STEVENS SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICTSTEVENS SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT

A SUPPLEMENT TO THE MARCH 5, 2016 MORRIS SUN TRIBUNEA SUPPLEMENT TO THE MARCH 5, 2016 MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE2015 ANNUAL REVIEW2015 ANNUAL REVIEWThe mission of Stevens Soil and Water Conservation District is to work with county landowners in putting

conservation practices on the land and to help all citizens be good stewards of our natural resources.

OFFICE HOURSOFFICE HOURSMonday - Friday 7:30 to 4 p.m.Monday - Friday 7:30 to 4 p.m.

Regular Stevens SWCD board meetings Regular Stevens SWCD board meetings are held on the second Tuesday of each are held on the second Tuesday of each month at 9:30 a.m., at the SWCD offi ce. month at 9:30 a.m., at the SWCD offi ce. These meetings are open to the public.These meetings are open to the public.

STEVENS SWCD SERVICESSTEVENS SWCD SERVICES• RAIN GARDEN DESIGN AND INSTALLATION• TREE PLANTING• TREE FABRIC INSTALLATION• NATIVE GRASS PLANTING

• MOWING FOR WEED CONTROL• SPOT SPRAYING WEEDS• CRP CONSERVATION PLANNING

Located in the USDA Located in the USDA Agricultural Service CenterAgricultural Service Center

12 Highway 28 East - Suite 2,12 Highway 28 East - Suite 2,Morris, MN 56267Morris, MN 56267

320 - 589 - 4886 ext. 3320 - 589 - 4886 ext. 3

visit us at visit us at www.stevensswcd.orgwww.stevensswcd.org

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Page 2 - Saturday, March 5, 2016 Morris, Minnesota 56267MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

2015 was another good year for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in Stevens County. There were 511 acres of General CRP and Continuous CRP that expired in 2015. Ste-vens SWCD was able to help enroll 577 acres into Continuous CRP, includ-ing expiring contracts as well as many new sign-ups. This year we actually enrolled more acres than what had expired, which refl ects our strong com-mitment to conservation in Stevens County.

CRP is a voluntary program landowners can sign-up for to protect en-vironmentally sensitive land. Conservation cover in the form of grass, forbs, shrubs or trees is planted to help reduce soil ero-sion, improve water qual-ity, and enhance wildlife habitat. This program can be benefi cial to both the landowner and the environment, especially when it comes to those problem areas.

A landowner that signs up for CRP will receive an annual rental payment from FSA for 10 to 15 years along with cost-share and other incentives depending on the practice. To be eligible for CRP, a landowner must have crop history on the area to be enrolled in four out of six years between 2008 and 2013. The rental payment is determined by using the three predominate soil types within the eligible area. In Stevens County, the annual rental payment for CRP is between $108 and $166 per acre. Up to 50 percent cost-share is given out to help the landowner pay for the es-tablishment of approved cover. This can include site preparation, trees, tree planting, seed, seeding and wetland restorations. Incentives will vary de-pending on the practice, but can include a signing incentive payment (SIP) of $100 to $150 per acre, a practice incentive pay-ment (PIP) which helps pay for the installation cost on certain practices, and a 20 percent incentive on top of the rental pay-

ment for certain practices.The most common prac-

tices in Stevens County in 2015 were filter strips, shelterbelt establishments and State Acres for Wild-life Enhancement.

Filter StripsFilter strips (CP21)

were the most enrolled CRP practice in 2015 and they are one of the most effective forms of con-servation through CRP. Also called a buffer strip, a fi lter strip will consist of native grasses planted along streams, drainage ditches, wetlands and/or lakes. This helps reduce soil erosion and remove pollutants in order to improve water quality while enhancing wildlife habitat. The width of a fi lter strip along one of these waterbodies is usu-ally between 30 to 120 feet wide, but can be ex-tended out farther due to factors such as frequently fl ooded areas.

Filter strip contracts tend to be smaller in acres than some of the other CRP practices while still pro-viding benefi ts. They take out those wet areas along streams and wetlands which tend to be trouble-some for landowners any-way. They can help square up fields, which makes it easier to farm the rest especially with the large equipment these days. If a landowner placed a 40 foot wide filter strip on both sides of a drainage ditch that ran half a mile, they would only be taking about 4.8 acres of land out of production and would still get paid for it! A fi lter strip contract will receive an annual rental payment with a 20 percent incen-tive on top, cost-share, SIP and PIP.

Buffers required under the current Minnesota Buffer Law would be good candidates for the Filter Strip (CP21) CRP practice and would allow land-owners to receive up to 15 years of payments on enrolled acres.

Shelterbelt Establishments

The shelterbelt practice

(CP16A) is to provide protection for structures, animals and people. Ad-ditional benefi ts include reduction of soil erosion by wind, management of snow deposition, visual and noise screens, and cre-ation of wildlife habitat.

Shelterbelts enrolled are eligible to plant three to eight rows of trees through CRP. Usually a va-riety of different trees are planted, including shrubs, deciduous trees and co-niferous trees. A 16.5 foot buffer is allowed on the outside rows, which is nice to have along cropped areas to avoid impacts from chemicals. Shelter-belt practices will receive an annual rental payment along with cost-share, SIP, and PIP.

