Story and photos compiled by Wade Day, Public Affairs Specialist, San Angelo, Texas

The Sunrise W Land and Cattle Company is located in McCulloch County, Texas. Mercury is the nearest named community and also happens to be the closest locality to the geometric center of Texas. From there, the heart of Texas, the father and son team of Jim and Stephen West are working, along with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), to establish their operation using regenerative farming and management methods.
 

Jim, a retired Marine and patriarch of the family, and Stephen, with a college degree in agriculture, enjoy pushing the boundaries of traditional farming practices. Their partnership is more than a business venture, it's a testament to collaboration and core values. 

“We’re bringing together different conservation practices to create a regenerative farming system,” said Jim. 

“We hope to show it’s possible to naturally grow crops and raise animals through diversity.”

Their commitment to the process of regenerative farming, along with help from NRCS programs and personnel, is proving to be a winning combination.

A different approach

Regenerative agriculture takes a different approach compared to conventional methods. 

Regenerative methods look at how all the parts of the process fit and work together. It looks at the system as a whole, not individual pieces. Its aim is to let natural processes take the lead, with management decisions made to enhance or restore those processes. The use of external inputs, especially synthetic forms, are minimized or eliminated completely. 

“It’s this very complex system of nature taking care of nature,” said Jim.  

Regenerative agriculture is based on five key principles; keeping the soil covered, increasing diversity, minimizing soil disturbance, maintaining living roots and integrating livestock.

The Wests look to incorporate these principles in all their decisions.

From their rotational grazing system, diversity in crops and animals, use of chickens as pest control, and unique fertilizer, they are practicing what they preach.

Jim began researching regenerative agriculture in the early 2000s while still in military service with the Marine Corp. 

He wanted to understand the chemistry and biology behind it. 

Books, articles, podcasts, videos, he took in all the information he could find. He also began to make his own observations from his travels with the military.

Having been stationed around the world in places like the Philippines, Korea, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia, the experiences piqued his curiosity. Having learned from each one, he was curious as to why certain things worked in some areas and not others.

“I watched the land here — not just our place — because everybody who’s using land has a vision for what they want to do and I’m not going to fault their vision,” said Jim. “I think we can do ag a lot better in the US. I just thought, ‘There’s got to be a better way.’” 

“For a landowner to come in with plans for regenerative farming and soil health — is not very common,” said NRCS Brady Resource Team Leader, Haden Keyser. “When Jim and Stephen came to me with this idea, the research and knowledge they have on this system gives me hope they are going to be successful.”

All in the family

The journey for Sunrise W Land and Cattle began after Jim retired from military service. 

He was able to acquire his grandfather's 600-acre ranch to combine with property he already owned. The move not only honored his family's history but sparked a vision he and Stephen had for their own operation. They were also able to purchase another piece of property just a mile down the road.

With the land they wanted under their control, all that was left was to install the system they had envisioned.

Stephen's agricultural knowledge and expertise, coupled with Jim’s decades of experience and leadership, has created a synergy. This drives innovation and progress on every inch of the property. 

Even the name of the ranch, Sunrise W, has meaning and purpose.

“W of course, our last name is West,” said Jim. “The arc on top — I taught my kids there’s five C’s to living a good life: candor, competence, compassion, courage, and core values. If you’ll notice, there’s five rays to the sun. And so that became our cattle brand.” 

They are quick to point out a silent partner that plays a significant role as well.

“Mom doesn’t come out too often. She still works a job in San Antonio,” said Stephen. “But she’s our CFO. Everything runs through her. At the end of the day she keeps my dad and I grounded for sure.”

NRCS Partnership in Restoring the Land

Initially on their own, the property was so heavily covered in mesquite, that the first two years were spent clearing portions of the land. The invasive brush was removed mechanically, stacked and the piles burned to give them a blank canvas to start from. 

Looking for information about the flood prevention dam on the property, the Wests came to the NRCS office in Brady. The conversation soon turned to conservation and the plan they had in mind. From that starting point, the Wests have worked closely with NRCS. 

Now, the focus is on improving their pastures. 

The Wests have been able to implement conservation practices that complimented their regenerative program. 

The Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) has been the main source of NRCS program participation for the Wests. 

EQIP offers technical and financial assistance for working agriculture lands. It helps farmers and ranchers maintain or improve production while conserving natural resources. NRCS works one-on-one with producers to develop a conservation plan that outlines practices and activities to solve on-farm resource issues. EQIP helps make conservation accessible. 

For the Wests, this included practices such as fencing, water development, additional brush clearing and grass seeding. Through EQIP, they have been able to install infrastructure that allows their operation to run smoothly.  

“So, the NRCS has been one, a great resource of knowledge, then also has been a great resource in getting these projects — on the ground,” said Stephen. “It can be very labor intensive when it comes to having to move animals every single day and having the water for them as well.”
 

