Greening Your Farm

Elaine Long BaileyCalvert County 4-H Educator

Shannon DillTalbot County Agricultural Extension Educator

The University of Maryland Extension is an Equal Opportunity Employer with Equal Access Programs.

GREEN is . . .

• Conservation-oriented• Environmentally

friendly• Of low ecological

impact• Sustainable• Concerning ourselves

today for what is available tomorrow

• Other?http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Kermit_the_Frog

Conservation-oriented

• Water• Energy• Soil• Other resources

Water on the Farm

Uses

• Water for humans• Water for animals• Water for crops• Water for bathing animals• Water for washing

equipment or facilities

Direct Sources

• Wells• Wells or springs• Wells, springs,

ponds• Wells, springs,

ponds• Wells, springs,

ponds

How can we effectively manage water?

• Keep wells protected (contamination and caving)

• Clean out and protect springs (debris)

• Prevent vegetative overgrowth in ponds

• Repair leaks, drips, and other “escapes” of water

• Proper pasture management/soil protection

Energy•Turn off lights when areas not in use

•Turn off heat (or AC) when areas not in use

•Replace incandescent bulbs with energy saver ones

•Longer life

•More efficient use of electricity

•To learn more, go to www.energystar.gov

Alternatives to Save Energy

• Proper insulation for temperature-sensitive areas

• Tack rooms, observation areas, feed rooms• Bonded Logic’s UltraTouch

insulation• Recycled jeans

• See www.bondedlogic.com

• Cellulose (recycled newspaper)

• Straw

• Wool

http://www.bondedlogic.com/construction-products/ultratouch-denim-insulation

Soil Erosion

• Water• Wind• Relates to water

management, landscaping, farm planning

www.ent.iastate.edu/images/practices/tillage/conventional/erosion.jpg

Some Other Simple Changes

• Use feed bags as trash receptacles

• Recycle paper, plastic, (glass), etc.

• Reduce, recycle, reuse . . . Retrofit, repurpose

• Reuse items imaginatively

Brainstorms: WHAT Do We Have Lots of?

• Baling twine• Baling twine makes neat

craft projects• Repair devices• Scrub buckets

http://www.horsegroomingsupplies.com/pictures/files/9/1/1/3/CoolProject006.jpg

Baling Twine Challenge

Teams of 3-4 people

• Formulate an idea for use of baling twine

• Collect some twine, and GO FOR IT!

Twine Creations

• http://www.alpacabytes.com/2010/02/09/how-to-make-a-recycled-baling-twine-rug

/

http://happilyhome.blogspot.com/2011/02/whats-twine-is-twine-and-whats-twine-is.html

http://www.focusoncommunity.org/BalingTwine.html

Land/Property Management

Nutrient Management

• Nutrient Management incorporates– Soil Tests– Crops and Crop Nutrient Needs– Manure Usage

• Responsible farm management and environmental practice

• Balancing act . . .

Benefits of Nutrient Management

• Reduces fertilizer costs

• Gives pH values – pH helps plants use nutrients

• Better management and usage of forage and pastures

• Better manure handling and management

Basic Types of Pastures• Continuous

– animals graze in the pasture for extended periods of time– animals choose the plants they eat– plants overgrazed and/or undergrazed

Continuous Grazing

Basic Types of Pastures

• Rotational– animals graze for limited period of time – animals moved when existing forage has been removed – intensive rotational grazing systems subdivide pastures

into paddocks and use high stocking rates where animals are forced to eat all forages

– most efficient

Rotational Grazing

Maintaining Pastures• Rotate• Clip• Drag Manure • Irrigate/Sprinkler if possible___________________________________• Soil Test (3 yrs)• Fertilize/Lime• Spray/Herbicide• Overseed

Through the grazing season

Done Yearly

Recycle Manure

• An average 1,000-pound horse produces 9 tons of manure a year

• Manage manure

• Stockpile manure for flexibility in timing of use

• Compost and use for gardens, pastures and flower beds.

http://www.certaindoubt.net/steaming-piles-of-spin/john-with-

Advantages of Composting Horse Manure

• Relatively dry end-product that is easily handled• Reduced volume (40 to 65 % less volume and weight

than raw manure)• Decreased # of fly eggs and larvae, pathogens and weed

seeds (temperature-dependent)• Less odor than raw manure and more easily marketed• Acts as a slow release fertilizer and an excellent soil

conditioner

http://www.extension.org/sites/default/files/w/e/ec/Manure_compost.jpg

Equipment Needed to Compost Horse Manure

• Bin or other covered area

• Tractor

• Manure spreader

• Front-end loader

http://www.deere.com/wps/dcom/en_US/corporate/our_company/news_and_media/press_releases/2012/agriculture/2012aug23_ms23_spreader.page

http://www.icsman.co.nz/products/front-end-loaders/tractor-front-end-loader-3.aspx

