Patti Armbrister named national Soil Health Champion

The Phillips Conservation District is proud to announce that Patti Armbrister has been named a Soil Health Champion by the National Association of Conservation Districts.

The Phillips Conservation Districts worked with NACD to nominate Armbrister based on her extraordinary work to promote soil health management practices on her own property and advance the adoption of these practices within her community. The Phillips Conservation District supports the work of Armbrister by helping to publicize her field days and farm tours, and by providing resources for other soil health related promotional activities.

Soil Health Champions are raising awareness about the benefits of soil health practices from the local level to a national one. Champions share their personal experiences using best management practices through the national network on a peer-to-peer basis and through NACD-hosted national meetings and events.

Patti Armbrister is an Ag-Ed instructor and soil health consultant in Hinsdale, MT. She grew up on a small, yet diverse farm in southern Michigan and worked in the cattle business most of her adult life. Patti has one son and a passion for teaching others how to raise healthy food, starting with healthy soil. Patti’s soil health journey paralleled her journey to becoming an Ad-Ed teacher. In 2010 she and her students constructed a passive solar greenhouse and created a school garden. Since the only food being grown in eastern Montana at the time was beef and wheat, this allowed Patti to teach kids and community members how to grow a wider variety of food. The school quickly started serving locally grown vegetables and beef. In this journey of education, Patti started learning from and following Nicole Masters a Soil Ecologist from New Zealand, who fell in love with Montana. In 2013, Patti started her soil health journey, converting her lawn from a mono-crop of Kentucky bluegrass to no-dig vegetables and adding a small high tunnel. Her yard is a food forest which she shares with friends and neighbors. Patti believes in learning new things daily and is currently focusing on implementing John Kempf’s Plant Health Pyramid. She is also an avid composter, having learned how to make compost in northern California at Berkley. Patti spends her spare time educating others about soil health principles, composting, no-dig gardening, and in general how to grow healthy food to heal the planet. For fun and education, Patti travels to regenerative operations, field days and events every summer. She loves teaching others about healthy soil and how to acquire it. Our area is challenged by our soils that compact easily and get extremely hard and difficult to work with, Patti knows how to make clay act like loam and grow food with less headaches and more fun

“I believe soil health is the key to improving plant, water, and air quality,” said Armbrister. “I love the subject and thoroughly enjoy teaching and helping other improve their soils!”

“Patti certainly deserves this honor. She is a wonderful teacher and an inspiration to her community.,” said Cora Gray, district administrator.

To arrange a speaking engagement, interview, field tour, or other activity with Patti Armbrister or the NACD Soil Health Champions Network, contact NACD’s Beth Mason at [email protected] or Cora Gray, phillipsconservation [email protected], 406 654 1334 ext 101.