Work of the Earth
The Work of the Earth podcast, hosted by agronomist Ryan Lee, tells the remarkable stories behind the plants, people, and ideas that have shaped agriculture. Through documentary-style episodes, Ryan digs deep with farmers, researchers, historians, and plant breeders to explore the history and science beneath the fields around us. Work of the Earth reveals how agriculture became what it is—and what the land can still teach us. Presented by CISCO Seeds.
Ep. 2: Tall Fescue - Part 2 - Breaking the Curse
Tall fescue had become one of the most important forage grasses in the eastern United States—but its remarkable persistence came with a hidden cost. Once researchers connected livestock problems to a fungus living inside the plant, they began searching for ways to preserve the grass without sacrificing animal performance.
In Episode 2 of the tall fescue series, Dr. Joe Bouton helps me trace that search. From improving toxic fescue pastures with red clover, to removing the endophyte, and ultimately replacing it with a nontoxic strain, this is a story of persistence, failure, and extraordinary natural variation—and of t...
Ep. 1: Tall Fescue - Part 1 - The Discovery of the Wondergrass
Tall fescue transformed agriculture across the eastern United States. It covered eroded hillsides, filled gullies, and provided farmers with a tough, dependable forage that seemed able to survive almost anything.
In Episode 1 of our tall fescue series, we meet up with Dr. Garry Lacefield to trace the discovery of Kentucky 31 in the hills of Menifee County, Kentucky, and follow its rise from an overlooked patch of grass to the celebrated “Wondergrass.” It is a story of soil erosion, agricultural change, and a plant whose extraordinary persistence would reshape farms throughout the region.
But the same qual...