State Acres for Wildlife

Enhancement (SAFE)SAFE is a CRP practice

that came out back in 2008 to restore grassland habitats to enhance pheas-ant and other wildlife populations. This practice requires blocks of land 10 acres to 40 acres in size. Land less than 10 acres can be enrolled if it is added to an existing block of grass and the two combined equal over 10 acres. The land will be planted to na-tive grasses and forbs with a minimum of 15 species.

A couple of options that have made this prac-tice successful in Stevens County are the enrollment of irrigation corners and food plots. Irrigation corners are one of the exceptions to the 10 acre minimum blocks. Food plots have also been draw-ing in landowners because many practices don’t allow them. Land enrolled under this practice will receive an annual rental payment, cost-share, SIP, and PIP.

These are just a few of practices that are eligible for CRP. If any of these spark your interest or if you have another idea in mind, feel free to call 589-4886, or stop in and talk to our NRCS/SWCD staff to see what you may be eligible for.

CRP in 2015

Current SWCD Supervisors, (Left to Right) Vice Chairman Dave Lonergan, Treasurer Greg Fynboh, Chairman Don Huntley, member Jim Krosch, and Secretary Kirby Hufford.

District Supervisor Phone 1 Dave Lonergan 320-589-4559 2 Greg Fynboh 320-287-3334 3 Jim Krosch 320-324-2520 4 Don Huntley 320-795-2491 5 Kirby Hufford 320-589-4638

After over nine years as a Farm Bill/District Tech-nician at Stevens SWCD, Andy Rice has accepted a position with the Douglas SWCD in Alexandria. As a technician at Stevens

SWCD, he was involved with the promotion, im-plementation, and main-tenance of conservation programs that included CCRP, CRP, RIM, WRP-RIM, State Cost-Share and EQIP. This consisted of enrolling land, creat-ing conservation plans, implementing practices, and planning mid-con-tract management activ-ities. Andy administered the tree program which included sales, planting, planning, and implemen-tation. He was also the coordinator for the Walk In Access program.

“I have had a great time

working for the District in Stevens County over the years. I am very thankful to have been given the opportunity to work here. I have made some great re-lationships and memories with landowners, produc-ers, partner organizations and co-workers that I am very appreciative of while working towards putting conservation on the land,” says Rice. “Thanks again, I am looking forward to see-ing you again.” Rice lives in Alexandria with his wife Nancy and 2 boys, Paxton and Declan.

Rice Says Farewell

Stevens SWCD Staff, (Left to Right) Assistant Technician John Lembcke, Offi ce Manager Chris Staebler, Administrator Matt Solemsaas, Education and Promotion Coordinator Judy Johnston, and District Technician Andy Rice.

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Rain gardens have been very much in de-mand in recent years. You ask yourself what is a rain garden? A rain garden is a garden that has a shallow depression in the middle of it. It is planted with a variety of colorful perennial plants or wet prairie wildfl ow-ers and grasses that not only beautify your prop-erty, but also serve a very benefi cial function. They are designed to capture and filter runoff from impervious areas such as roofs, parking lots, drive-ways, and sidewalks. They keep the unfi ltered runoff from being sent down the sewer and eventually to the river. Typically, but not always we will tile in the down-spouts from the roof of your house to the middle of the garden. This also

helps divert water from running down the foun-dation of your house and eventually draining into your basement, reducing potential home fl ooding. Plants that can with-stand more moisture are planted in the bottom of the garden, and the other plants are planted on the side of the slope. Keep in mind that a spot that stays wet over a period of time is not a good spot for a rain garden. The garden is designed to hold standing water for less than a 24-48 hour period. These gardens can be large or small de-pending on the amount of runoff that will be cap-tured. Some of the many benefi ts of rain gardens are: fi ltering runoff pol-lution, recharging local groundwater, improving water quality, remov-

ing standing water in your yard which reduces mosquito breeding, and creating habitat for birds, bees, and butterflies. Rain gardens generally feature native flowers and grasses with a lot of color to make them at-tractive and will bloom at all times of the summer.

In 2015 Stevens SWCD installed 17 rain gardens within the Pomme de Terre watershed. These gardens were partially funded through the Pomme de Terre River Association and the Clean Water Legacy Fund and also with federal 319 grant funding, which focuses on water quality. If you are out of the Pomme de Terre watershed we might also be able to get you State Cost Share to help with the cost of your project. The cost-share money avail-

able to residents covers designing and installing rain gardens on their property. This cost share can help pay for all costs associated with design, construction and planting of a rain garden, up to 75% of the total project cost. If you as the property owner do some of the work, your time will be used towards the total cost of the proj-ect, which can help keep your out-of-pocket costs down considerably.

If you are interested in a rain garden on your property and helping the environment with the collection of storm water runoff and habitat for pol-linators stop into the offi ce or call. Funds are available on a fi rst come fi rst served basis. If you are interested please contact John or Matt at Stevens SWCD at (320) 589-4886.

