A diverse group of Southwest Wisconsin farmers are using federally funded conservation programs to help improve their farms' soil health and resiliency to extreme weather, from droughts to floods.

Joe Stapleton, farmer-leader for the Iowa County Uplands Watershed Group and owner of Stapleton Farms, a 535-acre mixed crop and livestock farm in Spring Green, said implementing practices like no-till and cover crops have made a significant difference in his crop outcomes.

"When you get the droughts, the dry times, they don't to seem to be as serious," Stapleton explained. "Because land that isn't tilled holds more water and '23 was a really dry year, and we had respectable crops."

A fourth-generation farmer, Stapleton pointed out the outcomes are very different from previous droughts. Erosion is also a big issue in hilly Southwestern Wisconsin, where soil is especially susceptible to it. Stapleton acknowledged while erosion cannot completely be prevented, it can be minimized. Conservation practices are allowing him, and other farmers, to do that while maximizing their efforts.

The Uplands Watershed Group was created by a group of farmers in the Dodgeville-Spring Green area. The group focuses on priorities like protecting soil and nutrients lost through polluted farm runoff, increasing water filtration into the soil, keeping water on farmland and decreasing the damage costs associated with heavy rainfalls. Stapleton added when there's too much rainfall -- as was the case this year -- the effects are also not as damaging.

"A lot of water got into the ground on these dry ridges and we produced more crops, whereas in a lot of years it would kind of drown them out, or it would run off," Stapleton outlined. "With no-till, it actually gets in the ground better, and I've never had better corn."

He learned his beans, on the other hand, do better in dryer seasons. However, he is finding that any year, no matter the weather, is still a good year for crops on Stapleton Farms because of the conservation practices he is implementing.


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New Mexico may never be a leader in aquaculture but some fish farmers are finding success in the arid state.

Rossana Sallenave, professor and extension aquatic ecology specialist at New Mexico State University, said the U.S. is among the top five consumers of fish and shellfish. She believes aquaponics, used to raise large quantities of fish and plants in relatively small volumes of water, is highly suited to promoting sustainable agriculture.

"I think the future here in New Mexico is recirculating systems," Sallenave explained. "Because we are running out of water and that's the area of aquaculture that is really gaining some traction here in New Mexico, particularly aquaponics."

Sallenave pointed out New Mexico's unique environmental and biological resources include 15 billion acre-feet of saline water. She noted it cannot be used for traditional agriculture or for drinking water but could be used for aquaculture. Global demand for seafood is projected to increase by 70% in the next 30 years and experts believe a dramatic increase in aquaculture could help supply food needs.

According to Sallenave, aquaculture, like most farming enterprises, is highly risky because many variables must be controlled over a long period to produce a marketable crop. If control is not maintained, a crop can be lost, resulting in substantial financial losses. But she emphasized it can be a viable enterprise for those willing to educate themselves, keep abreast of new technologies and apply what others have learned. And compared to traditional agriculture, aquaponics requires significantly less fresh water.

"You can grow protein and you can grow plants in a small recirculating system which needs very little water," Sallenave outlined. "Just topping off a little bit weekly to replace evaporative losses."

Sallenave added the site selected for an aquaculture enterprise, which must meet the biological criteria for the species proposed, has a significant effect on an operation's viability. One New Mexico success story is AmeriCulture near Animas, which started producing Nile tilapia commercially more than a decade ago using geothermally heated greenhouses in pure well water from a desert aquifer.


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A bill in the Idaho Legislature would lower restrictions for allowing chickens in residential areas.

The impetus for the legislation from Sen. Tammy Nichols, R-Middleton, is in part high prices and the shortage of eggs at the grocery store. Senate Bill 1026 would ensure that homeowners associations could not bar residents from raising up to four chickens per one-fifth of an acre.

"Most people eat more than four chickens a year," said Ariel Agenbroad, who focuses on food systems and small farms at the University of Idaho Extension, "but for egg laying, if a chicken is laying an egg every other day, that can be a significant number of eggs that can be used by that family or that household."

While raising chickens could offset egg costs in the long run, Agenbroad notes there can be substantial upfront costs to the birds. Critics of the bill have said the chickens could potentially disrupt neighbors. Other concerns include noise, odor and the spread of diseases such as salmonella, to name a few. The legislation has passed out of the Senate and moved on to the House.

Agenbroad said people aren't going to get rich raising a small number of chickens in their backyards.

"Policies like this can have a really positive impact on people's ability to be self-sustaining," she said, "but I don't see it having a lot of impact on small business, like entrepreneurship or our farm business development, because the numbers are so small."

Agenbroad said it could pique someone's interest in farming, however. And beyond their value as farm animals, she said as a former chicken owner herself, the entertainment value alone is worth it.


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In Pennsylvania, a nonprofit striving to secure the future of small dairy farms is hoping its federal funding won't be frozen much longer.

Agriculture drives the state's $83 billion economy, with more than 50,000 farms. The Dairy Grazing Alliance includes an apprenticeship program to connect mentors and apprentices across 16 states. It supports dairy farmers using managed grazing to restore land, produce quality milk and stay profitable.

Jessica Matthews, apprenticeship manager for the alliance, said Pennsylvania currently has nine apprentices and 12 mentors.

"I read a statistic that we've lost 95% of small dairy farms since the '70s," Matthews noted. "The Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship was originally formed to train the next generation of dairy farmers, because small farm owners were retiring without an identified successor."

Matthews said the program runs on 98% federal grant funding, with some climate-smart funds potentially tied to the Inflation Reduction Act. The money is on hold as they await guidance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Sustainable Ag Coalition, and producer payments have been paused until further notice.

The Trump administration tariffs on goods from China and Mexico are also expected to have an effect on farming in the state. Matthews pointed out one reason dairy farming is an expensive part of the ag industry in Pennsylvania is farmers are buying their supplies at market cost.

"Everything from Ajax for the milk house to iodine for teat dips, to vaccinations, all of that is bought at market costs at the farm," Matthews stressed. "They're making milk, and the milk is being sold at a wholesale cost per hundredweight."

She underscored it is hard to balance the high expenses with what farmers make from the milk when selling to a co-op. She added most milk stays in the country but higher tariffs on imported production supplies will raise farmers' input costs, even as their output remains the same.


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