Practices Index

Windbreaks protect farmsteads, fields, and livestock buildings from the wind. They are designed to serve more than one purpose, but are not one size fits all. The concept creates a more ideal/beneficial condition for not only crops but, soils, livestock, wildlife, and people. There are three main types of windbreaks: field windbreaks, livestock windbreaks, and living snow fences. The main principle of a windbreak practice is a linear planting of trees and shrubs to provide economic, environmental, and community benefits.

Cover crops are plants grown in the offseason of a cash crop to protect the soil from erosion. There are many benefits  to using cover crops including controlling erosion, improving yield potential, attracting pollinators, increased water infiltration, weed control, and providing habitat for beneficial insects and wildlife. 

Benefits in the soil health of your pasture that are brought by using this practice include increases in soil organic matter, increased water infiltration, improved forage quality, availability of nutrients for plant growth, overall better soil conditions (germination, seedling establishment, vegetative reproduction, root growth, etc.), improved soil health, increased plant production and reproduction, and reduced water erosion. 

The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is a land conservation program administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA). In exchange for a yearly rental payment, farmers enrolled in the program agree to remove environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production and plant perennial species that will improve water quality, control soil erosion, and enhance wildlife habitat. CRP contract length ranges from 10-15 years. 

A brush management is the management or removal of woody plants including those that are invasive and noxious and protection of desired species. The goal of brush management is to restore or release desired vegetative cover to protect soils, control erosion, reduce sediment, improve water quality, and enhance hydrology. 

Implementing no-till or strip-till, soil disturbance is limited in order to manage the amount, orientation, and distribution of crop and plant residue on the soil surface for a year-round impact. No-till is the elimination of any soil disturbance while growing the cash crop. Strip-till involves tillage in the strip that will be the seedbed for the cash-crop. Oftentimes, fertilizer is applied in the strips with the tillage to make it readily available in the area the crops need it. Benefits of implementing no-till or strip-till include reduced soil erosion, increased water holding capacity, improved soil health, improved soil organic matter, and weed control.