2021 Soil & Water Conservation

SOIL&WATER CONSERVATION Douglas County Conservation District

YEAR IN REVIEW

2020 – let’s hope we never have another year like it. Due to COVID restrictions, district operations changed. Working from home with limited time in the office became the new normal, the USDA Service Center remains locked down, open only to office staff. Hosting a typical slate of education and outreach activities could not happen. While many things did change, conservation work continued, the environment waits for no one.

So what did we accomplish in 2020? After devasting rains in 2019, the District’s board approved a $25,000 emergency terrace repair fund to help landowners fix damaged terraces cause by

those rains. By the end of 2020, terrace repairs were conducted on 17 different properties in Douglas County, saving the county tons of topsoil and helping landowners with costly repairs.

As part of normal operations, the District allocated $10,509 from the state’s NonPoint Source program and $19,534 from its Water Resource program to landowners and producers needing assistance with conservation infrastructure. These funds helped producers and landowners with terrace and tile installations, stream crossings, waterway development, well decommissioning, soil testing, and even septic

PLEASE JOIN US Douglas County Conservation District

75TH ANNUAL MEETING

The Douglas County Conservation District’s annual meeting will look a little different this year. Due to COVID, and to ensure we are staying within county guidelines, our annual meeting will be virtual via Zoom.

Please check our Facebook page or website for updates and a link to the meeting as the meeting time gets closer. https://www.facebook. com/douglasccd/ and www.douglasccd.com.

Expiring terms for Board Supervisor this year are David Brown and Jordan Olsen – both have consented to run for re-election. David and Jordan have both served the board for six years.

Voting for Board Supervisors will take place

before the meeting. Voters may request an official ballot by contacting the District at douglasccd1@gmail.com. Only one ballot may be requested per person, and all votes must be completed in full and returned to our office by February 17, 2021, to allow time for counting.

AGENDA • Report of district activities and financial affairs for the prior year.

• Election of board Supervisor(s) to serve for a term of three years.

Call our office at 785-843-4260 ext. 3 or e-mail douglasccd1@gmail.com should you have any questions.

repairs.

Working in partnership with the NRCS, the District helped producers and landowners implement 75 Environmental Quality Incentive program (EQIP) contracts valued at more than $1,300,000 and 24 Conservation Stewardship Program Grassland Conservation Initiative (CSPGCI) contracts valued at over $56,000.

The District continued to offer our no-till drills for rent at reasonable rates, with more than 40 people taking advantage of the equipment. Many of those people also took advantage of our seed sale program, purchasing native warm-season grass seed, cool-season grass seed, wildflowers, and forbs. We also provided drip torches, fire mats, and backpack sprayers to people conducting prescribed burns.

The District is looking forward to 2021 and the opportunity to again offer educational activities to the public once again once county restrictions ease. Watch our Facebook page and website for information on future events.

Kansas Association of Conservation Districts The mission of the Kansas Association of Conservation Districts (KACD) is “Providing local leadership to protect and improve Kansas Natural Resources through collaboration, education, and implementation.”

On April 14, 1935, an estimated 300 million tons of soil blew from the land. That day, known as “Black Sunday,” the people of the Great Plains suffered the devastating effects of a massive drought.

It was one of the darkest periods in Kansas history.

However, just as every cloud has a silver lining, out of those dust clouds came a firm commitment to soil conservation. In 1937, the Kansas Legislature passed a bill that created conservation districts in Kansas. With that action, Kansas began a Commitment to conservation that has lasted more than eight decades.

The Kansas Association of Conservation Districts was established in 1944. And is comprised of five elected board members that represent the state.

Its members are the Conservation Districts located in the state’s 105 counties, consisting of 525 Volunteer Supervisors, 102 District Managers, 9 Administrative Support Positions, and 44 Technical Support Positions.

Throughout its history, KACD has helped forge key partnerships among federal, state, local, and non-governmental entities, all committed to a common goal: wise and efficient conservation practices to protect the state’s natural resources.

