Land Steward Highlight: A Conversation with Spencer Tregilgas
By Dora Boyd Cohen, UVE Hub Verifier
Spencer Tregilgas is an experienced farmer and herdsman who now manages one of Alexandre Family Farms’ dairies on the North California Coast, right where the Smith River flows into the Pacific Ocean. We had a delightful conversation about how he got there, what he’s been working on, and his recent trip to the Northern Roots Conference in Estonia. At Northern Roots, Spencer spoke to European dairy farmers, and discussed what it takes to switch to a more regenerative grassfed operation. The pictures shared in this article are slides from his presentation in Estonia. It was so clear from our conversation that Spencer possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience and he loves to share that resource with others.
Spencer’s connection to UVE goes back to its time as the Jefferson Center when he and his wife, Melissa, built a microdairy and sheep grazing operation in Placerville, California, driven by their commitment to family and healthy food. They embraced Holistic Management, transforming their land while teaching and hosting classes on the practice. While the business was successful, which Spencer attributes to careful holistic financial planning, factors outside of their control uprooted their life. The land conservancy they rented from unexpectedly changed their plans and chose not to renew the lease. Fortunately, Spencer’s ties to UVE led him to Alexandre Family Farms just as they were hiring for his role.
Scenes from Spencer & Melissa’s microdairy in Placerville.
Finished compost returned to the fields.
Spencer emphasized that the principles of small-scale dairy operations scale up well to larger farms, making the day-to-day management at Alexandre Farms surprisingly similar. However, the environment at Alexandre Farms is completely different from what he was accustomed to in Placerville—it’s far less brittle, with significantly more moisture in the air. In these pastures, he has even observed grass seeds germinating while still attached to the seed head, a stark contrast to the drier conditions he previously worked in. Alexandre Farms is also much larger, where Spencer manages only one of their five dairies. This dairy is 1600 acres, and he oversees multiple herds that graze on pasture for most of the day before coming in to be milked twice daily. In addition to herd management, he supervises staff, collaborates with the support crew based at the main dairy, and conducts ecological monitoring across all five farms as an Affiliate Monitor for UVE.
Cows enjoying well-managed grass at Alexandre Family Farms dairy along the Smith River.
When I asked Spencer how he manages his time so that he can balance the monitoring with running a dairy, he said it’s difficult, and he wouldn’t be able to do it without support from his well trained staff. It’s also clear that he sees value in the monitoring and that it’s important to make the time to do it. As Spencer stated in his presentation, "Monitoring is really key to making sure you are truly regenerative," underscoring the importance of data-driven decision-making in Holistic Management.
Ecological surveys and soil sampling. The picture on the far right shows important helpers assisting with a water infiltration test.
Looking back on the interview, I wish we had talked more about compost! One of Spencer’s responsibilities is to make compost from the massive amount of manure left behind when hundreds of cows come in to be milked twice a day. The manure is collected, processed, and actively composted in piles on-site. Spencer and his team determine which field might need extra help, and then they spread the finished compost, so nutrients produced on site stay on site. Recently, Spencer encountered a problem linked to the microbial community composition, and he began to experiment with techniques to manage the compost microbiology more effectively. He first experimented with balancing different inputs to optimize the composting process. Next, he started exploring compost tea inoculation as a way to enhance compost biology. Hopefully we’ll be able to follow up on the results of this project soon.
Spencer’s compost experiments.
Dora Boyd Cohen, PhD is UVE’s Land Steward Relationship Coordinator, Hub Verifier, & Savory Accredited Professional