Author: rjones@iaagwater.org
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Rooted in Stewardship: How Iowa Corn Growers Can Stay the Course on Conservation
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By Greg Wandrey, Ph.D., Director of Sustainability, Iowa Corn Growers Association As an Iowa row-crop farmer, you know that cover crop season doesn’t start after harvest—it starts during the growing season. Although most cover crops are planted after harvest, some of you are already seeding cover crop seed into the standing crop before harvest. It’s…
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Momentum and Mission: Why I Believe in Iowa’s Conservation Future
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By Jeff Lucas As a kid who grew up in Southeast Iowa where the Skunk and Des Moines rivers pour into the Mississippi, I developed an early respect for farmers and their role in improving the water we use every day. Now, I’m grateful to mark my one-year anniversary as executive director of Iowa Agriculture…
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Motherhood on the farm: Easy? No. Worth it? Yes.
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Motherhood on the farm: Easy? No. Worth it? Yes. Guest Mother’s Day post by Paula Ellis Being a mom is not an easy job. Being a farmer is not an easy job. Being a mom and farmer is definitely not an easy job. But we’re all the same; We just face different obstacles and challenges…
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A Sensible Trio: Farming, Conservation, and Motherhood
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A Sensible Trio: Farming, Conservation, and Motherhood Guest Mother’s Day post by Kate Edwards, Wild Woods Farm You can find Wild Woods Farm on Instagram, their website, and Facebook. Our farm is a pocket-sized farm, like the corner grocery you love, because you know where every item is and don’t have to wander far. I…
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What’s a bioreactor? New video reveals underground flow of water
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DES MOINES, Iowa (IAWA) — The Iowa Ag Water Alliance and several partners are releasing a new animated video that shows how bioreactors and saturated buffers clean tile drainage. It will be a critical tool in helping agronomists and water quality professionals promote these practices on farms. What happens underground in a bioreactor or…
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IAWA wins top honors for costsharecompare.com
Posted onCategories: Spotlight Stories
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (IAWA) – The Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance proudly received recognition for its website to help farmers demystify the many cover crop cost share options available to them. The website, costsharecompare.com, allows Iowa farmers to filter cover crop payment programs by important factors like contract length, rates, and funding source. They can then compare details…
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Taking control of water management on Iowa’s flat, fertile cropland
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Drainage Water Management practices support crop success, soil health, water quality ADAIR, Iowa (IAWA) – Underground drainage tile has long been the go-to answer for handling water in northern and central Iowa’s flat, fertile, slow-draining cropland – but a newer approach is letting farmers choose how much water leaves their field and when. That approach,…
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Beyond cost share – more bang for your cover crop buck
Posted onCategories: Spotlight Stories
Cover crop seeding, equipment options can help save time, money By Adam Sodders ANKENY, Iowa (IAWA) – As cover crop acres have spread across Iowa in the last 10 years, Iowa farmers are ever more aware of their powerful water quality and soil benefits – and of the public and private cost share programs helping…
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Taylor County’s Erin Ogle named 2024 Watershed Coordinator of the Year
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TAYLOR COUNTY, IA (IAWA) — Erin Ogle, Project Coordinator for the Taylor Soil and Water Conservation District, has been named the 2024 Watershed Coordinator of the Year for her programs that not only improve water quality, but also support local businesses in Southwest Iowa. Ogle’s work revolves around livestock-friendly conservation. Through the Iowa Working Lands…
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Practicing what he preaches: Nevada teacher-farmer earns water quality Impact Award
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Kevin Cooper brings on-farm water quality efforts to his classroom and community NEVADA, Iowa (IAWA) – For Nevada High School Vocational Ag teacher and part-time farmer Kevin Cooper, water quality practices aren’t just a textbook topic – they’re a part of his life that he shares with his students and community. That combo of education,…