KACD and the conservation districts partner with: • State Conservation Commission • USDA - Natural Resources Conservation February 14, 2021

Service (NRCS) and • Farm Service Agency (FSA) • Kansas Department of Agriculture - Division of Conservation (DOC) • Kansas Water Office (KWO) • Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) • Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) • Kansas Department of Wildlife Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) • Kansas Forest Service (KFS) • K-State Research and Extension • Local Watershed Districts, County Commissions, County Health • Departments and other Non-Governmental Organizations Supported by KACD, Conservation districts have a unique partnership with the NRCS. In the 95 counties where NRCS has an office, conservation districts share office space. Each district has a Local Operating Agreement with NRCS to guide the partnership to deliver technical and financial assistance to producers. In FY 2020, conservation districts assisted NRCS in providing conservation that resulted in the following work: • Environmental Quality Incentive Program, EQIP - 942 contracts for $34,816,385 • Regional Conservation Partnership Program, RCPP - 67 contracts for $2,552,184 • Agricultural Conservation Easement Program, ACEP - 13 contracts for $2,873,241 • Conservation Stewardship Program, CSP - 98 Advertisement

contracts for $14,017,044 • Conservation Stewardship Program-Grassland Conservation Initiative, CSP-GCI - 640 contracts for $3,587,527 • Water Quality improvements on 925,715 acres • Range Health improvements on 555,679 acres • Soil Health improvements on 690,282 acres We at the Douglas County Conservation District look forward to the continued support of KACD as we strive to improve conservation efforts in Douglas County.

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SOIL&WATER CONSERVATION

Soil Testing When speaking with new landowners about improving their property, we often get the question, “where do I start?” Our answer is always a soil test.

Soil tests provide information on the basic fertility of the soil. It is the starting point for determining how much and which fertilizers/nutrients to use on a crop, field, garden, or pasture. Without a soil test, nutrient management is just a guess. Through a grant from the Douglas County Conservation District, K-State Research and Extension, Douglas County offers county residents up to 5 free soil tests each year. The District provides soil probes and sampling tools at no charge to Douglas County residents.

Where to start?

Proper collection of a representative soil sample is important for accuracy and analysis of test results. Follow these steps to obtain a good sample: 1. Decide if your field can be treated as one sample or needs to be broken down into separate smaller samples. If you believe the soil type, previous crop and fertilizer treatments are consistent across the field, treat it as one sample. If soil type and topography change across the field, different crops have been planted on different parts of the field, or there are problem spots, break the field down into smaller units to sample.

2. Using a soil probe, dig vertically to a depth of 4 inches for established fields such as brome, alfalfa, or a no-till field. Fields that are worked up should have samples taken from 6 inches. Avoid sampling in old fence rows, dead furrows, low spots, feeding areas, and other areas that might give unusual results. If information is desired on these unique areas, obtain a separate sample from the area.

3. Take at least 10 – 15 samples from the field and mix the samples in a clean container to

create a representative sample. The more subsamples you take, the more assured you’ll be that soil test results are representative of your field. Bring approximately two cups of the mixed soil to the Douglas County Extension Office in a paper bag.

4. Samples should be dry. You can let samples air dry, but do not use heat to dry your samples 5. Bring or mail the soil sample(s) to Douglas County K-State Research and Extension, 2110 Harper St. Lawrence, KS 66046.

You will need to provide the following information:

• Name, complete mailing address, e-mail and phone number.

• Sample depth.

• Previous crop and its yield, if available.

• Intended crop and a yield goal (indicate if this is a new seeding for pastures).

• If pasture, classify as brome, fescue, or native/ prairie.

Once submitted, you should have your results in 2-3 weeks. For additional information, please use the following link: https://www.douglas.k-state. edu/crops-livestock/testing/Soil_Testing.html

pasture, fertilizing in the fall is recommended.

Based on your soil sample results, 40% of your recommendation should be applied in the late summer to support fall grazing. The remaining 60% should be applied before forage growth in the spring. When you get your results back, your local extension agent will contact you to help you through the process.

Weeds can take many different methods to control.

Knowing what weeds you have is important in creating a management plan. Late summer and fall is the easiest time to identify weeds. If you wait until spring to identify the new growth, it can be harder to identify. When you know what weeds you have now, it allows you to plan in the spring for additional control methods as many weeds respond best to herbicides earlier in their growing season.

We are also moving into the end of the window for

some herbicide use. Mowing pasture can be a useful method to inhibit weeds. By mowing, you reduce the ability for that weed to reproduce through seed. Also, if you graze cattle, mowing/clipping off the tops of forage can help with pink eye management due to the irritation caused by seed heads on both weeds and good forage. For help identifying and creating management plans, contact the extension office.

