Written by Clare Boland, OFRF Communications Supervisor
Chris Barnett: Discovering a Path into Natural Farming
Supply: Christopher Natural Farm
Chris Barnett of Christopher Natural Farm.
Chris Barnett describes himself as “a second-generation rancher and first-generation farmer.” He’s the proprietor and operator of Christopher Natural Farm, a 1,600-acre livestock and natural row-crop farm in Fort Scott, Kansas. His household has been stewarding their land in Southeast Kansas for over 40 years, all with out chemical inputs.
Returning to his household’s ranch as an grownup, Chris took a leap into pursuing natural row crops along with ranching. In 2025, he started rising natural wheat, acquiring natural certification by way of OCIA.
After years of cautious stewardship, Chris is starting to see the outcomes of his exhausting work: the native prairie is flourishing, wildlife is returning, and the well being of his 300-head cow-calf herd is enhancing.
“It’s an entire ecosystem increase,” Chris says. “Every little thing is simply flourishing on the market. It’s been a fantastic course of.”
As a first-generation farmer, and an natural farmer at that, mentorship was pivotal for Chris. Diving into certification, Chris mentioned that the executive facet was daunting. He determined to enroll in the Transition to Natural Partnership Program (TOPP) to ease the method.
“I wouldn’t be the place I’m at, doing what I’m doing, with out the TOPP program,” Chris shared. Via the TOPP program, he was matched with mentor Jack Gieger, of Gieger Grains in Robinson, Kansas. Since Chris’s land had been farmed with out artificial inputs, he was capable of break sod and plant natural row crops in his first 12 months. All through the method, Jack was a go-to supply of data. “Due to my mentor, I efficiently harvested a wheat crop my first 12 months farming.”
Via this system, he was additionally capable of plug into current natural markets and construct relationships with different farmers. One in all these farmers was Alan Wilson, of Renegade Farms.
Alan Wilson: Beginning From Scratch
Supply: Renegade Farms
Alan Wilson of Renegade Farms and his youngsters.
Alan Wilson has began a farm from scratch—twice. A primary-generation farmer, Alan started farming in 2015 with “zero acres and 0 expertise” in Northeast Kansas, earlier than transferring to Huntington, Indiana, the place he has been farming for the final 5 years. Alan is the proprietor and operator of Renegade Farms, newly renamed, rising natural row crops together with soybeans, corn, oats, and wheat. Cowl crops are central to Alan’s farming philosophy: “We prefer to have one thing dwelling within the floor 340 days out of the 12 months, if we will get away with it.”
Alan first turned to natural for a dependable earnings stream: “From the preliminary start line, it was like how are we going to make farming work as a enterprise and never a very costly interest?” However over time, the advantages to the land, and particularly the soil, grew to become extra clear. “I perceive that we’re taking [from the land], however we’re attempting to provide again on the similar time.”
Alan’s farm has been licensed since 2018—of their 475 acres, 170 is licensed natural, and about 275 are in transition. “I don’t assume there’s been a 12 months but that we’ve got not been transitioning land indirectly, form, or kind.” Ranging from scratch, beginning over in a brand new location, and constantly transitioning land have had a steep studying curve for Alan, and, like Chris, he discovered steering by way of peer networks and mentorship.
Alan first met Jack at a farming occasion and commenced to choose his mind about natural row crops to see if it might probably be viable for his operation. Since then, Jack has been his principal supply of steering. “I discuss to him nearly day by day,” Alan shares.
Jack Geiger: Constructing a Community of Farmers
Supply: Geiger Farms Youtube channel
Jack Geiger of Geiger Grains on his YouTube channel.
Jack Geiger’s household has been farming their land in Kansas since 1856, however the determination to farm organically was spurred by the 1980’s farm disaster. As the value of artificial inputs grew to become prohibitively costly, natural strategies offered a path to financial viability. Since Jack’s father licensed the farm within the Nineteen Eighties, they’ve been rising organically ever since.
At this time, Jack owns and operates Geiger Grain in Robinson, Kansas, rising natural wheat and seed, and elevating organically managed cattle. For Jack, sharing information has been foundational to his farming profession. On the time the farm grew to become licensed, “the natural motion” was nonetheless comparatively new. To study extra about natural farming practices, he sought out different farmers in an identical scenario. “I’m a part of a category of 5 guys who all began out at mainly the identical time. We have been younger youngsters when the natural factor took off. And so we fashioned a peer community.”
