Seth Watkins

The original plot of land that Seth farms outside Clarinda had been in his family for over 150 years. Initially, his grandfather chose it due to its proximity to the river where he milled flower until he shut down after WW2. When Seth began full time on the farm in 1994, raising crops and grazing cattle, he approached the land from a systems perspective which placed the ecological health of the land first.

Having intentionally avoided studying agriculture at a university during the 80s when the emphasis at institutions was on consolidation and efficiency, Seth described decisions on his land born out of a system of economics married to the land rather than divorced from it. He affirmed that he couldn’t afford fertilizer inputs on his grasslands, but he could afford to have clover. When the land was being overgrazed, he saw the economic benefit of renting another acre per cow.

A few years ago, Seth decided to take a photograph every day on his farm near Clarinda. His initial intention was to show people the difficulty of his job and why they should be grateful for farmers. As he accumulated images, however, this intention changed. He explained, “After about two months of focusing through that lens and seeing things, I realized ‘I’m the luckiest person in the world to have this as my vocation. I get to care for the land. I get to raise cattle.’”

Building a Culture of Conservation
“I hope as we bring diversity back to our landscape, we can bring diversity to our communities. That’s one of the hardest things about living here. We’re lacking in those new ideas and concepts, and I think it hurts us. I want rural migration, not urban migration. We have to embrace immigration. It’s past time.”

Contact Information

Seth Watkins
2983 230th St
Clarinda, IA 51632
712/542-3261
pinhookfarm@iowatelecom.net