We see brome and fescue on many pastures in this area of Kansas. Tall fescue is best seeded in the fall in Kansas. Be sure to use either endophyte-free or non-toxic varieties of tall fescue when seeding if improved animal performance is the main objective.

Smooth Brome can be planted in late summer/early fall, winter, and early spring. For Douglas County, optimum brome seeding dates are Fall: Aug 15-Sept 20, Winter: Dec 1-Feb15, Spring: Feb 15-Apr 1.

At an early age, my grandfather always told me, “it’s not if the cows get out; it’s when.” No matter how good your fence is, livestock always manages to find a way to escape. But that doesn’t mean it is not important to check fences before the temperatures drop. Pay attention to posts and fix any broken ones.

It is easier to fix now versus when the ground is frozen.

If you have questions regarding managing your pasture, contact Mallory Meek, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent.

Pasture Management in the Fall It’s Never too Early to Plan

By Mallory Meek,

Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent

Owning and maintaining a productive plot of land is no easy task. Fall is an important time to make observations, sample, and plan.

For good grass production, the soil has to have the proper nutrients to support forage growth. Anytime between now and when the ground freezes is a good time to take a soil sample. Your soil test results will give an accurate representation of what your ground may be lacking and what fertilizers need to be applied. Soil sampling can be submitted through the extension office. Douglas County agriculture producers are eligible for up to 5 free soil tests each year thanks to a Douglas County Conservation District grant.

If you are using your plot of ground for grazing

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SOIL&WATER CONSERVATION

Pasture Condition Score (PCS)

By Douglas J. Spencer,

State Grazing Specialist, Salina, KS

Livestock owners frequently assess their livestock’s condition and health using an assessment known as Body Condition Score (BCS). It is a procedure that looks at muscle and fat areas (energy reserves) to indicate the animal’s nutritional status. Did you know there is a similar procedure to determine pasture conditions? It is known as Pasture Condition Score (PCS) and helps land owners and operators determine their pasture resource conditions. Suppose the BCS or PCS assessments are not utilized. In that case, the manager risks missing a slip in condition that can quickly result in reduced production or extra expense trying to recover the loss.

PCS looks at ten specific indicators to get an overall condition score of the pasture resource. Assessing these individual indicators offers glimpses into the ecological processes (water cycle, energy flow, and nutrient cycle) and how they function in the pasture environment. Like the livestock owner has a BCS guide indicating the areas to assess on the animal and a rating to assess the proper thickness of muscle and fat, a PCS scoresheet exists to identify the specific indicators to assess in the pasture the desired ratings for each. The indicators to assess are percent desirable plants, percent legume, live plant cover, plant diversity, plant residue and litter, grazing utilization and severity, livestock concentration areas, soil compaction and soil regenerative features, plant vigor, and erosion.

For any assessment to provide valuable results, it has to be completed

on the appropriate subject. Livestock producers do not use a BCS for sheep to properly rate beef cattle because the animal and ratings are different.

In Kansas, we have both pasture and rangeland that provide forage for livestock grazing. Pasture includes introduced forages, such as smooth brome, tall fescue, and bermudagrass.

Unlike rangeland, pastures receive periodic renovation and cultural treatments, such as inter-seeding, fertilization, mowing, weed control, and may be irrigated. While many rangeland fields are referred to as “pastures,” the PCS is not designed for range assessment. The range resource is evaluated with a Rangeland

PROTECT YOUR

Health Assessment (RHA) and more information can be found at your local NRCS office or conservation district office.

BCS for livestock is often completed during designated stages of production (calving, breeding, maintenance, etc.) so grazing and feeding decisions can be made. Designated periods to conduct PCS include: as a benchmark condition of the pasture, early in the growing season before grazing events occur, at peak forage supply periods, at low forage supply periods, at plant stress periods (such as drought or very wet conditions), and when conservation practices (management) have been fully applied.

Conducting a PCS can help identify the underlying problems and/or provide answers to various questions with regards to pasture management.

What plants are capturing solar energy? Are these plants desirable to my grazing livestock? Why is that “weed” showing up? Why are the cattle acting hungry when they have all of this grass? Why is the grass showing stress when we just had rain? Why didn’t that fertilizer application give me the boost in production I was hoping for?

