Michael & Lindsay Groot - Grazing cover crops

Michael runs Wholesome Pastures with his wife Lindsay near Crediton, ON. Both raised on conventional farms, the couple  have got creative with pasturing their animals with cover crops, even running chickens between 60” corn. 

They direct-market their beef, lamb, chicken, duck, eggs and honey, and offer nose-to-tail ground beef, along with other products that make full use of the animal, including natural soaps and lotions, leathers and hides.

As part of Living Lab – Ontario, Mike is running a replicated trial of 80-foot strips of corn, soybeans, wheat and pasture that he rotationally grazes with cattle. He is comparing field crops with cover crops and grazing to pasture, to better understand the economics, practicality and soil health benefits of the two systems.