Beautify your Property with a Rain Garden

(Left) Rendsville 4H Chapter helping with construction of Donnelly Fire Hall rain garden.

Chris Staebler has been our Offi ce Manager since the fall of 2005. Her main role is to provide support to the SWCD board and staff, as well as to the Pomme de

Terre Joint Powers Board and its technical com-mittee. She oversees the financial recordkeeping and daily operations at the offi ce and helps with fi eld work when needed. Chris graduated from the University of Minnesota Morris with a degree in English. She has worked in Morris since then and lives with her husband and two sons south of town. When not at work, she enjoys horseback riding, reading, and watching her sons play sports.

Staebler our Offi ce Manager

Jeanne Ennen is the Stevens County District 2 commissioner. She was born and raised in Stevens County and currently lives on a farm east of Donnelly that has been in her family since 1869. She has been married to husband Dale for 31 years and they have two sons, Daniel who owns a business and lives in Herman and Brian who

is married to Laura and lives in Morris. Their sons are the sixth generation of Jeanne’s family to live here in Stevens County.

As a commissioner, Jeanne attends the Ste-vens SWCD meetings as one of the committees she is assigned to. She says she has learned a lot about the different con-servation practices placed around the county to re-duce erosion and improve water quality. Jeanne also serves on the board of the Pomme de Terre River Association and attends the Bois de Sioux watershed meetings, in addition to serving on several other committees for the county.

Ennen our District 2 Commissioner

Erickson Wetland Specialist

Adam Erickson con-tracted with the Stevens SWCD beginning in Oc-tober of 2015 to complete Certifi ed Wetland Deter-minations under a con-tribution agreement with NRCS. Adam had spent four years working with

the NRCS as a Wetland Specialist. He received a B.S. in Aquatic Biology from Bemidji State Uni-versity in 2006. In the past he had worked seasonally for the Stevens SWCD between high school and college. Adam grew up locally on a farm near Donnelly, raising grass-fed beef cattle. He enjoys spending time with family and friends, working on the farm and being out-doors hunting, fi shing or out on the pontoon. Adam currently lives in Cyrus with his wife Katie and two sons Callan and Kadam.

Summer Minnesota Conservation Corps intern, Dylan Klein, helping Assistant Technician John Lembcke with construction of a rain garden.

Completed rain garden with a rock river running into it.

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Page 4 - Saturday, March 5, 2016 Morris, Minnesota 56267MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

Planting Native Grass for Habitat

2015 Local Water Plan Program ReportThe Stevens County

Local Water Management Plan funds several projects that are administered or coordinated by the Ste-vens SWCD Offi ce, or the Stevens County Environ-mental Services Offi ce.

In 2015, a total of $19,541 was allocated towards water plan ac-tivities. Here is a brief summary of work that was completed using this fund-ing. Additional funds may be spent through the end of the grant period, which is June 30, 2016.

The Coordinator posi-tion at the Scandia Woods Environmental Learn-ing Lab is funded by the water plan. The Coor-dinator receives a total of $3000 from the water plan, in addition to $2000 in other funding from Ste-vens County Environmen-tal Services, to conduct classes and educational offerings for students in Stevens County. Ranger Randee, SWELL Coordi-nator, taught multiple spring and fall lessons for elementary students. She has also developed differ-ent lesson plans for teach-ers to use during self-di-rected tours at SWELL.

Cost share of 50 per-cent per well, up to $300, was provided to several landowners to help defray

the cost of sealing existing wells, for a total of $640.

Two educational pro-grams, Whale in the Class-room and Wonder of Wolves, were presented to Stevens County students early in the year, and coor-dinated by Stevens SWCD staff. A total of $2500 was spent on presenting and coordinating these programs.

$500 was allocated towards the Area 2 Junior and Senior Envirothons. Each year the Area 2 Soil and Water Conservation Districts work together to organize a regional envi-ronmental competition for high schools students. Funding was obtained from area SWCDs, local water plans, and other outside donors. Judy Johnston, Stevens SWCD Education Coordinator, has been the coordinator of this event for several years.

Stevens SWCD worked on a service learning proj-ect at Morris Area High School.

$700 was allocated for the Pope & Stevens County Water Fest. Staff from the Stevens and Pope SWCDs organized this event. Over 300 sixth grade students from both counties at-tended the 10th annual event. The program is

very well-received by the schools because of the opportunity to get outside the classroom and learn hands-on about water, including topics such as the water cycle, water conservation, nitrate test-ing, lakeshore habitat, and ground water. To help make the event a suc-cess, several other public and private organizations provided donations to the project.

$900 was allocated to the Pope & Stevens County Conservation Day. Staff from Stevens & Pope SWCDs organized this event as well. This program was offered to fi fth grade students in those counties. 300 students attended this year’s event. The event was held at SWELL near Morris. Students moved between various outdoor learning stations with topics including: Raptors, Reptiles & Amphibians, Mammals, Soils, Water-fowl, Wetlands, Mirrors of Minnesota, Prairie Wild-life, Controlled Burning, Water Quality, Nature’s Stock market, Geocach-ing, and Orienteering.

