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12 CapitalPress.com September 25, 2015 ‘For the family farm to stay around, things have got to change’ SOIL from Page 1 The idea is to mimic Mother Nature — leaving soils intact, maintaining living roots at all stages of production, reintro- ducing animals into the farm ecosystem and replacing mono- cultures with diverse plant communities in the fi elds. Advocates predict it could ultimately save many farms by providing an economically sound alternative to the current trend of growers getting bigger to maintain a scale of effi cien- cy in the face of rising input costs. At a no-till conference in the winter of 2010, McIntyre listened to presentations by Ray Archuleta — the go-to ex- pert on soil health at USDA’s Natural Resources Conser- vation Service — and Gabe Brown, a North Dakota farmer known for sustainable farm- ing, having improved organic matter on his farm by 5 to 6 percent on average. By incorporating what he learned from Archuleta and Brown, McIntyre developed a system that has allowed him to eliminate losses due to wind-blown seed, increased soil organic matter by up to 1 percent, reduced chemical applications, conserved wa- ter, boosted yields and saved roughly $100 per acre on fuel, equipment and other costs. His system is fl exible but generally works as follows: • After wheat harvest, he di- rect seeds a multi-species cov- er crop of plants raised solely to nurture the soil and build organic matter. • In early November, his cattle graze the cover crop at high densities and, using tem- porary fencing, are moved to the next paddock when 30 to 50 percent of vegetation remains. Intensive grazing, which mimics natural move- ments of bison herds, limits soil compaction, controlling weeds and evenly distributing urine and manure to better feed soil microbes. • The following spring, McIntyre chemically controls the cover crop and plants corn and a mixture of plants raised to symbiotically help the cash crop. These so-called compan- ion crops — usually clover, hairy vetch, turnip, radish and peas — are grazed in the fall, along with the corn stubble, and regrowth keeps roots in the soil through winter as a de facto cover crop. • He then repeats the cycle with peas or another crop. His No-till cash crop Changing up crop rotations further breaks disease cycles and improves soil health. After terminating the prior season’s crop, a new direct seed crop, such as wheat, is planted. Diversify rotation The following spring, a new no-till cash crop is planted along with a companion crop intended to help the cash crop grow. Keep it covered: Soil health practices Soil scientists and farmers are pioneering a holistic approach to growing crops that’s designed to restore soil health. USDA’s National Resources Conservation Service emphasizes five key principles: keep soil covered, avoid disturbing the soil, keep plants growing year-round, diversify crop rotations and integrate livestock grazing. Harvest Harvest of the first cash crop leaves stubble in the field. Cover crop Direct seed In the fall, controlled, high - density grazing takes about 50 percent of the cover crop. Soil compaction is limited and manure and urine add nutrients. soils are never devoid of plant life. He acknowledges the sys- tem requires a lot of work and careful planning, especially the intensive grazing. “I just tell everyone what the cover crops are doing and what the animals are doing is a huge benefi t, and I’ll spend that labor all day long to get that benefi t,” McIntyre said. Though he still uses some commercial fertilizer on his corn and wheat, he’s switched to compost on alfalfa, often mixing in grasses as a com- panion crop. Among the benefi ts are more worms. In some of his fi elds, he counts up to 20 worms per shovel of dirt, com- pared with fewer than fi ve when he started. He’s begun sharing his soil- health practices with other Ida- ho farmers. Last summer the Idaho Center for Sustainable Agriculture hosted a grazing conference on his farm. “For the family farm to stay around, things have got to change,” McIntyre said. “We have to do better, and we have to be better stewards of the land.” His brother, Brian, was once skeptical of McIntyre’s After harvest, a direct seed cover crop, such as clover, hairy vetch, turnips, radish and peas is planted. Graze livestock abrupt change in manage- ment. Now, however, he has joined the staff of Alexandre EcoDairy in Crescent City, Calif., where he helps to im- plement practices such as management-intensive grazing of cropland. At the dairy, Bri- an explained, alfalfa is often grazed uncut in the fi eld. “Why bale and haul feed and haul manure back into the fi eld when a cow has four legs?” Brian asked. The cure for sick soil Archuleta, the NRCS soil- health specialist, believes most U.S. farmland has become “sick” from decades of tillage and treating the symptoms of soil defi ciencies instead of the underlying problems. “Natural ecosystems are self-healing and self-regulat- ing, the same thing as your body,” Archuleta said, adding that unhealthy soils hinder a plant’s ability to synthesize protein. “If you have low soil integrity and soil function and don’t have enough diversity in the system, those can be path- ways for pests to dominate.” Archuleta has seen many farmers make tremendous progress in recent years, in- corporating practices such as Sources: USDA NRCS; Capital Press research John O’Connell and Alan Kenaga/Capital Press cover crops, companion crops, management-intensive grazing and no-till farming. He believes the next step entails linking those practic- es together, as McIntyre has done. Using soil-health tools in concert