By evaluating and rating the various indicators, the land owner and/or operator begins to reveal the extent of any pasture challenges and what the likely causes are. Like putting a puzzle together, the land manager can now piece together individual indicators to create a complete picture of the pasture’s condition. What would the pieces reveal in your pasture(s)? If you’d like to find out, NRCS provides technical assistance with assessing Pasture Condition Score (PCS).

The NRCS Guide to Pasture Condition Scoring can be downloaded using the following link: https:// www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/ main/national/landuse/rangepasture/ pasture/pub/ For assistance, please contact your local NRCS office or conservation district office located at your local county U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Service Center (listed in the telephone book under United States Government or on the internet at offices.usda.gov). More information is also available on the Kansas web site at www.ks.nrcs.usda.gov. Follow us on Twitter @NRCS_Kansas. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

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SOIL&WATER CONSERVATION

Cuts to District Funding

The Kansas Water Authorities (KWA) budget recommendation of a $1,973,373 appropriation for conservation district operations for Fiscal Year (FY)2022 proposes a cut of $219,264 for conservation district operations. FY2021 funding appropriation was $2,342,637; however, due to funds being withheld in response to COVID and potential state budget concerns, allocations stayed at the FY2020 level of $2,192,637.

This means that conservation districts across the state will lose nearly $2000 in operating funds in each office.

In addition to cuts to operational funding, the KWA is also proposing a $200,000 cut to the Water Resources Cost Share Program. This program assists landowners with installing terraces, tile outlets, waterways, cover crops, and

other conservation initiatives.

Funding for conservation districts is administered through the Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Conservation (DOC). The DOC plays a vital role in supporting conservation district work. It has responsibility for administering Conservation District Law (K.S.A. 2-1901 et seq) which was designed to protect and enhance the natural resources of Kansas. This is done through several programs that align with the Kansas Water Plan’s goals to assist local governments and individuals.

In FY 2020, the DOC allocated $5,620,149 in cost-share funds to conservation districts to aid landowners with installing conservation practices. The funds were allocated through the following areas:

• Water Resources Cost-Share Program $2,448,289 Stabilization Protection • Streambank Program - $500,000 • Non-Point Source Pollution Control Program - $1,857,836 • Riparian & Wetland Protection Program $154,024 • Kansas Reservoir Protection Initiative $560,000 • Irrigation Technology - $100,000 The reduction in funding recommended by the Kansas Water Authority puts at risk one of Kansas’ most significant natural resources, its soil. At a time when climate events continue to increase in severity and frequency, now is not the time to reduce funding for conservation efforts.

Upper Wakarusa Watershed Cover Crop Study Soil Health, Clean Water, and a Bright Future is the Douglas County Conservation District’s focus. One way to improve soil health, water quality, and water quantity is by adding cover crops to agricultural fields as well as urban gardens. Cover crops provide a natural means of suppressing soil diseases and pests.

They can be used as mulch, helping to suppress weed growth, grazing for livestock, and habitat for wildlife, beneficial insects, and pollinators.

The Upper Wakarusa Cover Crop Project is a partnership between Kansas Alliance for Wetlands and Streams (KAWS), Douglas County Conservation District, Kansas Department of Wildlife Parks and Tourism (KDWPT), Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) and the Conservation Agronomist based out of the Franklin County Conservation District.

Some of the project goals are to identify, measure and quantify best

management practices for planting covers on crop ground in the Upper Wakarusa Watershed (UWW). The test field is located in the Clinton Wildlife Area adjacent to the KDWPT office in Douglas County.

Composed of approximately 11.4 acres of land managed by KWPT, the field is currently in a corn and soybean rotation.

Testing will be conducted to monitor the soil health, water infiltration, and yield for the different methods of planting a cover crop blend.

Five different seeding methods will be carried out using a diverse seed mix.

1. Broadcast seeding into a standing crop midseason.

2. Broadcast seeding into a standing crop at or near maturity. In crop year 2020, an interseeder was used to seed the covers into a standing corn crop just weeks before harvest.

3. Broadcasting following harvest.

4. Broadcasting following harvest with operators using equipment to mechanically incorporate the

seed.

5. Drilling following harvest using KDWPT 10’ no-till drill Observations and updates will

be posted on the webpage at http:// w w w. d o u g l a s c c d . c o m / u p p e r wakarusa-cover-crop-project.html

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