You can find hundreds of titles at the Acres U.S.A. Bookstore related to all aspects of economical, ecological, regenerative farming – from soil health and weed management to gardening and livestock care, from farm business planning to human health and industry trends, and many in between.
The list of last month’s bestsellers shows high interest in livestock care, soil health, and weed control. Check out these bestselling titles from March 2023 from the Acres U.S.A. Bookstore!
10 – The Biological Farmer by Gary Zimmer
In this greatly expanded, revised edition of a modern farming classic, Gary Zimmer draws on a lifetime of farming experience and adds in the latest science and experience on modern issues facing farmers including the impact of GMOs, herbicide-resistant weeds, and more. For decades, Gary Zimmer has been developing new ways to engage and support soil life. His system feeds soil microbes, balances soil minerals, promotes tillage with a purpose, and relies on both cover crops and diverse rotations. Learn more here.
9 – Water for Any Farm by Mark Shepard
What you will read in this book is a distillation of over 25 years of on-the-ground experience working with and modifying the Yeomans’ Keyline Plan. From the back yard suburbs to 10,000-acre ranches and everywhere in between, from permafrost mountainsides just shy of the Arctic Circle, to equatorial boulder fields of East Africa, areas with 300 inches of rain per year to those with less than 3 inches, I have personally installed systems based on the Keyline design methodology and its modified forms. Learn more here.
8 – Teaming with Microbes by Jeff Lowenfels
Smart gardeners know that soil is anything but an inert substance. Healthy soil is teeming with life — not just earthworms and insects, but a staggering multitude of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms. When we use chemical fertilizers, we injure the microbial life that sustains healthy plants, and thus become increasingly dependent on an arsenal of artificial substances, many of them toxic to humans as well as other forms of life. But there is an alternative to this vicious circle. Learn more here.
7 – Dirt to Soil by Gabe Brown
As we know from his story, Gabe Brown didn’t set out to change the world when he first started working alongside his father-in-law on the family farm in North Dakota. But as a series of weather-related crop disasters put Brown and his wife, Shelly, in desperate financial straits, they started making bold changes to their farm. Brown―in an effort to simply survive―began experimenting with new practices he’d learned about from reading and talking with innovative researchers and ranchers. As he and his family struggled to keep the farm viable, they found themselves on an amazing journey into a new type of farming: regenerative agriculture. Learn more here.
6 – Sea Energy Agriculture by Maynard Murray
Reprinted by popular demand! Maynard Murray was a medical doctor who researched the crucial importance of minerals — especially trace elements — to plants and animals. Beginning in 1938 and continuing through the 1950s, Dr. Murray used sea solids — mineral salts remaining after water is evaporated from ocean water — as fertilizer on a variety of vegetables, fruits and grains. His extensive experiments demonstrated repeatedly and conclusively that plants fertilized with sea solids and animals fed sea-solid-fertilized feeds grow stronger and more resistant to disease. Sea Energy Agriculture recounts Murray’s experiments and presents his astounding conclusions. Learn more here.
5 – 2023 Stella Natura Biodynamic Planting Calendar
This Calendar has many aspects: a basic introduction to astronomy, a simple ephemeris, a planting guide, a star map, aid for following the movement of the planets in the night sky, and articles by ten different authors. All of these attempt to provide a true picture of the world outside us and ideas to assist in developing a healthy relation to that world. Learn more here.
4 – Dr. Paul Dettloff’s Complete Guide to Raising Animals Organically
This book describes the various biological systems in ruminants and how to address issues of health and illness on the farm. Specific natural treatments for numerous chronic illnesses, diseases and injuries are covered in language a layman can understand. Dr. Dettloff provides farmers and veterinarians alike with methods of care that are practical for any farm yet acceptable for certified organic operations and, most important, have been proven to work over time. Learn more here.
3 – Weeds – Control Without Poisons by Charles Walters
“Low biological activity is inherent in each weed problem … Each weed is keyed to a specific environment slotted for its proliferation.” So says Weeds — Control Without Poisons author Charles Walters. Further, calcium, magnesium, potassium and other elements in equilibrium are likely to roll back more weeds than all the available herbicides on the market. Specifics on a hundred weeds, why they grow, what soil conditions spur them on or stop them, what they say about your soil, and how to control them without the obscene presence of poisons. All cross-referenced by scientific and various common names, and a pictorial glossary. Learn more here.
2 – Water for Any Farm: Engineering Field Manual by Mark Shepard
Mark Shepard’s latest book – new in 2023!
A book with so much detail, it took three years to create. Including dozens of detailed illustration to help you solve real-live problems on your farm, bestselling author Mark Shepard offers landowners a guide to implementing a Master Line System of farm water management. The book offers detailed diagrams and clear instructions, problem-solving and system maintenance guidance, and up-to-date reference data and information about relevant software products to ensure the accuracy of runoff calculations and construction parameters. The ROI potential on this book for any farmer and rancher is exponential. Learn more here.
1 – When Weeds Talk by Jay McCaman
This is the 2nd edition of the book formerly titled Weeds and Why They Grow. Acres U.S.A. has long shown that weed control lies in fertility management. Every weed grows in a somewhat narrow window of allowable soil conditions. For the first time, hundreds of weeds of commercial importance are detailed along with the chemical analysis of accompanying soils. For example, burdock grows in soils with very high levels of iron and sulfate, very low levels of calcium and manganese. Balance the soil, lose the weed. Learn more here.
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