MAGNOLIA wreath making party!!! Please join us on Monday Dec. 1st to trim the magnolia and make a holiday wreath. The usual, bring a wire wreath, and we will supply the rest. This will be lead by Karen.

October 26, 2026

Recap of Regenerative Agriculture class:

From Terry Lyngso:

It is so complex and yet if you follow a few simple rules you end up supporting this very complex system. The simplest message is the one I heard most today, protect the soil from the sun, wind and rain with plant cover of cover crops or perennials. Protect bare soil with mulch from the leaf drop of existing plants, mulch from chopped cover crops, straw or wood chips or bark depending upon what plants are growing. A little compost or vermicompost provides additional food for the biology who in turn make nutrients available to the plant.

The plants are the primary supporters of biological soil structure and a diverse microbial community in the soil increases plant health, which in turn increases nutrient density in the plant which translates to healthier food for us. Along with all this we get a water cycle that functions; water is able to infiltrate into the soil, be held in spaces around the soil aggregates and move deeper into the soil to our underground aquifers and waterways. The soil builds organic matter, which contributes to water's ability to infiltrate. And water carries organic carbon deep into the soil where it is stored. Nitrogen is abundant in the atmosphere and specialized bacteria can make the nitrogen available to plants. They need a low oxygen environment to convert atmospheric nitrogen into a form the plant can use. Nitrogen is not stable it is constantly changing in the soil and if all goes well any excess will be released to the atmosphere as N2, not as NO. It is a complex process and when too much organic and synthetic nitrogen is applied to the soil, more than the plant and the biology can use, it can be released to the atmosphere as nitrous oxide or move deeper down into the aquifer.

If you are interested, we could do a session on the nitrogen cycle it impacts the water cycle and the carbon cycle. I didn't discuss how nitrogen impacts the carbon cycle. YES>>>PLEASE>>> we will have Terry back.

An article I like from The Guardian from 2022 (it is long, but worth it)

Saving Real Organic: Linley + Dave At ChurchtownPodcast Episode · Real Organic Podcast · 10/19/2025 · 54m

October 26, 2026

Reading and information for a rainy day….

THANK YOU to each one of you for gathering with us at Paicines Ranch for the Soil is a Living System Workshop led by Dr. Christine Jones. We are still ruminating over the new discoveries and knowledge shared.

HUGE APPRECIATION and gratitude to the farmers who grounded us with their experience -- Joe Morris, Benina Montes, Tom Wiley, Phil Foster and Kelly Mulville -- and to Dr. Christine Jones for her legacy of work.

As one participant said, "That was quite the gathering of soil enthusiasts there at Paicines! It’s so lovely to be with others who have caught the soil microbiome "bug"." We couldn't agree more!

We have several follow-ups below (and will be in touch soon with a few more resources)

RESOURCES

>> Recording of Soil is a Living System Workshop with Dr. Christine Jones, May 2024, produced by Green Cover Seed - Coming soon!

>> Dr. Christine Jones' research links - Coming soon!

>> Webinars: Green Cover Seed webinar series from 2021 featuring Dr. Christine Jones:

>> Podcast: Regenerative Agriculture Podcast by John Kempf, June 2024 - Exploring Tillage, Aggregation, & Biological Innovation with Rick Clark - This podcast draws much inspiration from Dr. Christine Jones' work and was recorded shortly after a gathering at Rick's farm that Christine attended.

DR. CHRISTINE JONES' RESOURCES from 2019

We looked back at the resources we sent out after Christine's last workshop at Paicines in 2019 and thought these links were still relevant and helpful. Check them out:

VIRUSES:

There are many extremely interesting articles on viruses. Here's a few:

Trillions Upon Trillions of Viruses Fall From the Sky Each Day - quick, easy read
The gut virome: the ‘missing link’ between gut bacteria and host immunity? - insight into the human gut virome
Profound Implications of the Virome for Human Health and Autoimmunity - check out the last paragraph if you want to have your mind blown

THE RHIZOSPHERE:

