Who is responsible for caring for the ground under our feet? The short answer: all of us.
THE WORD "STEWARDSHIP" IS NOT WELL UNDERSTOOD in modern America, but it's a word with a rich history in the western world. A steward, in medieval times, was someone who was tasked with caring for and managing an estate that did not belong to them. Their job was to consider how to make the very best use of the land — providing for the needs of the village or estate while preserving the health of the land itself.
In that sense of the word, we are all stewards of the land, with varying degrees of responsibility. We all have to make decisions about how to care for and manage these unique landscapes, whether it's your backyard or a 1,000-acre farm. Whether you're a lawmaker or agency staffer setting guidelines and best practices for land use, a farmer or landowner trying to responsibly manage your land, or a consumer making smart choices to reduce food waste and your travel impact, we all have a part to play. Both rural and urban citizens impact our natural environment. Did you know the pavement and people of Seattle and other cityscapes impact the health of our waters and Chinook salmon populations? Just as farmers think about how they can best steward their lands, urban dwellers must consider how they, too, impact the environment around them.
Though the principles of stewardship have evolved over centuries, they remain fundamentally tied to the notion of caretaking and sustainability. For roughly the past 40 years, policymakers in
Washington have been rethinking approaches to climate stewardship, as our society faces unprecedented challenges such as climate change, population growth, and resource depletion. Conservation and resource management has become a priority among legislators, agency officials and staff. National policies such as the Clean Air Act and the Endangered Species Act have attempted to protect our natural resources. Statewide programs and efforts such as the Climate Commitment Act were also passed in an effort to improve our state's natural resources. Whether it's the scrutiny over land management by our local farmers or the increased taxes paid by every state citizen, these policies impact everyone. Coupled with innovation and investment in green technologies, some policies have created resource management tools that have helped clean up our urban and rural spaces. Others, while well-intended, have the potential to make harmful impacts on the environment when implemented. This is why it is vital that legislators and government officials have a full understanding of real life implementation. This is where groups, such as our local conservation districts, have a vital role to play.
Policies grounded in voluntary stewardship trickle down through conservation districts in every county of the state. These district staff help translate those priorities and best practices to the individual farmers and landowners.
"Over half of Washington is privately owned," says Laura Meyer, who advises conservation districts on their outreach with landowners. "Achieving state goals for climate and natural resources requires the partnership and insight of private landowners. That's why conservation districts are vital – their communitybased teams develop relationships with landowners and make it easier and more affordable for them to steward farmland and the environment."
In defiance of the stereotypes, many farmers are often more conservation-minded than the average Washingtonian. Throughout the state, many farmers and landowners voluntarily make changes that significantly reduce their environmental impact. Techniques such as crop rotation and no-till not only enhance soil fertility and biodiversity but also reduce soil erosion and minimize the need for chemical inputs. By focusing on sustainable practices, farmers
are producing more healthy food than ever, while preserving the integrity of the land.
"Advancements in soil health research and incentivebased programs have opened the door for farmers to grow food in more sustainable and climate-friendly ways," says Meyer. "Farmers have rapidly adopted practices like planting cover crops, which are noncash crops planted in between growing seasons when fields may otherwise be bare. Cover crops not only remove CO2 from the atmosphere, but they also add organic matter and nutrients to the soil, which is great for future planting."
Consumers, too, have a critical role in environmental stewardship. Making informed choices about the products we buy can lead to substantial environmental benefits. Opting for locally grown foods — which should be easy for those living in Washington, due to the huge variety and quantity of foods grown here — reduces the carbon footprint associated with transportation in some cases. Additionally, reducing food waste through mindful purchasing and consumption can make a huge difference. Science has also shown that vehicle tire crumb has a devastating impact on local salmon populations. Choosing how you commute each day is a decision that impacts our state's environment. Every small decision, from choosing reusable bags to riding public transportation, contributes to a larger movement toward sustainability.
"For consumers looking for a sustainable choice, choose Washington-grown foods," says Meyer. "There are few places in the world and even within the U.S. where farmers produce the diversity of fruits, vegetables, grains, meat, and dairy as they do right here in our state. We're incredibly lucky to have access to fresh food that is within a 100 mile radius."
Stewardship extends beyond merely managing resources; it embodies a deep sense of responsibility and care for our planet. Whether through sustainable farming, conscious consumerism and transportation, legislative action, or educational efforts, everyone can contribute to the stewardship of the environment. Stewardship doesn't just happen on the farm, it happens in your home everyday with the choices you make.