increases benefi ts exponentially, he said. Farms as large as 10,000 acres have reported savings on fuel, wa- ter, chemicals fertilizer and equipment once they “truly un- derstand soil health,” Archule- ta said. Their weed and disease pressure also drop, while their benefi cial insect populations increase, he said. “You’re creating synergy. It’s no longer 1 plus 1 equals 2. It’s 7 or 8,” Archuleta said. One of Archuleta’s disci- ples in Idaho, NRCS agrono- mist Marlon Winger, taught 33 workshops to 3,000 produc- ers around the state this year describing how healthy soils function. Healthy soils contain clumps and air pockets, which provide habitat for benefi cial microorganisms and facilitate gas exchange and water infi l- tration. Livestock provide an al- ternative to tilling stubble and cover-crop growth, recycling nutrients in their manure while enabling growers to capital- ize on the feed value of cover crops. Winger said tillage, on the other hand, is like “building a factory only to burn it down.” He explained tillage wakes up bacteria that feed on organic matter, causing soil pores to collapse and stimulates weed production. Unbelievable results Since implementing a crop- ping system encompassing soil-health practices, Darin Williams has switched from planting corn and soybeans genetically engineered to with- stand herbicide back to con- ventional seeds. Williams, of Waverly, Kan., dispensed entirely with post-planting herbicide use, thanks to the dramatic soil- health improvement he’s en- joyed. He took a leap of faith af- ter hearing a presentation by Gabe Brown, promising his concerned father he’d switch back to more popular methods if the system failed to produce results in fi ve years. His conventional corn and soybeans have far exceeded his county’s average yields. “Everybody around here thinks I’m blowing smoke, or it rained more on my fi eld, or I put on extra fertilizer when no- body was looking,” Williams said. His system has also pro- vided supplemental income streams. Last season, he sold 75 percent of his crops at a pre- mium to buyers interested in GMO-free feed. Williams also directly markets cattle used to graze his crops at a premium as grass-fed beef, and he rais- es eggs, broilers, turkeys and sheep, believing grazing with a diversity of animals adds dif- ferent nutrients to soil. Growing potatoes Center, Colo., grower Brendon Rockey has modifi ed the system for use in potato farming, implementing several practices to offset the soil dis- turbance following each spud harvest. Rockey, who raises special- ty spud varieties, said yields are the same and quality is improved while expenses are much lower. “We have sat down with some other growers and com- pared our costs with theirs, and we are spending $500 to $600 per acre less,” Rockey said, though even a spread- sheet itemizing expenses often fails to convince his skeptics. “I love hearing people tell me I can’t do what we’re currently doing.” Rockey is an innovator in companion crops, planting buckwheat, fi eld peas, chick- peas and chickling vetch in the same rows as potatoes for nitrogen fi xation and other soil-health benefi ts. Between spud rows, he seeds fl ower- ing plants to attract benefi cial insects that control pests. In fi elds not planted to potatoes, he plants a 16-species cover crop mix, selected for manage- ment-intensive grazing. “We are not organic. We are biotic farming,” said Rock- ey, who won the National Po- tato Council’s environmental stewardship award in Janu- ary. “It’s nurturing all living things within the complete system.” His soil organic matter has increased by as much as 1.8 percent in 20 years. Rockey, who has started a side busi- ness to educate farmers inter- ested in making the transition, is scheduled to speak in Idaho Falls and Burley, Idaho, and Ontario, Ore., in February. This farming movement hasn’t been lost on the indus- try’s largest companies. Oregon’s wolf population has grown from 14 to a minimum of 77 WOLF from Page 17 Kayli Hanley said in a pre- pared statement. “We will be following this story closely.” The investigation began when a tracking collar worn by OR-21, a female, emitted a mortality signal, ODFW spokeswoman Michelle Den- nehy said. The female wolf and her mate were found dead. The pair had pups that would be about fi ve months old and weaned at this point, Dennehy said. The pups hadn’t been seen as of Wednesday morning, but wolves are secretive and the pups should be free-ranging by now, she said. It’s unclear how many pups the pair had. Oregon’s wolf population grew from 14 in 2009 to a minimum of 77 at the end of 2014, according to an annual ODFW report released last spring. The report estimates Oregon could have 100 to 150 wolves in one to three years. Program coordinator Russ Morgan said the state proba- bly has 90 to 100 wolves as of last spring; 77 is the number that were documented at the end of 2014. The report said wolves occupy only about 12 percent of their potential range in Oregon. Oregon’s population has improved to the point that, as called for by the state’s man- agement plan, the ODFW commission will consider re- moving it from the state en- dangered species list. A com- mission meeting on the issue is scheduled for Oct. 9 in Flor- ence, with a follow up hearing in November in Salem. Investigators confi rm wolves killed 76 sheep, 36 cattle and two goats from 2009 through 2014, plus sev- eral sheep this year so far. Ranchers believe wolves are responsible for many more livestock deaths. They say grazing cattle often simply disappear. More than 100 Oregon ranchers signed voluntary conservation agreements GROUSE from Page 1 Ash said during the Colorado