In 2016, Jack started posting farming how-to movies on YouTube as Geiger Farms. The response was enthusiastic—the movies amassed over 3 million views on the platform, and farmers started reaching out to Jack for recommendation.
That’s how Jack met the primary of his mentees. Extra not too long ago, Jack grew to become a mentor by way of the TOPP program. He says becoming a member of this system has inspired him to “be extra skilled” in his mentoring. One instance was creating a gaggle chat for his mentees.
“Peer-to-peer studying is an important. And the truth is, I’m not a peer to most of them. They take into account me to be like a subject professional. So once I began hooking the blokes up amongst themselves, great issues occurred.”
Each Alan and Chris talked about the 15-20 particular person group chat, the place they share crop costs, enter sources, advertising and marketing data, and sensible recommendation. For Alan and Chris, who’re each surrounded by standard farming operations, the power to get a number of views from growers working in several areas, and shortly, has been an enormous assist. “I’ve the group listed as Jack’s Misguided Youngsters,” Alan jokes.
Reciprocal Studying
Supply: Geiger Grain
Calves on the bunk at Geiger Grain.
For natural farmers, studying is a vital precept. “A lot of natural is knowledge-based, however it’s additionally studying how you can fine-tune that information base to your explicit local weather and your explicit ability set,” Jack shares. He sees a basic distinction between what he calls standard agriculture’s “farming by prescription” and the administration required in natural agriculture. “There are primary guidelines and rules that each one natural farmers are sure to, within the Nationwide Natural Normal, however it’s a must to tune them to your talents and to your surroundings. And that’s the trick, as a result of all people has completely different talents, and all people has completely different expertise.”
What works on Jack’s farm may not be an ideal match for his mentees’ farms, however by way of adaptation, they’ll nonetheless study from these natural methods. One instance of that is Alan incorporating livestock into his operation. Jack’s farm advantages from the built-in use of cattle, lowering his want for soil inputs and rising the general well being of his land by way of grazing. Alan doesn’t elevate livestock, however his neighbor does. This 12 months, Alan started bringing his neighbor’s cows onto his land to assist together with his soil fertility.
Jack’s mentees have additionally challenged him to rethink a few of his personal practices, significantly their curiosity in natural no-till and lower-mechanization programs. Jack is a mechanized, full-till farmer. Their questions have pushed him to rethink his personal method. “Their pursuit of no-till has impressed me during the last, you realize, decade to extend my use of canopy crops and scale back my tillage.”
“Mentoring is a two-way road,” Jack shares. “My mentees really educate me simply as a lot as I educate them. It’s a beautiful train the place we each study from one another.”
Supply: Renegade Farms
Alan walks the farm together with his son.
Alan echoed this sentiment, reflecting on how his relationships with different farmers have improved his craft. Farming takes plenty of trial and error, and studying by way of the natural farming group, it can save you your self some errors. “In the event you can study one thing that’s going to avoid wasting you two or three years’ price of errors, that’s a giant deal. It might probably prevent plenty of time and plenty of heartache and plenty of monetary stress as nicely.”
“I believe that the natural farming group is without doubt one of the most open teams of individuals which are in competitors with one another, perhaps on the planet,” Alan says.
Chris agreed, sharing “TOPP is essentially the most significant and impactful program obtainable to anybody in search of to begin or transition into natural farming.”
Fostering these kinds of relationships is what Jack sees as the best good thing about the TOPP program. “[It’s] a beautiful program. The issues that we’ve got constructed and the relationships, they’re going to proceed on lengthy after this.” The farmers who obtain steering at the moment could turn out to be mentors themselves, carrying information into new communities and new farms. “I consider it as instructing lecturers.”
For Chris, Alan, and Jack, TOPP didn’t simply create mentor-mentee relationships; it created a rising community of farmers studying from one another.
“One of the best ways to undergo life,” Alan says. “To be constantly studying. And if you discover one thing you like doing, studying isn’t painful, it’s pleasurable.”