Harnessing phytomicrobiome signaling for rhizosphere microbiome engineering - An excellent overview of some of the research into the multiple facets of phytomicrobiome signaling in the rhizosphere, including quorum sensing (QS) and quorum quenching (QQ)
Bonnie Basler, 'How Bacteria Talk' - TED Talk on quorum sensing

LEGUMES & DIVERSITY:

Given that the majority of current-day low-diversity grasslands are nitrogen limited, it is certainly true that the inclusion of legumes can increase pasture productivity, which in turn can lead to increased sequestration of carbon. However, where there is sufficient diversity, it has been shown that the presence of legumes can be counter-productive. The literature indicates plant diversity is the key driver for soil carbon storage. And it would seem that more carbon can be sequestered by these diverse pastures if the mix does NOT contain legumes.

See for example: Plant diversity increases soil microbial activity and soil carbon storage

The authors of the above article found the presence of legumes in the mixes reduced soil carbon sequestration rates. A variety of forbs is of course highly desirable, but the presence of species such as flax, chicory and plantain will build soil faster than legumes. One of the underlying reasons could be that soil associated with legumes tends to be bacterially dominated whereas most other broadleaved plants promote beneficial soil fungi.

The Jena team have also put together an excellent short video:

Jena Experiment

Plant diversity increased the sequestration of soil carbon which in turn improved soil health, increased productivity, fixed nitrogen, released phosphorus and improved soil water-holding capacity. These parameters all improved with increased species richness. That is, the effect was linear - every single kind of plant counts - even up to 60 species in a mix.

We need to be mindful that natural grasslands and prairies originally contained at least 300 to 500 species of groundcover plants. Grasses generally constituted a maximum of 40% of these so-called 'grasslands'. English meadows, even today on commercial dairy farms, sometimes contain around 200 to 300 species, mostly flowering plants (forbs, herbs or broadleaved plants). Over 700 different kinds of groundcover plants were recorded in a recent monitoring of a prairie in Oklahoma.

Below is another article demonstrating that plant species richness is a key driver for soil carbon sequestration .... and that this can occur in the absence of legumes (although admittedly they did not compare with and without legumes).

Plant species richness promotes soil carbon and nitrogen stocks in grasslands without legumes

I think it would be safe to say that the inclusion of legumes (alone) in a grass-based pasture is a poor substitute for adequate plant diversity.

OVERVIEW

For an overview of the significance of microbial and plant diversity:

No-till on the Plains 2019 Christine Jones Community Tipping Points

YOUR EXPERIENCE & FEEDBACK

Please email us with any feedback to help us evolve and improve our events --

events@paicineslearning.org

KEEP IN TOUCH!

Stay in touch by following us on social media and via our websites. We will add you to our Paicines Ranch Learning Center email list to let you know about future learning opportunities. If you'd prefer not to receive emails from us, please send a note to events@paicineslearning.org

Paicines Ranch Learning Center

Paicines Ranch / @paicinesranch / Facebook

#NoRegrets Initiative / @soilisnoregrets / Facebook

Thank you for learning with us,

~ Megan, Elaine & the Paicines Ranch Learning Center team

Paicines Ranch Learning Center

events@paicineslearning.org

Here is the handout from today's refresher on Regenerative Agriculture.

Review of Regenerative Agriculture

Regenerative agriculture is a farming and ranching approach focused on improving soil health to reverse climate change. It uses practices that restore degraded soil, increase biodiversity, and improve the water cycle by rebuilding soil organic matter. Key methods include using cover crops, reducing or eliminating tilling, rotating crops, and integrating animals and plants, moving away from synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.

Core principles and practices

● Improve soil health: Focuses on rebuilding soil organic matter and increasing soil biodiversity.

● Reduce or eliminate tilling: Minimizing soil disturbance helps the soil retain more moisture and prevents carbon release.

● Plant cover crops: Planting crops like buckwheat or barley during off-seasons protects and enriches the soil.

● Rotate crops: Alternating crops helps prevent soil depletion and pest buildup. ● Integrate animals and plants: Practices like adaptive multi-paddock grazing use livestock in short, high-density periods followed by long rest periods for the land to recover. (At Mission Farm - you are the animals :)

● Avoid synthetic inputs: Reduces or eliminates the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides.

