March 2026 Issue

Contents

March 2026 • Issue #657

Photo: Japanese beetles — Part of the editor’s agriculture book collection.

FEATURES

Doing the Impossible
Third Leaf Farm in Michigan is showing that organic apple production is achievable — even in a humid environment
BY ANNELIESE ABBOTT

Design It Right and Let Your Sprayer Collect Dust
By understanding population ecology, lifecycles and habitat, farmers can guide ecosystems toward balance instead of fighting endless outbreaks
BY MARK SHEPARD

Not a Disturbing Trend
Disturbance of all types — physical, biological and chemical — is gradually being reduced in American agriculture
BY JAY FUHRER

Ground Truth
The R-Soil database promises community-level quorum sensing for soil
BY MATT POWERS

B4 You Buy
Cows with big bellies, big butts, bare backs and bald udders will, on average, produce better-quality calves
BY STEVE CAMPBELL

Eat Real Food
The 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans are the best yet for American consumers — and, possibly, for ecological farmers
BY ANNELIESE ABBOTT

A Common Agenda
Can European agricultural policy help bring about the expansion in organic farming we need?
BY FELIX ZU LÖWENSTEIN

DEPARTMENTS

VIEW FROM THE COUNTRY
Monthly musings from Acres U.S.A.’s editor

OPINION
Why Do Regenerative Farmers Swim Upstream?
America’s enthusiastic embrace of regenerative agriculture will only succeed if policy, investment and regulation shift to reward biological performance, nutritional quality and farmer innovation

BY CHARLES BENBROOK

ECO-UPDATE
News in brief on developments in agronomic science

REGEN AGRONOMY
Less Fertilizer, More Thought
Strategic reductions in phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen work best when driven by soil biology and sound agronomy
BY JEFFREY KLEYPAS

INTERVIEW
Beetle Mania
Agronomist Kish Johnson shares how a focus on the plant health pyramid eliminated Japanese beetle pressure on his home orchard

REVIEWS

MARKETPLACE

CLASSIFIEDS

ECO-MEETINGS

ECO-GRAPHIC