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Annual Meeting Celebrates 74 Years of Conservation

Over 100 friends of conservation turned out at Pattison Park on September 14th for the 74th Annual Meeting of the Clermont Soil & Water Conservation District. The evening got underway with the election of two board supervisors (see pg. 2) and a tasty meal by Taste of the Good Life Catering.Several conservation partners were recognized for their 2016-2017 achievements in the conservation field. The Hatfield Brothers of Franklin Township were honored as the District’s Conservation Cooperators of the Year (see article p.6)Brenda Siepmann, the STEMs teacher for Clermont Northeastern schools, was awarded the District’s Outstanding Conservation Teacher of the Year award. Brenda Siepmann believes students in science should get ‘down and dirty’! In addition to her classroom lessons, Brenda continues to explore science with students through an after-school science club. Here, they have studied birds in the school’s bird blind, completed stream studies on the water, and studied the fish in the school pond. For the past two years, the students have hosted a STEM symposium where they share their research projects or

experiments with the community. They also meet and compete with gifted students in other local districts for added challenges. The school has partnered with Bethel and Felicity for challenges such as Mystery Day and iGames - an Olympics competition with invertebrates. The Clermont County Commissioners and the Ohio Congress presented the award recipients with proclamations recognizing their accomplishments and dedication to promoting good

land stewardship.The Wave Foundation at Newport Aquarium provided the entertainment of the evening with their penguin and also displayed the new mobile freshwater aquarium

constructed with the help of the Regional Stormwater Collaborative.The district would like to extend a special thank-you to all individuals and businesses who donated funds or door prizes to help make the 2017 conservation banquet a great success.

Winter 2017

Our Mission:

“To promote the wise use of our natural resources through

service and education”

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS David Anspach Joe Glassmeyer

Melody Newman Steve Phillips

Todd Winemiller

NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE

Lori Lenhart Jenna Swanson

DISTRICT STAFFJohn McManus

Judy Krebs Susie Steffensen

Becky McClatcheyJacob Hahn

Brenda Siepmann with Melody Newman, Board Member.

In 2018 we will be turning 75! Help us celebrate soil and water conservation

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SWCD Welcomes New NRCS Employee

Jenna Swanson joined the Clermont County Conservation Office in October. She is a Soil Conservationist with the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Jenna grew up in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia where she worked on her grandparents apple and peach orchard until college. Jenna received a Bachelor’s Degree in Agronomy from Virginia Tech (GO HOKIES!). After graduation, she worked for the NRCS in Southern Virginia for two years before moving to Cincinnati. She is looking forward to serving Clermont and Brown counties. Come by the office and help her get acquainted to the area!

Special thanks to all of our patrons in 2017 who support us with

sponsorships, door prizes, and donations!

Grant’s Farm & GreenhouseFriends of Clermont SWCD

Cincinnati Nature CenterCarney’s Feed Mill Clermont YMCA

Jay’s FloristShaw FarmsUS Fabrics

BUFFPilot Todd Winemiller

Park National BankVista Grand Ranch

Bite RestaurantCahall Brothers

Jungle JimsAuxier GasPadrino’s20 Brix

Old Firehouse BreweryEastgate Brew And View

Clermont Co. Visitors BureauClermont County Farm BureauJones Fish & Lake Management

Southern Ohio Association of RealtorsClermont SWCD’s Amazing Supervisors!

Anspach, Phillips Re-elected to Board of Supervisors

In the election held on September 14th, Dave Anspach (left) retained his seat on the Soil and Water Conservation District’s Board of Supervisors, where he will begin serving his sixth term. Dave lives on the family farm in Owensville and is a past administrator for the district.

Steve Phillips (below) has also retained his seat by being elected to his fourth term as board supervisor. Steve was the District’s Cooperator of the Year in 2008 and a lifelong resident of Clermont County. Their terms will begin January 1, 2018 and run through 2021. Congratulations to both gentlemen and thank you for serving your conservation district and county!

Spring Litter Clean-Up kicks off with T-shirt Design Contest

Clermont SWCD and the Valley View Foundation are kicking off the 2018 Spring Litter Clean-Up (SLC) event with a T-shirt Design Contest for local K-12 students. This year’s contest, sponsored by the Duke Energy Foundation, begins this December and any K-12 student attending a school located in Clermont County or within the East Fork Little Miami River wa-tershed (including home-schooled students) is eligible to compete. T-shirt designs should emphasize litter clean-up and prevention. Students can register for the contest through the event website: www.springlittercleanup.com. The student with the winning design will receive a $100 cash award and an additional $100 gift given to their school art department or local art program. There will also be 13 grade-level awards of $25 each. The 2018 Spring Litter Clean-Up will be held on Saturday, April 21, 2018 at various locations across Clermont County and the East Fork watershed. Entries due to the SWCD office on Friday, Feb. 2, 2018 by 4 pm.

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CalendarMonthly Board Meeting Dec. 13 5pmHoliday (Office Closed) Dec. 25Holiday (Office Closed) Jan. 1Monthly Board Meeting Jan. 10 8amHoliday (Office Closed) Jan. 15Monthly Board Meeting Feb. 14 8amHoliday (Office Closed) Feb. 19Conservation Sale Forms Avail. Late Feb.

Cost of Living 1943

Average cost of new house $3,600.00Average wages per year $2,000.00Cost of a gallon of gas $0.15Average cost for house rent $40.00/mo.Bottle Coca Cola $0.05Average price for a new car $900.00

Crop production 1943Commodity Yield Bu./Ac. $/Bu. Corn 32.6 $1.08 Soybean 18.3 $1.81Wheat 16.4 $1.35

*National Averages

Cost of Living 2016

$ 288,000.00 $ 57,617 $ 1.95 $ 1,021/mo. $ 1.75 $ 34,300

Crop Production 2016Commodity Yield Bu./Ac. $/Bu. Corn 174.6 $3.40 Soybean 52.1 $9.50Wheat 52.6 $3.85

In Celebration of Our Upcoming 75th Anniversary We Take a Look Back to 1943

Jenna Bellonby from Milford H.S. was the 2017 SLC T-shirt design winner (4th from the right)

Calling All ArtistsWant to showcase your art in the Rain Barrel Art Benefit Auction?