● Incorporate trees: Practices like agroforestry (planting trees among crops) and silvopasture (combining trees, forage, and livestock) can create more resilient and diverse ecosystems.

Benefits of regenerative agriculture

● Climate change mitigation: Sequestering carbon in the soil can help reverse climate change.

● Improved water cycle: Healthy soil acts like a sponge, holding more water, which reduces runoff and drought impact.

● Increased biodiversity: Fosters a wider variety of plants, animals, and beneficial insects.

● Enhanced food quality: Produces more nutrient-dense food for both animals and humans.

● Economic resilience: Can reduce input costs and increase resilience for farmers.

● Ecosystem restoration: Works with nature to restore the health of the land, water, and air.

Books we recommend:

● Dirt to Soil by Gabe Brown

● The Soil will Save Us by Kristin Ohlson

● Growing a Revolution by David Montgomery

● What Your Food Ate by David Montgomery and Ann Bilke

● Regenerative Soil by Matt Powers

● For the Love of Soil by Nicole Masters

Videos/Podcasts

● Anything with Gabe Brown

● Real Organic Podcast

● Regenerative Agriculture by John Kempf

Regenerative Agriculture Refresher Course

Monday October 20, 2025 @ 9:30am

Kathleen and I are looking forward to hosting you for a review round-table of Regenerative farming practices on Monday morning at 9:30. Please feel free to join at the normal time 8:30 for harvesting, etc.

I will need some volunteers stationed at the parking area and by the elephant topiary to help guests find the garden. 🪏 I will bring some goodies to enjoy, feel free to do the same.

Please remember to park at 1101 Cañada Rd. as Mission Trail will be closed Monday. You will see my silver Prius where you should park. If you look at the map below you can see where a circled where we should park. 🚙

Recycling Nursury Pots

Just want to share some info on recycling nursery pots, as the topic came up on Monday at the farm. Janet

Garden Centers

These garden centers recycle plastic pots:

Home Depot - accepts any size pots (https://corporate.homedepot.com/news/sustainability/plant-it-again-plant-pot-recycling-program)
Lowe’s - accepts any size pots and trays (https://corporate.lowes.com/newsroom/stories/fresh-thinking/are-you-wishcycler)
Half Moon Bay Nursery in Half Moon Bay - 1 gallon and larger
Wegman's Nursery in Redwood City - 5-gallon and larger

There may be other garden centers that accept plastic pots.

Municipal Recycling

Recology San Francisco accepts all plastic pots and flats placed in the recycling bin.

Recology San Mateo County does not accept plastic pots.

Regenerative Agriculture Refresher Course

Monday October 20, 2025 @ 9:30am

Kathleen and I would like to do a refresher class on regenerative agriculture. Reviewing the five principles.

1. Minimize soil disturbance
2. Keep soil covered
3. Maintain living roots
4. Increase plant diversity
5. Integrate livestock (if possible)
We would like to discuss the question… Is that a weed or is that fertilizer? We all know our system is driven by the sun, which drives photosynthesis. It is photosynthesis and the storing/sharing of those carbohydrates that feed our soil and keeping the microbes alive and well. Let's enjoy a lively discussion.
Also, we will talk about crop rotation and cover cropping
All Master Gardeners have been invited to attend. Please feel free to bring refreshments. This will be in the garden if good weather and in the hayloft if raining.

Please join us for a class on September 15th at 9:00am taught by Grace Tsang. A huge welcome to Grace, who will be talking about using natives in Hedgerows. Grace has passed along some fantastic resources for us below on hedgerows and fire resistant vegetation.

Grace has been helping people develop their native plant gardens for close to ten years, including non-residential projects at a school and town hall.

She has worked at Roz Creasy's edible garden in Los Altos, Hakone Japanese Garden in Saratoga and the CNPS nursery at Hidden Villa.

In addition to horticulture studies at Foothill College, Grace is also practiced in aerial treework & arboriculture, permaculture (Merritt College) and California natural history (West Valley College).

She is presently co-president of the Western Horticultural Society, chair of her town's Environmental Design and Planning Committee, and past VP+programming chair for the Garden Club of Los Altos.