Stevens SWCD employs

a Farm Bill Technician, whose job is to recruit and assist landowners enrolling land into the various continuous CRP farm programs that focus on water quality. The majority of funding for this position is obtained through the BWSR and Pheasants Forever. These organizations require a partial local match as well. Local funds come from Stevens SWCD, $2000 from the water plan, and local watershed districts.

$1750 is paid to Stevens SWCD to fund a small portion of the cost of the State Envirothon Coordi-nator position. Judy John-ston, Education/Outreach Coordinator at Stevens SWCD will continue as the State Envirothon Coordi-nator. She spends approx-imately 25% of her time working on these duties as they relate to the Envi-rothon around the state.

There were adminis-trative expenses of $1120 paid in 2015, including staff time, travel, meeting expenses, advertising and offi ce supplies.

Welcome Haseman as Soil Conservation

TechnicianThe new NRCS Soil

Conservation Technician, Britta Haseman, joined us in August of this year. She previously worked as the Pope County Farmbill Technician where she helped with programs such as the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and Reinvest in Minne-sota (RIM). Britta grew up in Champlin, MN and completed degrees in Bi-ology and Environmental Studies at the University of Minnesota, Morris. She currently resides in Morris with her husband and two children. On the weekends, Britta likes to attend baseball games, go to her cabin, and spend time with her family and friends. In our office, Britta helps enroll and manage contracts for the

Environmental Quality In-centive Program (EQIP), Conservation Steward-ship Program (CSP), Con-servation Reserve Pro-gram (CRP) and the Wet-land Reserve Easement Program (WRE). If you are interested in a program or need assistance with a concern on your land feel free to set up an appoint-ment with her.

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In 2015 the Stevens SWCD planted about 600 acres of native grasses. In the spring of the year na-tive grass seeding can be completed from May 15 through the end of June. It may also be seeded dormant in the fall of the year, once soil tem-peratures drop below 50 degrees for four consecu-tive days. That is usually around November 1, and we will plant dormant seed until the ground is too frozen for the no-till grass drill to penetrate the soil. We recommend that you try to plant in the spring of the year to give all of your warm and cool season grasses a chance to establish, but that being said, that doesn’t always work well with some sites. Many of these sites are marginal with poor planting conditions and might have to be seeded in the fall when it dries out. In these cases, dormant seeding can also yield a good stand of native grasses once established.

The ideal way to plant native grasses is through a no-till-drill. This ensures

that you have good seed to soil contact which is neces-sary for good seed germi-nation. Another method used is to broadcast your seed. Broadcasting works well on problem sites that you can’t get to with a drill. If you are broadcasting seeding, you are going to have to apply the seed at one and a half times the rate per acre, which adds extra cost in seed. We do highly recommend if you are going to broadcast your seed that you roll your site again after seed-ing to make sure of good seed-to-soil contact.

Site prep is very often over-looked when it comes to the establishment of native grasses. Native grasses must be planted in a fi rm, weed-free seedbed, primarily because success depends upon good soil-to-seed contact. Loose soil dries out quickly at the surface compared to fi rm soil, and native grass seed is planted only an eighth to a quarter inch deep. No-till is best if planting into soybean stubble. If planting into corn stubble, at a minimum, the site

should be either mowed or the stalks chopped before planting. Better yet would be to plow, disc at least twice and pack before planting. New sites should be worked, rolled, and sprayed once or twice to reduce weed competition and provide a nice seed bed. It is also nice if we can plant into bean stubble.

You have to also give your site a chance to grow. Most growers of native grasses are con-vinced they have a failure

the fi rst year when they actually have a good stand. Native grasses grow down, not up, during the establishment year. The top growth normally amounts to a narrow, straight leaf until late summer. These seedlings can be hard to see, even for the experi-enced grower. Be patient. Weeds are the greatest cause of poor grass stands because they challenge the small seedlings in two ways: they take away nec-

essary water and nutri-ents and they also shade and smother the young plants. Weeds need to be controlled, chemically or with tillage, prior to seeding. Mowing weeds the fi rst year is important to prevent the seedlings from being choked or smothered. The fi rst year, you should mow three times if possible. The fi rst mowing should be quick, about three or four weeks after seeding. Mow the fi rst time at a height of

four to six inches. The next two times you mow should be at a height no less than eight inches. You should mow every three weeks or when weeds are visible, de-pending on the amount of precipitation, with the last mowing done by the last week of July.

If you prepare the site correctly, plant the seed correctly, and clip the site a few times the fi rst year, you will more than likely have a good stand in one year. If you plant correctly but do not follow the maintenance directions, it may take up to three years to establish a good stand. Stevens SWCD has a wide variety of fresh, high quality, certified native grass and flower seed from sources as local as possible. We have the equipment and expertise to help you do your seed-ing. Give Matt a call at 589-4886 ext 3 if you have any questions or are in-terested in planting some natives. Stevens SWCD has the right equipment for any job, from planting to mowing.

Seeding 90 acres of Native grasses on CRP in Swan Lake Township.