ceremony. Although disagreements and lawsuits over federal agency land-use plans persist, the decision is a relief to most ranchers, farmers, loggers, miners and energy developers in the 11 Western states where the bird lives. Many produc- ers feared an endangered spe- cies listing would shut down or complicate their ability to make a living. But with Oregon ranchers providing a key early model, producers, private landowners and public agencies adopted agreements most believe will protect sage grouse habitat while still allowing work on the land. More than 100 Oregon ranchers signed voluntary conservation agreements with USFWS in which they took steps to improve habitat in exchange for 30 years protec- tion from additional regula- tion even if the bird had been listed. Private landowners in other states followed suit, and public agencies such as the BLM revised their manage- ment plans. Sage grouse The greater sage grouse is the largest grouse in North America, ranging throughout western U.S. sagebrush country into southern Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. This species has been withdrawn as a candidate for protection, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Binomial name: Centrocercus urophasianus Appearance: Large, ground dwelling bird, as much as 30 inches long, weighing up to 7 pounds. Habitat: Sagebrush-dominated regions at elevations of 4-9,000 feet. Diet: Sagebrush leaves, buds, and associated insects. Life span: 1 1/2 years on average Greatest threat: Habitat loss Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Capital Press graphic Jewell had expressed opti- mism for several months that such work would make a dif- ference. On Tuesday, she said the decision means “a brighter fu- ture for one amazing, scrappy bird that calls the West home.” She said pressure on wild- life from climate change and population growth aren’t go- ing away. But she said the sage grouse decision points the way to solving such prob- lems. “I’m confi dent we have shown that epic collaboration, across a landscape, guided by sound science, is truly the future of American conserva- tion,” Jewell said in the video announcement. Reaction outside the cere- mony was mixed. A coalition of sportsmen’s groups praised the decision, saying thriving sage grouse populations are an indicator of sagebrush ecosystem health and of the many other animal and plant species linked to it. “Now, we must remain in- vested in sustaining the health of this bird, and the land- scapes that support it,” Mule Deer Foundation President Miles Moretti said in a pre- pared statement. The Western Energy Alli- ance, however, said USFWS made the right listing decision but took the wrong path to get there. The group said BLM and Forest Service land-use plans continue “top-down, centralized management” and exaggerate the impact of energy development on sage grouse. The conservation group Center for Biological Di- versity, meanwhile, said the decision was based on “half measures and generally weak management plans.” “Greater sage grouse have been in precipitous decline for years and deserve better than what they’re getting from the Obama administration,” spokesperson Randi Spivak said in a prepared statement. The conservative Pub- lic Lands Council released a statement criticizing the deci- sion. It quoted U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop, House Natural Re- sources Committee chair, as saying it was a “cynical ploy.” “The new command and control federal plan will not help the bird, but it will con- trol the West, which is the real goal of the Obama adminis- tration,” Bishop said in the news release. Southeast Oregon ranch- er Tom Sharp said the Fish & Wildlife Service “got it right.” Sharp, an early backer of voluntary conservation mea- sures in Harney County, said the decision was a three-way win: For the sage grouse, for ranchers and others in agri- culture, and for conservation and environmental groups. Sharp said he was proud to see private landowners and ranchers step forward to par- ticipate. He agreed some of the sage grouse regulations on pub- lic land will pose diffi culties for ranchers and others who operate on BLM or Forest Service land. “This is where I think conservation and en- vironmental groups should recognize they had a win in the application of those new regulatory measures,” he said. Private landowners now have an obligation to follow through on conservation mea- sures, Sharp said. Watchdog groups will be quick to chal- lenge if they don’t, he said. Sharp said assuring ranch- ers’ privacy was key to gain- ing their acceptance of con- servation agreements. They worried the agreements with a government agency, USFWS, would make their land and herd records open for inspec- tion by environmentalists or others. The 2014 Legislature took care of that by passing HB 4093, which created a public record exemption for writ- ten sage grouse conservation agreements between ranchers and local soil and water con- servation districts. Districts in eight counties act as interme- diaries between ranchers and the wildlife service and devel- op site-specifi c management plans for sage grouse. Reports available to the service refer to ranches by number, not by name. “It was a concern and it would have been a barrier had we not in Oregon gone forth and passed (the legislation),” Sharp said. Sharp owns two ranches about 50 miles apart in Har- ney County. He manages up to 125 beef cattle on about 1,000 acres, rotating them off the land in summers and feeding them hay in winter. He’s credited with coining what became some ranchers’ slogan during the process: “What’s good for the bird is good for the herd.”