The Wests utilize a management intensive grazing system. In this system, the cattle are concentrated on a small area for a short time. The goal of this system is better grazing utilization, encouraging livestock to eat everything within the grazing area. Livestock are moved often, most times daily. Adequate fencing and water sources make the process easier. The area is then left ungrazed for the remainder of the year, allowing it to rest before it is grazed again the next year. 

NRCS has also been helpful with grass mixes and plantings.

Both for their regenerative system and grazing rotations, grass is vitally important. All five principles of regenerative agriculture can be tied back to grass, specifically it’s abundance and diversity. After brush removal and as a way of rejuvenating the soil, the Wests have experimented with many different seed mixes.
 

“We put together a list of seeds and ask what they think,” said Jim. “NRCS has been great in helping us get the right mix.”

Outside the box

For regenerative agriculture systems that try and minimize outside inputs, especially synthetic products like insecticides and fertilizers, more natural options are preferred.

Following their regenerative goals, Jim and Stephen have incorporated practices that aren’t exactly traditional.

“The unique thing about this ranch is the incorporation of worm tea and chickens to help microorganisms and soil health,” said NRCS Brady district conservationist Walt Broyles. “You typically do not see that on rangeland for our cattle operations.” 

Chickens provide many benefits to the Wests’ program.

They utilize a mobile coop to house their chickens on pasture. It follows the cattle in rotation through the pastures, 2-3 days behind. The coop houses several hundred Rhode Island Red chickens.
 

The chickens fill multiple roles. 

Manure is a natural fertilizer that benefits pasture grasses and is a resource that is abundant in livestock operations. This is especially the case in intensively managed systems like the Wests’ that concentrate animals on smaller acres. The chickens scratch through the cattle manure, spreading it out and making the coverage more uniform. They also eat insects that are attracted to it. By following the cattle closely in rotation, the chickens take care of the insects before they become a problem. This is especially true of flies, which are a common problem for livestock producers.  

They also provide a product that can be sold, eggs. 

Being raised on pasture, input for production is lower and the eggs fetch a premium price being cage-free and organic.

Worm tea is a practice that is not common but shows promise as a fertilizer alternative.  

Worms perform the important task of decomposition. As they process materials, they return important nutrients back to the soil and boost microbial activity. This in turn benefits other soil microorganisms like bacteria, fungi and protozoa. All of these parts and organisms combined form a healthy, fertile soil.

“Earthworms are nature’s way of putting biology back into the soil,” explains Jim, “which is exactly what we want.”

The Wests have taken this beneficial natural process and have adapted into making their own worm tea. 
Worm tea is made by taking the decomposed materials from worms, called worm castings, adding water, and allowing it to “brew”. Though this is an oversimplification, the process allows the beneficial microorganisms to reproduce and form a natural liquid fertilizer that is readily absorbed by plants.  

The Wests have a large bin of approximately 100,000 worms that they collect the castings from. The bin is filled with compost and mixed with a blend of grains that is food for the worms. They collect the castings once a week from the bottom of the flow-through bin. From there, the castings go into what the Wests call the brewer. It can best be described as a super-sized Keurig machine. The container is filled with water and aerated for 24 hours, allowing the microorganisms in the castings to multiply. The product at the end of the process is a nutrient and microorganism dense, all-natural fertilizer. They then spray the liquified worm tea onto their pastures.
 

“We have been accused of being odd,” said Stephen with a chuckle.  

All of these conservation measures, both traditional and new, combine to form a regenerative system that is benefitting both the land and the operation. 

A Bright Future Ahead

Looking ahead, the Wests are hoping their approach can become a model others can learn from and replicate.

Jim and Stephen are dedicated to sharing their knowledge and experience with fellow landowners. They hold classes, participate in interviews, and create videos to educate and inspire others to embrace regenerative agriculture. 

“I wouldn’t trade it. You know, just seeing the difference,” said Jim. “My ultimate goal is that whoever we deal with believes we’re providing more nutritious food and that we’re taking care of both them and the land and animals at the same time. And that’s really what drives me.”

Keyser, who calls himself one of the Wests’ biggest fans, is excited to see how their land responds. 

“They want people to come up to their fence and ask, ‘What are you doing over there?’ and find success so they can share what they’re doing. They’re not afraid to work — and they believe in this,” said Keyser.
 

Broyles, too, admires the Wests’ out-of-the-box approach. “These systems they have here—it’s how hard do you want to work? It’s a daily basis.” 

For the NRCS, “Helping people help the land” is the motto that we strive to achieve with every producer and conservation plan we implement. The Wests and their work helps tie real life experiences and meaning to the words of an organization dedicated to preserving it.