Saturday, March 5, 2016 - Page 5Morris, Minnesota 56267 MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

Planting Trees for ConservationIn 2015, Stevens SWCD

planted over 7000 trees on 23 sites in Stevens County. We also laid al-most 38,000 feet of mulch fabric over 16 sites. There are two common cost-share programs Stevens SWCD deals with when planting trees: CRP and EQIP. Within those pro-grams, the most common practices are shelterbelts, living snow fences, fi eld windbreaks, riparian buf-fers and wildlife plant-ings. Both of these pro-grams offer some form of cost share, but all pay a little differently. They are both at least 10 year contracts, which means that you as the land owner are responsible for mak-ing sure that the trees are there for the length of the contract. If you have some trees that die it will be your responsibility to re-place those trees. We are more than happy to help you determine which pro-gram is your best option.

Just like every conser-vation practice, site prep is the fi rst thing that needs to be addressed when planning to plant trees. If you are planting into a preexisting grove, it needs to be clear of all trees, roots and other debris. We prefer that you do this the summer before the spring planting so you can work the ground serval times to remove all of the roots. This is important to ensure good planting conditions and the ongoing health of the trees. If you are planting into land that was previously farmed, we ask that the land be worked as if you were going to crop it the following year. Site prep is often overlooked and is the most important part of establishing a nice planting.

The tree varieties we sell do very well for the most part in our area. In some cases, they don’t though. So it is very im-portant for you to plan ahead and determine if the trees you want are compatible with your soil

types. We are more than happy to help you with this and give advice on what trees are best suited in your landscape.

We also recommend that you plant multiple varieties of trees within the same row. The reason we recommend this is that if some unknown disease comes out like we have seen with Dutch Elm Dis-ease or Emerald Ash Borer, it doesn’t wipe out your entire row of trees. Gen-erally, we recommend you have two or three different varieties of deciduous trees in the same row.

Stevens SWCD also strongly suggests that you lay a fabric weed barrier around your trees along with installing trees tubes on larger varieties. The fabric weed barrier helps

a lot with minimizing weed growth. It doesn’t totally eliminate it, but does help significantly. You might have to go out and still weed around the trees a few times a year. Tree tubes are almost a must in our area. The tree tubes prevent wildlife from eating on the fresh growth of the tree, which can set it back drastically or even kill the tree. They do make a huge difference in the performance of the trees. Stevens SWCD also sells a product called Plantskydd that is used to repel wildlife from your trees. This might have to be applied a few times throughout the year. Even with tree tubes and weed barrier fabric, water is very important the first year of your tree planting,

especially during extreme hot dry periods. Keeping trees well-watered and weed free is very import-ant in establishment. A little extra work in the beginning makes a huge difference in the success of your planting.

Stevens SWCD is cur-rently taking tree orders for spring 2016. This includes planning and planting plans for conser-vation, as well as small orders for trees that need to be replaced or that you want to plant yourself. The order deadline is March 15, so call now to see what trees we have available, and to fi nd out if you are eligible to receive cost share. For more infor-mation, contact John at 320-589-4886 ext 3.

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District Administrator Solemsaas

Matt Solemsaas has been the District Admin-istrator at Stevens SWCD since December 2005. He is responsible for overseeing daily district activit ies, budgeting, grant writing, supervis-ing and directing District personnel, and working with the Board of Super-visors. Matt coordinates the native grass program including sales, planting, planning, and imple-mentation. He also ad-ministers state programs such as RIM and the MN Wetland Conservation Act, and is responsible for implementing the Local Water Management Plan. Matt also serves as the County Ag Inspector. He is the past President of the Minnesota Association of Conservation District Employees and a member of the working group that developed the Walk-In Access hunting program in Minnesota.

Matt graduated from

North Dakota State Uni-versity with a bachelor’s degree in Fisheries & Wildlife Zoology. Prior to working at the District, Matt worked at the U of M WCROC as an Assis-tant Scientist in the soils department, as a Habitat Biologist for California Waterfowl Association in Sacramento, and as a Private Lands Biologist for Ducks Unlimited in North Dakota. He is As-sistant Chief on the Mor-ris Fire Department and resides in Morris with wife Angie and five kids Abbie, Andrew, Annika, Abby, and Nicholas.

Solemsaas Serves as County

Agricultural InspectorThe du t i e s o f the

County Agricultural In-spector (CAI) are to inspect all land in the county for the presence of prohibited noxious weeds. This is done with assistance from local weed inspectors (town-ship and city officials or their appointees). If you would like to report noxious weeds, please contact your local town-ship or city official to begin the investigation process.

Another duty of the CAI is to help enforce the seed law. A suffi cient amount of seed is collected and tested each year to ensure the protection of the citi-zens and businesses in the county through truthfully labeled seed and for fair competition.

The CAI also adminis-ters the pesticide applica-tors test for commercial applicators. Study ma-terials can be obtained from the University of

Minnesota Extension Ser-vice in the Stevens County Courthouse. Pesticide applicators licenses are issued by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA). Any questions regarding certification can be directed to Matt Solemsaas at (320) 589-4886 ext 112.

