Eric Birschbach, the crop consultant, had a handful of dirt that was coming to life 24 hours after the snow cover was removed and the soil was warming up.
The Farmer, the Conservationist and the Crop Consultant
By Marian Viney
B
rian Brown knew he had to educate and grow relationships with other farmers and landowners if he was going to achieve conservation success on his family’s farm and throughout the watershed. “I figured I had the most to learn because I didn’t do much as far as conservation,” said Brian, who co-owns Sunburst Dairy near Belleville with his wife Yogi. “I knew I wanted to set up our farm as an example for other farmers in the Upper Sugar River Watershed.” The Upper Sugar River Watershed covers about 110,000 acres in the Madison to Belleville area and the Sugar River Watershed covers a half-million acres in south-central Wisconsin and northern Illinois. It stretches from near Madison to Shirland, Illinois, where the Sugar River flows into the Pecatonica River. “Although the watershed is mainly rural, with more than 50 percent of the land used for agriculture, it also includes urban areas,” explained Wade Moder, executive director of the Upper Sugar River Watershed Association. In addition to working with farmers, Wade notes streambank erosion as a focus of the association, “because as the soil is loosened along the streambank, more nutrients such as phosphorus leach out of the soil, which in turn affects water quality.” Years ago, after Brian graduated from UW-Madison Farm & Industry Short Course he bought a neighboring farm near his parents and noticed erosion along the Sugar River streambank
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Rural Route
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Farmer-Led Watershed Relationships:
On Observatory Hill Road looking to the west. Brian grows crops on these fields as well. This photo was taken during the fall of 2020.
that dissects the farms. “That’s really what started things in motion,” said Brian. “I decided to learn everything I could and pursue efforts in land conservation.” Brian says a two-year streambank project he conducted with the Natural Resources Conservation Service captured the attention of Upper Sugar River Watershed Association staff while canoeing and collecting vegetation data. “They were impressed by the streambank work we did,” he said. He later attended one of the watershed association’s meetings and left as a farmer representative to the watershed board. “I thought, this group wants to build better relationships with farmers, that’s a good idea. What could it hurt?” asked Brian. “Brian talked to us about the challenges with working with agriculture, but he wanted to ‘plant the seed’ about conservation and the possibilities if we worked together,” said Wade. At about the same time the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection was investigating farmer-led watershed groups and offering grants for conservation efforts. “During the first year, 14 producer-led groups submitted applications totaling more than $242,000,” said Kevin Hoffman, DATCP’s public information officer. “We were one of those initial 14 producer-led groups,” said Brian proudly. “Now, the Farmers for the Upper Sugar River WISCONSIN FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