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"Their family came to Red Mountain on a coin flip. But their success here has nothing to do with chance."
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"Her parents were farmworkers. Now she owns the farm."
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"We've got a responsibility to take care of it for future generations."
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BAILEY FARM ST. JOHN
"The tech boom of the last 20 years goes beyond 'best practices' and more closely resembles 'Best Buy.'"
WHEAT FARMING IS ONE OF THE WORLD'S OLDEST PROFESSIONS, but that doesn't mean it's oldfashioned. Anyone who has visited a working wheat farm in the last 10 years knows that the "amber waves of grain" are a hotspot for some of the most innovative technologies America has to offer.
Gary Bailey, a third-generation wheat farmer outside of St. John, has witnessed the advent of technology on the farm firsthand.
"In the Palouse, we are stewards of some of the best soil in the nation," Bailey said. "We want to leave things better for the next generation. That means staying on top of technology, listening to research, and doing what's responsible for the health of the ground."
Some of those changes in ag science are well known. A process known as crop rotation is practically standardoperating procedure on Eastern Washington wheat farms. Crop rotation means that fields are planted with a different crop every other year (or every third year), which returns more nutrients to the soil and leads to greater soil health, water conservation, and reduced erosion. No-till farming, which is exactly what it sounds like, is another strategic change that many farmers have made to promote soil health.
But the tech boom of the last 20 years goes beyond "best practices" and more closely resembles "Best Buy." Tablets, drones, lasers, and GPS have all found a place on the farm.
One of the tools Bailey uses on his farm is called WEEDIT, a spot-sprayer that is towed behind his tractor. The sprayer has sensors that detect chlorophyll (the green pigment present in all plants that is responsible for photosynthesis), which means as the sprayer rolls over bare earth, the sensors can detect each green weed. Each sensor is connected to a precise spray nozzle, which emits a quick spray of herbicide to kill that specific weed while not wasting any product on the rest of the dirt around the weed.
"We look at herbicides kind of like innoculating your kids. You want them to be as healthy as can be – we want the same for our wheat," said Bailey. "It's a neat technology. As the machine is moving along and sees the weeds, it sprays them. We use our herbicides responsibly. We're not going to come flood the ground with herbicides."
When the Washington Grown crew visited Bailey's farm in Season 11, Bailey did a demonstration of the sprayer. On a field of 23 acres, the sprayer used only around one gallon of herbicide per acre, which is 90% less than conventional methods.
"Whitman County is the nation's leading wheatproducing county, so there's pride in that," said Bailey. "We think our wheat is the best in the world – our customers tell us that. We've got to take good care of this land."
In addition to the WEED-IT, Bailey uses autosteer in his tractors, which is a technology that uses GPS positioning to guide the tractor. Farmers like Bailey can map out a field and let the tractor's onboard computer do the driving. This means that each pass over the field is as precise as possible, overlapping by less than an inch, meaning there's no wasted fuel. Some research estimates that using autosteer for activities like spraying or planting can reduce fuel consumption by up to 10%.
"I just turned on the autosteer," Bailey told the Washington Grown camera crew, raising his hands from the steering wheel as the tractor trundled through the field. "Every generation has made advancements. There is new stuff, more advancements coming down the pipe that is going to be amazing."
At top, Gary Bailey demonstrates the sensitivity of the chlorophyll sensors on his spot-sprayer. The tractor is guided by autosteer, which makes it more fuel efficient over the field.
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CONSERVATION
STEWARDS
RESOURCE
TECH
SPOT SPRAYER
SENSOR
DAIRY
BAKERY
VIETNAM
QUALITY
DID YOU KNOW?
In Washington state, about 28,800 of our 36,000 farms and ranches are owned and operated by families. Across the U.S., around 96% of all farms are owned and operated by families.
COW PATH BAKERY & DAN MAUR FARMS
OTHELLO
Cows Home come theUntil
When Janice Baginski started her popular Othello bakery, she knew two things for certain: she would have no shortage of little helpers, and she had a hookup for the freshest milk around.
WHEN JANICE BAGINSKI SAID the baked goods at Cow Path Bakery in Othello were made from scratch, she really wasn't kidding. As she began mixing the dough for their famous raspberry rolls, she could trace the origin of the ingredients all the way back to a happy cow raised on the family's farm.