When you are ready to schedule the exam:

1. Contact Matt Solem-saas for appointment.

2. Fill out applicationand pay licensing fee ei-ther online at the Dept of Ag website or in person the day of testing.

3. What to bring on testday:

• Payment or proof ofpayment if application made ahead of time

• Number 2 pencils• Valid photo ID & cal-

culatorIf you have any ques-

tions about noxious weeds in Stevens County, stop by Stevens SWCD or call (320)589-4886 ext 112.

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Minnesota Buffer LawInformation collected from

the Board of Soils and Water Resources (BWSR) & Minne-sota Department of Natural Resources (MN DNR).

Defi ning a BufferVegetated riparian buffers

are strips of land with perma-nent vegetation designed to intercept storm water runoff and minimize soil erosion. Buf-fers help reduce the amount of sediment and pollutants (ex: phosphorus & nitrogen) carried by runoff to nearby lakes, wet-lands, streams.

Why do we need them?Multiple studies have been

conducted by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and other agencies that show that buffers are crit-ical to protecting and restoring water quality, healthy aquatic life, natural stream functions and aquatic habitat due to their immediate proximity to the water. The perennial vegetation acts as a filter for sediment. Additionally the combination of soil microbes and perennial vegetation helps to facilitate the transformation and uptake of potential pollutants which in turn protects our surface waters.

What is required?Under current law, required

buffer widths would be:• An average of 50 feet, mini-

mum of 30 feet, on public waters• A minimum of 16.5 feet on

public drainage systems (ex: county drainage ditches not listed as a protected water)

• Buffer recommendations for other waters will be deter-mined by Soil and Water Conser-vation Districts (SWCDs)

How will implementation of the

program work?The Minnesota Board of

Water and Soil Resources, which oversees the new law, is

working to get program details developed. Landowners may in-stall buffers on their own at any time, or can wait until the buffer protection maps are complete around July of 2016. The local SWCD will provide technical assistance and answer ques-tions about fi nancial assistance options. Landowners also have the option of working with their SWCD to determine if other alternative practices aimed at protecting water quality can be used.

What is available for fi nancial assistance?

The implementation of the 2015 Buffer Law relies on fi -

nancial assistance and technical support from the many federal, state and local entities available to offer support to landowners. Federal Farm Bill programs such as Conservation Reserve Pro-gram (CRP), Continuous CRP and the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) are available to support the instal-lation of buffers. Other state resources include: Reinvest in Minnesota (RIM) easement pro-gram, Conservation Cost-Share and the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program.

When do Buffers need to be in place?

• November 1, 2017: Buffers in place on all public waters

• November 1, 2018: Buffers in place on all public drainage systems

Who is responsible for enforcement?

Counties or watershed dis-tricts will be the fi rst point of contact when noncompliance is identifi ed. If a landowner fails to install buffers on identifi ed waters, penalties may include a $500 fi ne.

Where do I go for more information?

Please contact the Stevens County SWCD at 320-589-4886 ext 3 for more information about buffers and local requirements. For more information on the new buffer law in general please visit one of the following links:

•www.bwsr.state.mn.us/buffers/

•http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/buffers/index.html

•http://www.mda.state.mn.us/protecting/conserva-tion/practices/buffergrass.aspx

Information on Minnesota Buffer Law

Conservation Day at SWELLOver 300 fifth grade

students and teachers enjoyed a fun day in the outdoors on Thursday, October 1. Students from all schools in Pope and Ste-vens counties were invited to learn about conserva-tion and the environment at SWELL (Scandia Wood Environmental Learning Lab), just east of Morris. This was our ninth year for the event at SWELL.

The hands-on inter-active learning sessions inc luded “Rap to r s , ” presented by the Audu-bon Center of the North Woods. The students had a chance to meet live raptors and learn about their char-acteristics and habitats. The raptors included a red hawk, screech owl, great horned owl, and an Amer-ican kestrel. Other ses-sions included Mammals, Mirrors of Minnesota, Soils, Wetlands, Water-

fowl, Controlled Burning, Prairie Wildlife, Nature’s Stock Market, Geocach-ing, and Orienteering. The day also included another Audubon Center presentation on “Reptiles and Amphibians,” which was a huge hit with the students. They had a lot of fun working with the frogs, snakes and lizards.

The program was coor-dinated by Judy Johnston of Stevens SWCD. Our presenters and volun-teers that day were staff from Pope SWCD, Ste-vens SWCD, USDA-ARS Soils Lab, North Fork Crow River Watershed, NRCS, US Fish and Wild-life, Audubon Center of the North Woods, and SWELL Coordinator Ran-dee Hokanson.

Event sponsors in-clude: Pope and Ste-vens SWCDs, Stevens and Pope County Local Water

Plans, Pope County Land & Resource Management, North Fork Crow River Watershed District, Han-cock Sportsman’s Club, Pope County Pheasant Restoration, Gobblers of Glacial Ridge, Glenwood Fire Department, Sauk River Watershed Dis-trict, Brooten Commer-cial Club, Bremer Bank, Glenwood Rotary Club, Bank of the West, Stevens County Historical Soci-ety, Donnelly Rod and Gun, Lawn & Driveway Service, Stevens County Pheasants Forever and Minnewaska JCs.