Bin Sample

Jessica Paige, WSU Cooperative Extension, Whatcom County

Sustainable Landscapes

• Windbreaks

• Low-Water Landscapes with Natives - Xeriscaping

• Rain Gardens and Rain Barrels

Windbreaks• Slows wind on its downwind side for a distance 10X

the height of the trees

• Shelter for horses

• Provides shelter and food for wildlife

• Reduces dust, thus improves air quality

• Noise reduction

• Can mix in deciduous

trees and shrubs

Eastern Red Cedar

Windbreak Plants•Plant a diverse mix of trees – prevent spread of disease and loss to severe weather

•Eastern Red Cedar, Juniperus virginiana

•Eastern Hemlock, Tsuga canadensis

•Northern White Cedar, Thuja occidentalis

•Eastern White Pine, Pinus strobus

Eastern Hemlock Northern White CedarEastern White

Pine

Low Water LandscapesXeriscaping

• Xeriscaping is a term used for a waterwise, natural landscape using native, drought-tolerant plants. – Mulch beds– Water only when plants need it– Plant trees and shrubs in mass plantings – Improve soil structure– Reduce runoff– Attract pollinators

Redbud

Rudebeckia

Salvia

http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/animals/

Xeriscaping Plant List• Ornamental Trees – Redbud, River Birch, Crapemyrtle

• Shade Trees – Ginkgo, Red Oak, Tupelo, Pin Oak

• Evergreens – American Holly, Red Cedar, Scotch Pine

• Deciduous Shrubs – Red Chokeberry, Smoketree, Pinxterbloom Azalea, Rugosa Rose

• Evergreen Shrubs – Glossy Abelia, Junipers, Northern Bayberry, Cherry Laurel, Pyracantha

• Herbaceous Plants – Butterfly weed, Bearded Iris, Coral Bells, Yarrow, Coreopsis, Red-Hot Poker, Black Eyed Susan, Sedum, Salvia, Hens and Chicks, Goldenrod, Lamb’s Ear, Purple Coneflower, Salvia, Zinnia, Sage

Xeriscaping Plants

Butterfly Weed

Purple Coneflower

Redbud

Black Eyed Susan

Ginkgo Biloba

SedumSalvia

Sage

Sedum

Image Credit: Stanton Gill

Rain GardensA dish-shaped garden that is planted in native,

wetland, wet prairie wildflowers, grasses, trees and shrubs that collect water and recharge the water table, thus preventing polluted runoff.

Rain Garden Features• Designed to collect water, but not hold it

• Berm can be used around the garden to “hold” the water

• After rain, drains in 4-6 days

• Attracts birds, dragonflies, beneficial insects, and pollinators

• Can be used as a buffer to shoreline areas

Plant list for clay soil in full sun

• Red Milkweed - (Asclepias incarnata) • White False Indigo - (Baptista lactea)• Blue Flag Iris - (Iris versicolor) • Smooth Penstemon - (Penstemon digitalis) • Prairie Blazingstar - (Liatris pycnostachya) • Wild Quinine – (Parthenium integrifolium)• Yellow Coneflower – (Ratibida pinnata)• False Aster – (Boltonia asteroides)• Sweet Black-Eyed Susan – (Rudbeckia subtomentosa)• Ironweed – (Vernonia fasciculata)• New England Aster – (Aster novae-angliae)• Stiff Goldenrod – (Solidagio rigida)• Fox Sedge - (Carex vulpinoidea)

*Weems Creek Conservancy

Blue Flag Iris

Prairie Blazingstar

Ironweed

Wild Quinine

Stiff Goldenrod

Fox Sedge

Plant list for loam to sandy/loam soils in full sun

• Red Milkweed – (Asclepia incarnata)• White False Indigo – (Baptista lactea)• Blue Flag Iris – (Iris versicolor)• Smooth Penstemon – (Pestemon digitalis)• Nodding Pink Onion – (Allium cernuum)• Prairie Blazingstar – (Liatris pycnostachya)• Wild Quinine – (Parthenium integrifolium)• False Aster – (Boltonia asteroides)• Sweet Black-Eyed Susan – (Rudbeckia subtomentosa)• Ironweed – (Vernonia fasciculata)• New England Aster – (Aster novae-angliae)• Ohio Goldenrod – (Soldiago ohioensis)• Fox Sedge – (Carex vulpinoidea)

*Weems Creek Conservancy

Red Milkweed

Smooth Penstemon

Nodding Pink Onion

Rain Barrels• Collect and store roof rainwater runoff

• Provide a free source of soft water

• Contains no chlorine, lime or calcium

• Can help reduce your water bill

• Can be directed into a garden

• Easy to build or buy

Image: Low Impact Development Center

Helpful References and Websites• Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and

Conservation Landscaping – U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

• Conservation Choices for Maryland Farmers – MDA

• Xeriscaping and Conserving Water in the Landscape – UME Home & Garden Mimeo #HG25

• www.hgic.umd.edu

• http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/ORG/WATER/WM/dsfm/shore/documents/rgmanual.pdf

Questions?

Thank you!

• Elaine Long Bailey elbailey@umd.edu

The University of Maryland Extension is an Equal Opportunity Employer with Equal Access Programs.