"We get to use a lot of milk — which, that's what we're all about," she said as she poured scalded whole milk from the family dairy into a KitchenAid mixer. She said the special thing about this dough, which they also use for their cinnamon rolls, is that it doesn't contain eggs, making it light, fluffy, and moist.
Janice and her husband, Chris, own the Cow Path Bakery and help run the family dairy business, Dan Maur Farms, which Chris's parents, Dan and Maureen
Baginski, founded in 1967. When Janice joined the family, she started out by helping at the dairy, eventually opening a pop-up bakery in 2020 and the Cow Path Bakery in 2022.
Janice and Chris have three kids — Nate, Eli, and Peyton — who often join their parents at either the bakery or the dairy.
"Yeah, my free-range children," Janice said, laughing. "They're really good kids; they make parenting easy."
The kids help out at both businesses. Janice said Nate, who at the time was almost 11, likes to help run the till, and Eli helps build the boxes at the bakery. At the dairy, Chris said the kids help with day-to-day operations like feeding the calves and cleaning.
"You take care of the cows, the cows will take care of you," he said, pointing at rows of cattle calmly chewing their cud in the shade. "We keep a happy environment here."
Chris said they do their best to make the conditions comfortable and peaceful for the cows. A comfortable cow, he said, will lie down and chew her cud, which helps her produce milk. The cows also get lots of exercise and room to roam around, as well as plenty of shade so they don't overheat.
"It's like a spa resort!" said Washington Grown host Kristi Gorenson with a laugh.
"It's as close as we can get to it, you know, without a swimming pool and a massage therapist," said Chris, smiling.
In the dairy's milking parlor, where the last lineup of cows was getting milked for the morning, Chris used a device with an iodine-based disinfectant and bristles to clean a cow's udder, wiping it down with a soft cloth afterward. A vacuum milking machine was attached to each udder, and milk began pumping out.
Chris said the cows have certain times of day they
prefer to come into the parlor, and they often come in the same order every time. Each cow can produce six to eight gallons of milk a day.
"We start at 4 a.m.," said Chris. "The cows come in side by side — they kind of have a buddy system."
Outside the milking parlor, calves flicked their tails as they basked in the sunshine. A soft, orangey-brown Jersey calf, only about a month old, approached the fence to nuzzle Gorenson's hand.
"This is where we raise all of our calves," said Chris, explaining that they try to have the cows give birth every 15 months or so, to keep milk production up. The calves drink the milk from the cows that can't be used for human consumption.
"Some farmers use powdered milk," said Chris, "but we prefer straight from the tank."
As he walked over to a row of black-and-white adult Holsteins and light brown Jerseys, a Brown Swiss cow stuck her head through the fence and licked Chris's finger.
"They're very curious," he said. "And unlike many people
Chris and Janice put their kids to work, whether at the dairy farm or running the till at the bakery (opposite top left).
believe, they do not give chocolate milk."
Chris and Nate entered a huge, open-air freestall barn with two rows of cows munching on food, others roaming freely behind them, and some lying down in open stalls. Chris explained that the freestall barn is great for the climate of Eastern Washington, because it allows airflow and keeps the cows cool and shaded from the sun.
"Happy cows make a happy life," he said.
And happy cows make delicious milk, which is used to make the treats for sale at the Cow Path Bakery.
When Washington Grown visited the bakery, one loyal customer stood in front of the counter, deliberating what he wanted to order.
"When I want to have something sweet to eat, this
is the place," he said. "I have a different favorite every week. One week it may be these caramel sticky buns. And then the next week, the raspberry rolls."
In the kitchen, Janice rolled out the dough for the next batch of raspberry rolls. She spread a cream cheese mixture over the dough — "I'm all about anything dairy" — before adding a sweet raspberry filling on top of that. She rolled up the dough into a long tube and cut it into slices before popping the tray into the oven.
"Everything is made from scratch," she said. "If we can make it in house, we will."
In the dining area, a customer raved about her favorite treat at the bakery: Janice's tarts.
"I could eat those all day long," she said. "Literally, you can't go wrong with anything here. It's all good."
Raspberry
DOUGH INGREDIENTS
• 1 quart of whole milk
1 cup of canola oil
• 1 cup of granulated sugar
• 4.5 tsp of active dry yeast
9 cups (1,080 grams) of allpurpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 Tbsp salt
CREAM CHEESE FILLING INGREDIENTS
• 8 oz of full fat cream cheese, softened 2 egg yolks
• 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
RASPBERRY FILLING INGREDIENTS
• 1 pound of frozen raspberries, thawed out
• 2 Tbsp of butter
• 1 cup of granulated sugar
• 2 Tbsp of cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp of vanilla extract
LEMON GLAZE
INGREDIENTS
• 6 Tbsp of salted butter
• 3 cups of powdered sugar
• ¼ cup of lemon juice
Cream
Rolls
Dough Recipe
Heat the milk to about 120 degrees on the stove.