Here is How:1. Visit SaveLocalWaters.org website to sign

up and submit your idea for approval by Jan. 222. Once approved attend the artist workshop on February 10 at the Cincinnati Zoo. 3. Pick up your rain barrel at end of the workshop4. Return your painted rain barrel March 29-31 and visit it at the Cincinnati Zoo through April. Simple as that!

This Rain Barrel Art Project was created to promote the use of rain barrels throughout the Ohio River Valley area via an entertaining yet educational medium.

Visit SaveLocalWaters.org for more information.

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CRP Signup ChangesA popular program with the Farm Service Agency (FSA) where landowners can apply for federal assistance to address environmental needs is advising interested applicants to apply and be added to a waiting list. The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), popular with farmers looking to install grassed waterways, filter strips, wildlife plantings, among others has reached its maximum acreage nationwide. This means those on the waiting list will be offered assistance first when signups become available. Please contact your local FSA office for information or additional assistance. Clermont FSA office is 513-732-2181.

Conservation Plant Sale to be Held April 28, 2018

Winter is bearing down, but our thoughts are on the 2018 plant sale. We have new trees, bushes, and flowers we want to share with you to assist with indigenous landscaping. These newcomers include White Oak, American Crabapple, Serviceberry, and Chokeberry. We

will have perennials New England Aster,

Bee Balm and Wild Geranium to add to our favorites Purple Coneflower and Lavender. And new this year we will be adding the annuals Salvia, Torenia and Zinnia to provide Summer-long color and pollinator food.Due to the increased price and decreased availability, we will not be carrying White Pines or Norway Spruce in 2018. We will have 3 packs of the evergreen Arborvitae (White Cedar) and the deciduous evergreen Dawn Redwood available.Our Spring Newsletter will be out at the end of February, and at that time all information regarding the plant sale will be available on our website, clermontswcd.org.So have a wonderful holiday season and start planning your pollinator garden!

Rain Barrel Art Benefit Auction

April 29, 2018

Dawn Redwood

2600 The Farm Fence, pipeline, HUA, watering facilityDoug Auxier Cover cropRoy Barger Jr. Brush management (3)Thomas Bellar Conservation cover, herbaceous weed controlBob Bolce Brush management (3)Tina Bosworth Conservation Stewardship ProgramCincinnati Nature Center Conservation coverCornwell Family Partner. Cover cropE. Weiderhold Farms Nutrient management, cover crop Charles Ernstes Brush management(3) Bob Fee Cover cropJames Fulton Cover cropCarlos Hamilton Critical area planting, Roof and cover (2)Hal Herron Cover cropTed Hollender Nutrient management, cover cropRob Hutchinson Cover cropL & L Farm Holdings Forage planting (2)James Liming Cover cropMark Liming Nutrient management, cover cropMichelle McClain Forage planting (2), pipeline, watering facility, HUA, access road, underground outlet, brush managementJim Metzger Brush management (2)Jeremy Myers Cover cropJames Napier Nutrient mgt. plan

Tony Panetta Cover cropLouis Rose Cover cropTim Rose Grassed waterway (2)Verleigh Powers FenceDon Smith Brush management (2)Charles Stahl Cover crop James Stahl Cover crop John Stahl Cover cropRobert Stahl Cover cropJames Tolliver Brush management (2)Dave Uible Conservation Stewardship ProgramVarick Family Trust Brush management (3) forest stand improveLaura Weber Brush management (5)David Werring Nutrient managementTim Werring Nutrient management, cover cropTony Werring Nutrient management. cover cropDavid Werring Nutrient management, cover crop*(2)- Number of practices completed

Thanks to all our Cooperators for all the Conservation Best Management Practices installed this Year

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All NRCS / SWCD programs and services are offered on a non-discriminatory basis without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation and marital or family status.

Newly installed automatic waterer to facilitate rotational grazing.

Hatfield Bros. Are Honored as District Cooperators of the Year

The Hatfield Brothers including Mark, Lowell, and Ernie are located in Franklin Township. They have been farming in the Felicity area since the mid 1970s. From the beginning, they have been exploring different ways to improve their farming operations, especially from the conservation side of things. Currently, the Hatfields farm around 1000 acres, all of it no-till, and practice conservation crop rotation, but they have placed a special focus on cover crops. Showing their imaginative and innovative side, they have modified their combine by adding seeder boxes and seed tubes, so that during harvest, the cover crop seeds are planted in between the crop rows. For the past two years, they have successfully planted cover crops on every field they farm. They have always been willing to share information on their unique planting method at field days hosted by Soil and Water, and Ernie Hatfield

was one of five farmers highlighted in our Cover Crop Farmers of Southwest Ohio booklet.The Clermont Soil and Water Conservation District commends the Hatfield Brothers for their stewardship efforts, and for being active partners in helping to protect the land and valuable natural resources of the county.

From left Mark Hatfield, Ernie Hatfield, Lowell Hatfield, John McManus, Administrator, Todd Winemiller, Board Member

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Clermont Soil and Water Conservation DistrictP.O. Box 5491000 Locust Street, Owensville, Ohio 45160Phone: 513-732-7075www.clermontswcd.orghttp://www.facebook.com/clermontswcdhttp://www.twitter.com/clermontswcd