ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times
As spring nears, there will be more of the sights and sounds of combines and tractors hitting the fields of Southwest Kansas as agricultural production picks up.
Producers are always looking for ways to get more out of their crops, and for many, this starts with the soil the product is grown in.
Feb. 26, the Seward County, Stevens County and Morton County Conservation Districts will be helping farmers learn ways to improve their soil’s health, cut costs and boost yields, and Seward County Conservation District Manager Patti Amerin said the Soil Health Workshop is perfect for farmers ready to grow sustainability.
The Soil Health Workshop is one of two items the conservation districts will incorporate. The workshop will take place in the morning at the Seward County Ag Building, and after lunch, the day switches gear to a Local Working Group (LWG).
“That is for producers to have an opportunity to input some of the programs they’d like to see implemented in our counties in this part of the state,” Amerin said.
The Soil Health Workshop starts at 9 a.m., and the Local Working Group will start at 1 p.m. Amerin said the workshop will feature two speakers, the first of whom is Kansas Association of Conservation Districts (KACD) Soil Health Specialist Candy Thomas, who will be helping producers with a “Getting More Out of Your Soil Test.”
The second speaker will be Oklahoma State Extension Specialist for Cropping Systems Josh Lofton, who will be helping farmers “Intensify Cropping Systems.”
Amerin said a graduate student is also scheduled to present, and a wind erosion demonstration will also be part of the morning.
With water being a precious resource in Southwest Kansas, Amerin said producers need to look to other means to improve their soil health such as cover crops. This likewise helps with erosion.
“Sometimes, adding an additional crop you don’t normally raise – like hay – helps hold the soil from blowing,” she said. “You don’t work the ground as much. It helps maintain the moisture.”
Stevens County District Conservationist Keri Morris will be on hand to address issues and answer questions about what the Natural Resources Conservation Service has available to help in these areas.
“There is cost share for renozzling sprinkler packages if they can qualify,” Amerin said. “They do have cover crop cost share. Some of that is through NRCS. Some of that is through the districts.”
Amerin said workshops such as the Feb. 26 event help get out the word about what is available for producers to utilize.
“Sometimes, people just don’t know these things,” she said. “You never know what you’re going to hear. I’ve never heard Josh Lofton speak before. He comes highly recommended, and we were fortunate to get him.”
Stevens County Conservation District Manager Sheena Shuck said she learns something new from every workshop she attends.
“It is very important to come and see something you might to do in your operation,” she said. “It might help you.”
Morton County Conservation District Manager Shala Larue said knowing what programs districts and NRCS offices have to help farmers is important.
“It’ll answer a lot of their questions on how we can help them out,” she said.
In the afternoon, the Local Working Group begins, and Larue said the importance of this event is to allow producers to have a voice to address concerns about programs they would like to see from conservation districts and NRCS.
“We can change some of those programs at NRCS,” she said. “That’s a very important session for all of them to participate in so they can get their voices heard. The Local Work Group will make their voices heard, and we report that to the state.”
The purpose of the LWG meeting is to make recommendations to the NRCS state conservationist related to addressing natural resource concerns at the local level.
“LWGs are important because they provide recommendations based on local and state natural resource priorities and criteria for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s activities and programs,” KACD Executive Director Dan Meyerhoff said. “It is crucial the ‘boots on the ground’ have a voice in the process.”
Meyerhoff said the LWG should be diverse and focus on agricultural interests and natural resource issues existing in the community. Membership should include agricultural producers representing the variety of crops, livestock and poultry raised within the local area, owners of non-industrial private forest land, representatives of agricultural and environmental organizations and governmental agencies carrying out agricultural and natural resource conservation and activities.
Amerin said LWGs also take into account concerns of particular historically underserved groups and individuals, including but not limited to women, persons with disabilities, socially disadvantaged and limited resource groups.
“Each of these people who are speaking will take questions and answers,” she said. “If something’s brought up, there’s plenty of time for their discussion with these people concerning maybe things they’ve not even talked about that they would have knowledge about.”
In addition to everything else, Amerin said there may be some brief discussions regarding grazing.
“They’re welcome to bring questions about that as well,” she said. “This was supposed to have been a two-day event, and we were going to concentrate on soil. The other counties were going to concentrate on grazing. We were going to do these together, but that second one up north fell apart.”
To RSVP for the Soil Health Workshop, call Amerin at 620-624-2421, Ext. 3, Shuck at 620-544-2261, Ext. 314 or Larue at 620-697-1222. To RSVP for the LWG or to request more information about it, contact the Seward County Conservation District or NRCS staff by calling 620-624-241, Extension 0770. Those planning to attend are asked to RSVP by Feb. 19.
Lunch will be provided by Brick House Barbecue & Brew. The first 25 attendees will receive a free Milwaukee gift. Additional door prizes will be given throughout the event.