Measure out the canola oil and the sugar and pour into the mixing bowl of an electric mixer.
While the milk is warming up, measure out the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda into a separate bowl. Whisk together.
Add the heated milk to the canola oil and sugar. Whisk well. Add in the yeast.
After the yeast has bloomed, add the dry ingredients to the milk mixture.
With the dough hook attachment on, let the mixer run on low for 7-8 minutes. Scrape down the sides and then run the mixer again for another 5 minutes.
Once the dough has been kneaded, disconnect from the mixer, making sure to get all the dough off of the hook. Put a towel over the bowl and move to a draftfree spot to let dough rise for about one hour.
While the dough is rising, prepare the cream cheese filling and raspberry filling.
Cream Cheese Filling Recipe
Whip cream cheese with an electric or hand-held mixer. Add in granulated sugar and whip until the cream cheese is smooth.
Add in the two egg yolks and 2 tsp of vanilla extract.
Raspberry Filling Recipe
In a heavy bottomed saucepan add 2 tbsp of butter and thawed out raspberries, sugar, and cornstarch.
Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly to avoid scorching the berries/bottom of the pan. Cook until the mixture thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Allow to cool before using.
Lemon Glaze Recipe
Put the butter in a microwave safe bowl, and microwave for 20 seconds. Add the powdered sugar and lemon juice, and whisk until smooth.
Assembly
Roll the dough into a large rectangle about 30 x 14 inches. Spread the cream cheese filling evenly over the dough and then add the raspberry filling/jam over top of the cream cheese filling (about one cup of raspberry sauce will be plenty! The rest can be stored in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to three months).
Beginning at the end farthest from you, roll the long side of the dough tightly toward you (be prepared for the filling to create a bit of a mess). Use both hands and work slowly, being careful to keep the roll as tight as you can. When you reach the end, pinch the seam together. You will now have one long log. With a sharp knife or a bench scraper, cut the log into 2" slices – you should get 12-15 rolls.
Place the sliced rolls into a buttered baking dish (you can use pie plates, 8x8 pans, 13x9 pans - whatever you have on handjust be sure to have the bottom buttered well). Leave 1/4" of space around the rolls so they have room to grow. Cover the pan and leave it in a draft-free place to rise for another 30 minutes.
Bake in a 350 oven for about 20 minutes, or until the center roll reads 180 degrees.
Let cool for 15-20 minutes before drizzling with the lemon glaze. Serve warm and enjoy!
ABC BAKERY VIETNAM
Washington wheat has become a staple in many of Vietnam's fast food restaurants, and it's largely thanks to the efforts of chef Kao Sieu Luc, the owner of ABC Bakery in Ho Chi Minh City. The bakery has branches across Vietnam and supplies baked goods to many of the country's fast food restaurants. When the Washington Grown team visited Vietnam, we spoke with Kao about his business, and why he loves Washington wheat.
What does ABC Bakery make?
The bakeries serve all kinds of baked goods, including bread, pastries, cookies, muffins, brownies, and buns. ABC Bakery also supplies hamburger buns, cakes, pastries, and other baked goods to fast food chains across Vietnam. Every day they make more than 80,000 baked goods, according to Kao.
Which restaurants does ABC Bakery supply with baked goods?
The bakery's clients include Burger King, KFC,
McDonald's, Starbucks, and Domino's Pizza. "All the fast food chains in Vietnam, I calculated that about 98% of the customers are supplied by ABC," said Kao.
Why does the bakery prefer to use Washington wheat?
ABC uses Washington flour in its baked goods, and Kao said the reason is that Washington wheat absorbs water better, makes cakes softer and fluffier, and it is generally just a higher quality than other wheat. "I believe in quality," he said. "Quality is very important for us."
How does the bakery get its wheat from Washington?
ABC Bakery handles its own importing of wheat, dairy, and other ingredients. "Many years ago … there was nobody to import the good quality to Vietnam," said Kao. "They worry about the price only. They don't worry about the quality. But I'm different."
The Washington Grown project is made possible by the Washington State Department of Agriculture and the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant program, through a partnership with the state's farmers.
