The Soil Health Partnership (SHP) was officially launched at last year’s Commodity Classic so it will just be one year old in another month. But Nick Goeser with the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) says the concept had a relatively long gestation period. “The idea for the Soil Health Partnership started in 2011, so within three years we came to …
NRCS Official Discusses Programs at NAFB
Soils, climate change, pollinators, and the 2014 Farm Bill conservation programs were among the topics addressed at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting convention by James Tillman, southeast regional conservationist for USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Tillman says NRCS has been very active in protecting pollinators, and honeybees in particular. “NRCS is working with five states – South Dakota, …
FS Crop Advisers Help with Nutrient Management Plans
This is the final installment of a four part series on Nutrient Management sponsored by FS/GROWMARK John Musser, a crop adviser with Stephenson Service Company, has been a crop consultant for over 30 years and a Certified Crop Adviser for the past two decades. He was the 2012 winner of the Illinois Certified Crop Adviser Award for helping his growers …
Wrapping up the 2014 CTIC Tour
2014 CTIC Conservation in Action Tour Photo Album The CTIC Conservation in Action tour of the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) was the most interesting of the tours I have attended so far. I grew up just east of the Everglades in Broward County and did agricultural reporting in Florida for ten years, but I never really had the chance to …
Florida State Rep on CTIC Tour
A member of the Florida legislature joined us on CTIC Conservation in Action tour of the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) last week to learn more herself about the various conservation efforts in the region. Representative Katie Edwards of Broward County says there is a lot of legislative interest in water quality projects and with her agricultural background it’s important for …
NCGA Staffer on CTIC Tour
2014 CTIC Conservation in Action Tour Photo Album Many of the participants at last week’s CTIC Conservation in Action tour of the Florida Everglades Agricultural area were from the Midwest and they were very interested in some of the very different crop production they saw in the Sunshine State. CTIC board member and National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) Soil Health …
Raising Cane in the Everglades
2014 CTIC Conservation in Action Tour Photo Album Planting at U.S. Sugar Corporation is done with precision, as we found out on the 2014 CTIC Conservation in Action tour last week in the Everglades Agricultural Area. Steven Stiles, U.S. Sugar farm manager, says cane is a “ratoonable crop” which refers to the stalks that are called ratoons and normally one …
Water in the Sunshine State
Florida is the third largest state in terms of population and the 14th in agricultural production, so competition for water resources is fierce in the Sunshine State. “Population growth is a big factor in driving water use demand and that will continue in Florida,” said Richard Budell, who is director of water policy for the Florida Department of Agriculture and …
Barn Owls are Sustainable Rodent Control
2014 CTIC Conservation in Action Tour Photo Album Barn owls are being used in the Everglades Agricultural Area as sustainable rodent control – and it’s working amazingly well! Richard Raid, a plant pathologist with the University of Florida, told us all about these hungry little raptors during what was arguably the most interesting stop on the 2014 CTIC Conservation in …
Learning About Everglades STAs
2014 CTIC Conservation in Action Tour Photo Album This may just look like a swamp but it’s actually a very sophisticated stormwater treatment area in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) which is one of several designed to remove phosphorus from urban and agricultural runoff. These public works projects are the second point of cleanup for the water, while the farmers …