Bode, Iowa
LAAS graduate student Nancy Bohl Bormann and Matt Bormann, in partnership with the Kossuth Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), Iowa Seed Corn Cover Crop Initiative, Iowa Seed Association, and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) are hosting a soil health field day on Friday, November 19 from 11 AM to 1 PM at their farm located at 1307 130th Avenue, Bode, Iowa.
View fields of cover crops and strip-tillage, see soil health demonstrations by NRCS soil health specialists, check out farm equipment, and learn about other conservation projects in Kossuth County. A complimentary lunch will follow the discussions and demonstrations. The field day also qualifies for 2.0 soil and water Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) continuing education credits.
A feature at the event will be the NRCS Rainfall Simulator which provides a "seeing is believing" demonstration of how practices such as no-till farming, cover crops, and prescribed grazing benefit soil health and improve the water cycle on cropland and pastures. Pat Chase, Iowa NRCS State Soil Scientist, and Hillary Olson, NRCS Soil Health Specialist, will be conducting the simulation. A wind erosion demonstration will also be done to illustrate the movement of soil particles and the effects of wind over the soil surface.
Additionally, attendees will hear from Shannon Moeller, Project Coordinator for the Iowa Seed Corn Cover Crops Initiative. The Initiative focuses on ways to help increase adoption of cover crops specifically within the seed corn production system in Iowa. This project was developed by the Iowa Seed Association in conjunction with the Agribusiness Association of Iowa, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, and Iowa Corn. A grant from the Iowa Department of Agriculture under their Clean Water Initiative program provides funding for the project, which began in 2016.
Brian Tumey, Kossuth NRCS District Conservationist, will also provide an update on other conservation projects happening in Kossuth County.