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Conservation Choices
Your Guide to Conservation and Environmental Farming Practices
Implementing conservation
practices on your farm increases your economic flexibility and long term
profitability while strengthening your stewardship of natural resources and
the environment.
The conservation practices
presented below represent some of the more common approaches to ensure
sustainability and eliminate, if not reduce, environmental degradation. The
soil, water, and related natural resources will benefit by these and other
conservation practices. Additional information is available on the NRCS New
York
electronic Field Office Technical Guide (eFOTG).
Total Resource Management
The key to a successful total resource management system takes careful and
complete planning, patience, organization, and teamwork
Like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, each practice fits together with others
to create a complete system that protects resources found on your land.
When designing a total resource management plan, remember to...
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Take an inventory; think about every field, pasture, pond, stream, and
wooded area
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Consider which conservation practices would contribute to an environmentally and economically sound farm
Checklist:
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What are the natural resources on my farm?
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What crops do I plan to plant?
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Have I minimized runoff?
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Am I using crop rotations to reduce disease and pest problems?
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What type of wildlife would I like on my
farm?
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Does any practice interfere with or cancel out another practice?
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Can I use wetlands or filter strips to filter nutrients from runoff water?
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Am I making the best use of animal manure as nutrients for plants?
Conservation Practices You Can Apply to Your
Land
Each Conservation Practice lists the benefits it
can provide:
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Air Quality - This practice reduces improves air quality reducing odor and other problems.
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Profits - Use this practice to increase profits by reducing cost, increasing
production, or both.
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Soil Erosion - The practice reduces soil erosion and sediment runoff, or may add
organic matter to the soil.
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Water Quality - The practice protects or improves water quality.
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Wildlife - You're thinking of wildlife by providing habitat or food sources with this
practice.
Select a Conservation Practice to learn it's purpose and how it helps to
improve your land.
Contour Buffer Strips
Contour buffer strips are strips of grass
or legumes in a contoured field, which help trap sediment and nutrients. Similar to stripcropping, buffers have more narrow grass/legume strips.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Vegetation provides cover and habitat for
small birds and animals
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The strips reduce erosion by slowing water
flow and increasing water infiltration into soil
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By reducing siltation and filtering
nutrients and chemicals from runoff, grass strips improve water quality
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Contour farming
Contour farming is farming with row patterns that run nearly level around the hill, not up and down the hill.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
How it helps
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Contouring can reduce soil erosion by as much as 50% from up and down hill farming
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By reducing sediment and runoff, and increasing water infiltration, contouring promotes better water quality
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Contour Stripcropping
Contour stripcropping is crop rotation and contouring combined in equal-width strips of corn or soybeans
planted on the contour and alternated with strips of oats, grass, or legumes.
Benefits
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Cover Crop
Cover crops are a close-growing crop that temporarily protects the soil when crop residues are not adequate.
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Air Quality
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
How it helps
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Cover crops keep ground covered, add organic matter to the soil, trap nutrients, improve soil tilth, and reduce weed competition
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Critical Area Planting
Critical area plantings consist of grass or other vegetation that protects badly eroding areas from soil erosion.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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It reduces soil erosion
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A vegetated area improves water quality by
reducing the amount of sediment, nutrients, and chemicals running off
farmland
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Protects areas such as dams, terrace back slopes, or gullied areas when vegetation may be difficult to establish
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Vegetation can be planted to provide small areas of nesting cover for birds and small animals
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Crop Residue Management
Crop residue management is leaving last year’s crop residue on the soil
surface by limiting tillage. Includes no-till, mulch till, ridge till, and strip till.
Benefits
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Air Quality
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Ground cover prevents soil erosion and protects water quality
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Residue improves soil tilth and adds organic matter to the soil as it decomposes
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Fewer trips and less tillage reduces soil compaction
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Time, energy and labor savings are possible with fewer tillage trips
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Crop Rotation
Crop rotation is changing the crops grown in a field, usually year by year.