Special thanks to the SWCD staff of Stevens and Pope counties and to our session presenters and volunteers, as well as SWELL landowners Linda & Karl Retzlaff, for mak-ing this an outstanding event for our fi fth grade students.

Fifth grade students from Stevens and Pope counties enjoy a day in the outdoors at 2015 Conservation Day at SWELL.

Britta Haseman, Stevens NRCS Soil Conservation Technician, shares her knowledges of wetlands and how they work at Conservation Day at SWELL.

Kasey Wiechmann joined the NRCS as an administrative assistant in February 2015. She divided her time between the Pope and Stevens County NRCS offi ces help-ing to process wetland determinations and keep-ing conservation program files up to date. Kasey will continue the position full time in 2016 in Pope

County. Before joining the NRCS, Kasey worked

with the Stevens SWCD as a conservation intern in the fall/winter of 2014 and worked on developing promotional materials for the district, including information about conser-vation efforts within the Mustinka Watershed and aquatic invasive species within the county.

Administrative Assistant Wiechmann Jared House is the Proj-ect Coordinator for the Pomme de Terre River Association. His duties include the coordination of the water efforts of the six counties within the Pomme de Terre Water-shed (Big Stone, Douglas, Grant, Stevens, Swift, and Otter Tail). The group works with local land-owners, private groups, and government agencies to help improve the water quality of the Pomme de

Terre watershed. Jared obtained a B.S.

in Aquatic Biology with a minor in Environmental Studies from Bemidji State

University, where he is currently fi nishing up his masters degree in Biology. Prior to moving to Morris, Jared worked as a tech-nician for the Minnesota DNR assisting in faucet snail, waterfowl, and shal-low lakes research.

When not hard at work Jared enjoys f ishing, hunting, scuba diving, and spending time with his wife and plethora of animals.

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Saturday, March 5, 2016 - Page 7Morris, Minnesota 56267 MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) Enrollment Continues to grow in Stevens County

CSP is a program that rewards great conserva-tion management that has been taking place on a producer’s operation and also allows for furthering that great management through enhancements that are implemented during the contract. The list of activities to choose from is extensive and ap-plies to cropland, hayland, pastureland, rangeland and non-industrial pri-vate forestland. Contracts are for five years and have a maximum value of $40,000 annually per in-dividual operator. This is a tremendous opportunity for farmers and ranch-

ers to gain a financial benefi t for being a great steward of their land and improving their manage-ment strategies on their operation, not to mention the returns gained from

being more effi cient and sustainable.

Some of the activities to further improve manage-ment that are being done in Stevens County include GPS guidance for chem-

ical applications, drift reducing nozzles, vari-able rate fertilizer tech-nology, tissue testing on corn, continuous no-till, cover crops, buffer strips, control release Nitrogen applications, split Nitro-gen applications, pasture monitoring, food plots for wildlife, pollinator habitat and the list goes on.

In 2015, Stevens County was able to enroll new CSP contracts and re-enroll contracts that started in 2011 for another 5 years! We currently have over 25,400 acres enrolled in CSP. Stop by our offi ce and see what CSP can do for you and your operation.

The Conservation Stewardship Program rewards producers for conservation management on their farm.

Congratulations to Mark and Robyn Lampert of Chokio for being se-lected as Stevens County’s Outstanding Conserva-tionists. Mark and Robyn are shown here on their farm in rural Chokio. They also have two sons Kyle and Luke that are active in the farming operation. They have been grazing cattle on WRP, and will also graze them on their cover crops after har-vest this fall. The farm is the homestead of Mark’s mom. Lamperts farm over 1100 acres, of which 600 are certifi ed organic. They raise organic blue corn, sunflowers, alfalfa, and barley. On the conven-tional side they raise yel-low corn, soybeans, and large sunfl owers. In ad-dition they have 35 acres

in CRP filter strips and several farmstead wind-breaks.

Lamperts feel di-versity on a small farm is key. They raise hogs for gilt replacements and they have a natural cow calf operation. Mark and Robyn are dedicated to soil health and they try to minimize chemical use on their edible crops. Under the federal Envi-ronmental Quality Incen-tives Program (EQIP), the Lamperts’ projects include cover crops on their corn, sunflowers and barley. This includes interseeding radishes, rye and clover with the crops.

Congratulations to Mark and Robyn for putting conservation fi rst and being outstanding stewards of the land.

Stevens SWCD 2015 Outstanding Conservationists

Mark and Robyn Lampert, Stevens SWCD Outstanding Conservationists in 2015, were honored at the MASWCD Convention in December by the Farmer Magazine. The convention was held in Bloomington.

Wetland Restoration through Conservation ProgramsThis fall was very busy

with the completion of four wetland restoration projects. All together there were 229 acres of wet-lands restored. The wet-lands varied in size from large semi-permanent wetlands to small seasonal wetlands. We used em-bankments, water control structures, and scrapes to achieve the landowners’ restoration goals. Along with the adjacent uplands, these restorations will go far to improve wildlife habitat and water quality.

