For Chris Snip of Agris Co-operative in Ontario, Canada, the 4R approach to nutrient management is personal. Snip has been a Certified Crop Advisor for 16 years and was one of five crop specialists recently named as the first recipients of the new GROWMARK Endure 4R Advocate award. “My family and I spend a lot of time in Lake Erie, …
Soil Health Institute at #ASTAannual
The cover crops session at the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) annual meeting in Portland, Oregon heard about a new initiative focused on soil health – the Soil Health Institute. Dr. Wayne Honeycutt, who was Deputy Chief for Science and Technology for USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, is president and CEO of the group that is working to protect and …
Vets Turn Focus on Soil Health
Several international experts in animal health and nutrition were present at ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference, where their expert testimony on the solutions to the wide array of challenges facing animal production could be heard by a global audience. Prof. Johanna Fink-Gremmels, a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and expert in Veterinary Toxicology who works with the European Food Safety Authority …
Virtual Soil Field Day This Week
As farmers head to the fields this spring, the Soil Health Partnership is offering a virtual field day to learn more about the soil that makes up their livelihood. This summer begins the third year of field days which focus on sustainable practices that improve the environment and the bottom line. Before those events kick-off, however, United Suppliers is helping …
Casey & Friends is Back with Planters & Cultivators
It’s spring and time to plant! Casey & Friends (Tillus the Worm) are teaming up with her Case IH cartoon equipment team to teach kids how to plant seed and the importance of soil health in Planters & Cultivators. The book is the 4th in the series and once again authored by Holly Dufek. The farm team is very content at …
Soil Health Partnership Participation Explodes
Twenty-five more farms have joined in on the groundbreaking research effort from Soil Health Partnership (SHP) that could change the way farmers take care of their land. SHP works to test and measure farm management practices that improve soil health, such as growing cover crops, practicing conservation tillage like no-till or strip-till, and using sophisticated nutrient management techniques. The program’s …
Phytobiomes Roadmap Released
A collaboration has released a new Phytobiomes Roadmap that presents a new vision for agriculture to increase health, productivity, and sustainability of current cropping and forest systems. Led by the Phytobiomes organization, the Roadmap, according to the group, outlines a strategic plan for acquiring critical knowledge of how all of the components on a farm interact and affect each other. …
Soil Health Institute Appoints New Board
The Soil Health Institute has appointed its first ever board of directors of which features representatives of all areas of farming and agricultural practices along with four full-time farmers. The Institute expects to ultimately add an additional nine directors with six of those being farmers/ranchers. The new board of directors includes: Bill Buckner, President/CEO, The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation Neil …
Indiana Dept of Ag Director Stops By #SHPSummit16
The Director of the Indiana State Dept of Agriculture, Ted McKinney, stopped by the Soil Health Summit last week in Indianapolis to show support for the direction of the program. “[The Soil Health Partnership] is outstanding, primarily because it brings together a lot of different groups to be aligned and focused on a single purpose. One of the best things …
Iowa Farmer Joins SHP As Demo Farmer
Last year at Commodity Classic, John Maxwell was introduced to the idea of soil health. From there, he became excited about it and signed up to become a demo farmer with the Soil Health Partnership (SHP) to learn how cover crops could impact the soil on his farm. Years ago, Maxwell originally got into cover crops years ago to feed …