Breakfast to Focus on In-Field Conservation Practices

You know the sight: when spring rolls around, the temperatures warm and the snow melts, farm fields across Ashland County will be home to new gullies that popped up seemingly out of nowhere over the winter months.

Those gullies may seem innocent enough, the reality is that it takes 500 years to replace each inch of topsoil eroded in those gullies. So if you’re not planning on farming that field in 500 years when that inch of topsoil is replaced, taking steps to minimize that erosion before it happens is your best bet. The best defense is a good offense.

That’s why Ashland Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) and Ashland County’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) are teaming up to host a farmer breakfast to share the opportunities, ins, and outs of conservation project and program funding to install practices like waterways on Ashland County farms.

Grassed waterways are constructed, graded channels that are seeded with grass. These man-made channels are designed to help move water off of the field down a specific, vegetated path.  The vegetation helps to protect the soil and significantly reduce gully erosion when properly designed and installed.

Waterways are ideal conservation practices for areas where gully erosion is a problem, such as the draws between hills and other low-lying areas on slopes where water tends to concentrate as it runs off a field during and after a storm event.

The Conservation Chat: Outstanding in the Field will take place on Thursday, February 8 at 9 a.m. at the Ashland County Park District Office behind Freer Field at 1301 Park Street in Ashland. Registration is $5/person or free for both parties if you bring a friend.

“Conservation cost share dollars to help farmers implement practices that make a difference to their bottom line and help protect are soil and water resources are more available than ever before,” said Jane Houin, Ashland SWCD director. “We want to share with local farmers what some of those opportunities are, how the federal application process has been streamlined to be more efficient, and the technical assistance our SWCD staff can provide even if producers choose not to participate in a cost-share program.”

To encourage farmers to attend, SWCD and FSA staff and board members will be on-hand to cook custom, made-to-order omelets to kick off the event. With full bellies, farmers will learn the ins and outs of USDA cost-share opportunities for practices like waterways, the funding process and timeline, and how SWCD staff can help design and supervise the installation of a waterway project on the farm.

Registration is $5 per person or free for both parties when you register with a friend, and and omelet breakfast is provided. Preregistration is required and is available by calling 419-281-7645 or online at www.eventbrite.com/e/conservation-chat-outstanding-in-the-field-tickets-780922168227