WSU Bread Lab

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“Intentional Farming with Conservation Grains”

Driving north from Bozeman to Choteau, the easternmost stretches of Montana’s Rockies casually release from their bouldered inclines and winding passes into a gentler landscape. From Helena onward for 100 miles, vast blankets of cropland and pastures softly billow and ease into the coulees and creeks leisurely shaping the north country. The journey is a surrender to subtler views, a submission to not getting anywhere anytime soon. Choteau itself is bound in all directions by this same expanse. But just miles east of town, amid swathes of predominantly conventionally farmed land, sits a small acreage revered and maintained a bit differently by its owners.

Water infiltration demo

June 2018, NRCS Field Day at Spring Coulee Farm … The rainfall simulator sprays 5 trays of soil from different cultivation practices. The jars in front hold runoff water; the back row of jars show the water that has been able to move through the soil. Our SCF soil tray is on the far right…

First Flax

This is Spring Coulee Farm’s first flax crop. It was beautiful, and a good rotation crop following spring wheat. We harvested it with a stripper header, leaving those tenacious, gnarly flax stalks standing in the field this winter to catch snow and provide cover and food for the pheasants.