kicking dirt for soil health

Kicking Dirt for Soil HealthMessages from the field

Bill Berry, NACD communications specialist Stevens Point, Wisconsin

[email protected] 341 9119

www.nacdnet.org

SWCS 2014Lombard, Illinois

NACD Soil Health 2014

In brief…

• What is NACD?• NACD soil health activities• Survey of districts• Focus group comments from producers and conservation professionals

• Questions


National Association of Conservation Districts

• Represents 3,000 conservation districts• Almost one in every county• Districts are local partner in the traditional conservation partnership

• Believe in the locally led process to identify and address natural resources issues


NACD and Soil Health Initiative

• Develop, acquire, share soil health materials• Develop training modules • Conduct soil health webinars• Develop certification methods • Conduct focus groups of producers, professionals • Soil Health Initiative as a climate change adaptation strategy


NACD and Soil Health Initiative

• Draft SOPs to integrate soil health into all conservation activities

• Pilot small watershed planning exercise –Producers involved in planning and implementing

• Reach out to new and existing partners to collaborate in advancing soil health concepts


Soil Health Forum, Indianapolis


Survey of districts

Activities across nation• Technical assistance• Tours, workshops, discussion

groups• Cost sharing no‐till and covers• Farmer‐led cadres• Added staff to promote• Rent no‐till drills• Organize aerial spraying• Share peer lists

Activities across nation• Soil health workshops for

disadvantaged farmers• Order seed through districts• Offer free soil testing• No‐till demonstration plots


Survey of districts

• Needs– Funding!– Share their stories – Consistent practice standards

– Promote nationally with general public

– More outreach materials


• Needs– Help remove barriers within USDA and crop insurance

– Advocate for research to back up practices

Focus groups

• Northern Plains region producers, professionals

• National producers, professionals

• Majority of voices were producers


Northern Plains Leaders

• Need Field‐level research • Districts may be able to encourage and facilitate

• Research must clearly show economic gains

• Soil health strategies are effective weather adaptation tools

• For both drought and flooding



• Lack of cover crop seeds is a challenge• Cereal rye, a preferred crop, is in high demand• Cover crops work well in cattle/grain operations on the Northern Plains

• Districts may find new niches for providing new equipment: “highboys”

• Training must be a priority: employees, boards



• Soil health ambassador peers essential • In many states, the soil health movement is producer‐led

• Producer interest in education is high• Long‐term commitment from agencies and partners essential


NACD National Voices

• Training opportunities vary widely: None to many

• Lots of peer‐to‐peer education

• “Information gap”• Producers doing research on their own



• “Just getting into this”• Resistance to no‐till in some settings• Big opportunities on highly erodible soils• High cost of fertilizer is impetus (Guam)• Put soil health in your district work plans• Attach soil health to all conservation systems• There’s a shortage of no‐till equipment



• Need industry buy‐in• Don’t have runoff problems, have infiltration problems

• Farmer‐led movement until recently• Many land grants are way behind• Soil health is site‐specific• That opens up doors for local conservation



• Some states building resiliency to weather extremes

• Staff training should be a high priority• Tie to other conservation problems• Aquifer depletion is a great sales tool for soil health

• Educate, document, demonstrate


Kicking Dirt for Soil HealthMessages from the field

Bill Berry, NACD communications specialist Stevens Point, Wisconsin

[email protected] 341 9119

www.nacdnet.org

SWCS 2014Lombard, Illinois


QUESTIONS?

kicking dirt for soil health

Environment