Pioneer Mindset: Farm Weird and Figure It Out with Zach Smith The Stock Cropper: Part 2
Friday, October 9, 2026
Reference: Podcast Corner
Episode 139: Farm Weird and Figure It Out with Zach Smith The Stock Cropper: Part 2
October 06, 2026 | Pioneer Mindset Podcast | with Garrett Ruskamp
We're back with Zach Smith for part two of this conversation. If you missed part one, go back and listen first. There's a lot of good context in there about Zach's background, how Stock Cropper started and what it's actually like to try something nobody in your area has ever done.
This week we get into where Zach is today. The Stock Cropper system has evolved and he's been deep in developing the Cluster Cluck Drive, an autonomous solar-powered pen mover for backyard chickens and small livestock. We talk through the new intercropping arrangements he's running in 2026 with corn, beans and oats, including the Quintuple Bio Pass system that produced a 70 bushel advantage in trials over conventional 30 inch corn with the same seed and fertilizer. We talk about experimenting on a budget, why your neighbors' opinions shouldn't factor into your decisions and why the spirit of building your own solutions in agriculture has slowly been handed off to the guy in town selling out of a 2.5 gallon jug.
Zach also shares what the Low Rangers are trying to do in Iowa with conservation advocacy, why 45Z is one of the biggest opportunities agriculture has seen in years and why more farmers adopting strip till and cover crops is actually an economic self-interest issue just as much as an environmental one.....
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Welcome to Pioneer Mindset! A podcast for rural ag business owners who want to challenge their mindset and address the discomfort in their business and personal lives by finding clarity resulting in bold conviction. Your host, Garrett Ruskamp, is a 5th generation farmer, husband and father from rural Nebraska. In the last 10 years of farming, he has experienced many challenges that business owners face on a day to day basis that stem from disorganization and being financially unaware. He understands the weight of uncertainty that comes from operating in a state of mind triggered by these struggles. Join Garrett as he shares his journey of the struggles he's faced in agriculture as a farmer and family man. He will dive into honest conversations to tackle the mindsets surrounding these issues, that will ultimately help you gain control leading to a profitable and sustainable business.
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