Benefits
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Pesticide costs may be reduced by naturally breaking the cycles of weeds, insects, and diseases
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Grass and legumes in a rotation protect water quality by preventing excess nutrients or chemicals from entering water supplies
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Meadow or small grains cut soil erosion dramatically
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Crop rotations add diversity to an operation
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Diversion
Diversion is an earthen embankment similar to a terrace that directs runoff
water from a specific area.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Reduces soil erosion on lowlands by catching runoff water and preventing it from reaching farmland below
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Vegetation in the diversion channel filters runoff water, improving water quality
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Vegetation provides cover for small birds and animals
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Allows better crop growth on bottomland soils
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Farm Pond
A farm pond is a pool of water formed by a dam or pit that supplies
water for livestock, recreation, wildlife, and helps control gully
erosion.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Prevents soil erosion and protects water quality by collecting and storing runoff water
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Provides water for livestock, fish, wildlife, and recreational activities
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Adds value and beauty to a farm or farmstead
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Provides a water supply for emergencies
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Field Border
A field border is a strip of grass or legumes established at the edge of a field used in place of end rows.
Benefits
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Vegetative cover reduces sheet and rill erosion by slowing water flow
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Vegetation filters runoff, improving water quality
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Grass and legume strips may be harvested in some cases and are easier to turn on than end rows
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Vegetation provides cover and habitat for small birds and animals
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Filter Strip
Filter strips are strips of grass, trees, or shrubs that filter or clean
runoff and remove contaminants before they reach water bodies or water
sources, such as wells.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Grass, trees and shrubs provide cover for small birds and animals
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Ground cover reduces soil erosion
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The vegetative strip moves row crop operations farther from a stream
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Vegetation prevents contaminants from
entering water bodies, protecting water quality
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Grade Control Structure
A grade control structure is an earthen, wooden, concrete, or other type
of structure built across a drainageway that prevents gully erosion.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Grade control structures are often used at the outlet of a
grassed waterway to stabilize the waterway outlet, preventing gully
erosion
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Grassed, non-eroding waterways made possible with a grade
control structure provide better water quality, can be easily
crossed with equipment, and look better than non-stabilized gullies
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If designed to store water, a grade control structure may
provide a water source and habitat for wildlife
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Grassed Waterway
Grassed waterways are shaped to establish a natural drainageway that
prevent gullies from forming by safely conveying water flows off the
field.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Grass cover protects the drainageway from gully erosion
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Vegetation may act as a filter, absorbing some of the chemicals and nutrients in runoff water
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Vegetation provides cover for small birds and animals
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Manure Testing
Manure testing is used to sample and test manure to determine nutrient content. This promotes proper nutrient application to fields.
Benefits
How it helps
Manure testing and proper application to
the land can reduce crop input costs Preventing over-application of
manure to crop fields results in improved water quality
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Manure Storage
Manure storage structures protect water bodies from manure runoff by storing manure until conditions are appropriate
for field application.
Benefits
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Air Quality
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Profits
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Water Quality
How it helps
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Protects water quality by preventing runoff from feedlots
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Cuts fertilizer costs and reduces nutrient losses
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Allows for field application when conditions are right
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Nutrient Management
Nutrient management is applying the correct amount and form of plant nutrients for optimum yield with minimal impacts on water quality.
Benefits
How it helps
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Sound nutrient management reduces input costs
and protects water quality by preventing over application of commercial
fertilizers and animal manure
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Correct manure and sludge application on all fields can improve soil
tilth and organic matter
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Pasture Planting
Pasture planting is used to plant grass and legumes that reduce soil erosion and improve production.
Benefits
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Heavy grass cover slows water flow, reducing soil erosion
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Good pastures protect water quality by filtering runoff water and increasing infiltration
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Lush pastures offer wildlife cover and habitat As plants recycle and roots die, organic matter in the soil is improved
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Pest Management
Pest management is evaluating and using a tailored pest management system to reduce crop and environmental damages.
Scouting is done to identify insects, weeds, and diseases.
Benefits
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
How it helps
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Scouting and spot treatment of only those pests that are threatening can save money
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Using fewer chemicals improves water quality
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Specific treatments for specific pests on specific areas of a field prevents over-treatment of pests
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Planned Grazing Systems
Planned grazing systems use forage
plantings and grazing rotations to maximize production and reduce
sediment and nutrient runoff. Remember to consider food, water,
and herd size.
