Conservation & Restoration
DGA Update: Take the lead in protecting water
SFA has partnered with NRCS to promote the MN Ag Water Quality Certification Program (MAWQCP). This program is supported by the Natural Resource Conservation Service’s Resource Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). There are currently 1,085 farms certified in the MAWQCP making up 780,000 acres. The MAWQCP is a voluntary opportunity for farmers and agricultural landowners to…
Read MoreBeyond Your Backyard: A historic day on the prairie
I know I promised to uncover the amazing underground world of prairie soils for this next one, but I can’t help but share a historic moment from the prairie! In June, Federally threatened, Dakota skippers, a rare prairie butterfly were released back onto the Minnesota prairie as part of a huge partnership effort to make…
Read MoreBeyond your backyard: Getting back to your roots
This is the first June I can remember living in Minnesota that my grass is already brown and dead in the boulevard (yes, I am one of those people who refuses to water unless you’re a newly planted native plant—then you get VIP treatment). I’m not one bit mad about it because mowing is high on…
Read MoreLuhman: Tree seeds for the future
Are you interested in learning how to collect climate-forward tree seeds? The Forest Assisted Migration Project (FAMP) is developing a network of farmers and community members in central and southern Minnesota who will collect tree seeds and sell them directly to northern tree growers. Anyone can participate! This is a great opportunity to earn extra…
Read MoreBeyond Your Backyard: Brood X
If you’ve been watching the news lately there’s a new celebrity everyone’s talking about. Big bulging eyes, long body in a variety of colors, sturdy wings, and a distinctive call that heralds warmer weather just as surely as its evening costar, the firefly does. This daytime celebrity is none other than the cicada. They’ve been…
Read MoreDGA Update: Study Says Water Quality Certified Farms Show Higher Profits
A new study by the Minnesota State Agricultural Centers of Excellence shows that farmers enrolled in the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program (MAWQCP) had higher profits than non-certified farms. The MAWQCP is a voluntary program for farmers and landowners that protects the state’s water resources by putting farmers in touch with local conservation district experts…
Read MoreBeyond Your Backyard: I’m Ready for Green Things
Photos above by Megan Benage, from left: Virginia bluebells growing in a woodland shade garden. Pasqueflower is one of the first prairie wildflowers to bloom, blooming around Easter; this Queen bumble bee ended up covered in pollen and ready to provision her nest. American plum is important for earth emerging pollinators like queen bumble bees.…
Read MoreBeyond Your Backyard: Now that’s fen-tastic
Nothing makes my heart fill with awe in winter more than a calcareous fen (ok maybe a snow-covered prairie gets me too). These rare, peat accumulating wetlands are fed by a constant supply of upwelling groundwater and formed after the last glaciers receded. You can find them in western Minnesota with the remains of glacial…
Read MoreLuhman: Time to reflect and plan
For many farmers, winter is a time when we are able to slow down. Here at Dry Creek Farms harvest is over, and we are still several months from planting. Last year’s calves are weaned, many are gone, and calving is months away. It’s really just been a great time for me to reflect on…
Read MoreLuhman: Soil Health Practices Benefit Communities
A recent project by Green Lands Blue Waters and the Midwest Perennial Forage Working Group sought to address the damage done by surface water runoff, and they developed the attached graphic. Surface water runoff can be quite destructive to both private and public infrastructure. Did you know that the cost to repair a culvert can…
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