Benefits
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Improves vegetative cover, reducing
erosion and improving water quality
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Increases harvest efficiency and helps
ensure adequate forage throughout grazing season
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Increases forage quality and production
which helps increase feed efficiency and can improve profits
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Rotating also evenly distributes manure
nutrient resources
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Stream Protection
Stream protection is a practice that protects streams by excluding livestock and establishing buffer zones of vegetation to filter runoff.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Streambanks are covered with rocks, grass, trees, or other cover to reduce erosion
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Better water quality results from reducing amounts of nutrients, chemicals, animal waste, and sediment entering the stream
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Buffer zones provide cover and habitat for birds and small animals
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Terrace
A terrace is an earthen embankment around a hillside that stops water flow and stores it or guides it safely off a field.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Tree Planting
Tree planting is used to establish trees in areas adapted to
woodlands.
Benefits
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Air Quality
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Improving stands of woodlands can increase profits
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Ground cover created by trees and associated debris protects soil for rill and sheet erosion
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Ground cover also protects water quality by filtering excess nutrients and chemicals from surface runoff
and increasing infiltration rates
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Healthy, well-managed woodlands provide long-term wildlife habitat
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Water and Sediment Control Basin
A water and sediment control basin is a short earthen dam built across a drainageway where a terrace is impractical;
usually part of a terrace system.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Basins improve water quality by trapping sediment on uplands and preventing it from reaching water bodies
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Structures reduce gully erosion by controlling water flow within a drainage area
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Grass cover may provide habitat for wildlife
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Well Protection
Well protection is necessary when changing farming practices which occur on
or near the farmstead in order to reduce the risk of contamination of water
sources, mainly the well.
Benefits
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Wetlands
A wetland is a marsh-type area with saturated soils and water-loving plants.
Wetlands provide wildlife habitat and serve as natural filters of agricultural runoff.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Wetlands can provide natural pollution
control. They remove nutrients, pesticides, and bacteria form surface waters
and can act as efficient, low-cost sewage and animal waste treatment
practices
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Wetlands filter and collect sediment from
runoff water
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Because wetlands slow overland flow and store
runoff water, they reduce both soil erosion and flooding downstream
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Many wetlands release water slowly into the ground which recharges
groundwater supplies
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Wetland Enhancement
Wetland enhancement is installing practices such as dikes into existing wetlands to manage water levels and improve habitat.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Wetlands filter nutrients, chemicals, and sediment before water infiltrates into ground water supplies
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Wetlands provide habitat for waterfowl and many other species of wildlife
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Wetlands add beauty and value to a farm
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Wildlife Food Plot
Wildlife food plots establishes a variety of plants that furnish food for
wildlife.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Standing crops with unharvested grain provide food to wildlife that may otherwise not be accessible
after heavy snows or ice
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A food plot helps maintain wildlife on your farm by providing a reliable
food source
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Wildlife Upland Habitat
Wildlife upland habitat is designed to create, maintain, or improve food and cover for a variety of upland wildlife.
Benefits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Ground cover reduces soil erosion, adds organic matter to the soil,
filters runoff, and increases infiltration
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It can add value to your farmstead
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Planned wildlife habitat provides food and cover for wildlife
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Windbreak
Windbreaks are rows of trees and shrubs that protect areas from wind and
provide food and cover for wildlife.
Benefits
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Air Quality
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Wildlife
How it helps
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A windbreak reduces wind erosion, conserves energy, reduces heating bills and beautifies a farmstead
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Trees serve as a sound barrier, muffling road noise
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Trees and shrubs provide wildlife food and cover
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Improved livestock weight gains can be expected when livestock are protected from winter winds and snow
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Woodland Management
Woodland management improves the quality and quantity of woodland growing
stock and maintains ground cover and litter for soil and water conservation.
Benefits
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Air quality
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Profits
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Soil Erosion
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Water Quality
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Wildlife
How it helps
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Challenges Ahead
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Farmers are applying conservation and environmental practices to their land at record rates.
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Farmers have accepted the challenge of protecting our natural resources and continue to
educate themselves about new technologies and techniques as they are developed.
Your Helping Hand to Conservation
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s technical staff is here
to give you a hand to help you put conservation on the land and protect and preserve our natural resources.
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