One of the biggest proj-

ects of the year restored 64 acres of wetlands. It required a very large water control structure that reg-ulated the fl ow of water downstream. The wetland basin was being drained by ditches and tile. The main drainage ditch was over six feet deep and is used to drain hundreds of acres upstream. We placed the structure in the ditch at the junction of the road to maximize the wetland area which created a large wetland spanning over 60 acres. The size of the wetland is controlled by

the structure. It sets a very specifi c height to the wetland pool. Once the water reaches the top of the structure wall it falls inside going through the culvert downstream to the original ditch.

The wetlands were re-stored through the RIM/WRE Program which part-ners state and federal funds. Right now land-owners can enroll their land into WRE or CRP. In the future they may also be able enroll their land in RIM or CREP. Each of these programs restore

the function and value of the wetlands that have been lost through con-ventional farming and drainage practices. The restored wetlands slow the movement of water across the land, reducing the effects of flash rain events. This will reduce sedimentation, nutrients and damage due to excess water. Landowners that have low productivity areas due to excess water or poor drainage are en-couraged to seek conser-vation minded solutions.

Water Control Structure (Finished)Water Control Structure Installation

Wetland ScrapeWetland Restoration Embankment with Scrape

Page 8 - Saturday, March 5, 2016 Morris, Minnesota 56267MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

Walker Serves Stevens County as District Conservationist

Cory Walker started working for the Morris NRCS Field Offi ce on May 20, 2013 as District Con-servationist. He manages the work completed by USDA-NRCS in Stevens County. He works on ad-dressing landowner’s and operator’s resource con-cerns. He can assist them in getting fi nancial assis-tance through a USDA program, which includes EQIP, CSP, WRP or CRP.

Walker was raised on a farm near Villard, in Pope

County. He graduated from Minnewaska Area High School and gradu-ated from the University of Minnesota, Crookston

with a degree in Natural Resource Management. He started with NRCS in 2009 as a Soil Conserva-tionist in Bottineau, ND, and then transferred in 2011 to Clarkfi eld, MN as a District Conservationist. Cory, his wife Marybeth and son, along with their two Labrador Retrievers, reside by Villard. Cory enjoys farming with his brother, hunting, fish-ing and helping his par-ents with their three acre strawberry farm.

Increase Public Hunting Areas through Walk-In-Access Program

Stevens SWCD admin-isters the Walk in Access (WIA) Program in Stevens County. In 2015, Stevens County had 12 sites to-taling 1,089 acres under contract. Statewide there are 193 sites enrolled, to-taling 21,705 acres across 35 counties in western Minnesota. Locations of the parcels enrolled can be found on the DNR website or an atlas containing the locations can be picked up at a local SWCD offi ce.

WIA is a voluntary pro-gram that pays landown-ers to open up their private land for public hunting. This program focuses on land already enrolled into a conservation program such as Conservation Re-serve Program (CRP), Reinvest-In-Minnesota (RIM), or Wetland Re-serve Program (WRP). Areas not in a conservation program that still provide high quality wildlife hab-itat, like river bottoms or

wetland areas, are also eligible for the program.

To be eligible for the program, areas must con-tain a minimum of 40 acres to be enrolled. Areas

smaller than 40 acres can be enrolled only if they are adjacent to Wildlife Man-agement Areas (WMA), Waterfowl Production Areas (WPA) or other WIA areas that combined contain at least 40 acres. Landowners can enter into a one-year contract or a multi-year contract and they have the ability to cancel the contract at any time without any penalties. Landowners are

paid $10 per acre for acres enrolled. They can receive an additional $1 per acre for over 140 contiguous acre, land within a half mile of WMAs or WPAs, or if they enter into a multi-year contract.

WIA land is for public hunting only. No target practice, trapping, dog training, camping, horse-back riding or fires are allowed. No vehicles are allowed on conservation land. Parking is along roads or in designated parking areas. Once pri-vate land is enrolled in the program, bright yel-low-green hexagon signs are placed at the property boundaries.

For more information on WIA contact John at the Stevens SWCD offi ce. Other WIA information can be found on the DNR website at www.mndnr.gov/walkin.

Use of Cover Crops Continues to Grow in Stevens County

As world population and food production de-mands rise, keeping our soil healthy and produc-tive is of paramount im-portance. So much so that USDA believes improving the health of our nation’s soil is one of the most important conservation endeavors of our time.

A growing number of Stevens County farmers are striving to look at their soil’s health and implement practices that improve soil health. Some farmers are reducing till-age passes, switching from conventional tillage to no-till or strip till, re-ducing over application of fertilizer, or implement-ing cover crops into their rotation.

We do have many great resources available to help you design a cover crop mix that meets your goals. We have seen an in-creased use of cover crops in the county following edible bean harvest. Oats, barley, wheat or rye have been used and spread with fertilizer for the next year’s crops. These small grain cover crops have a later window to seed them and have been working well

following edible bean har-vest. These cover crops are showing to be extremely important this winter as we have an open winter and will be important in the spring to keep topsoil from blowing and fi lling in the ditches. The early fall of 2015 did allow some farmers to drill in a cover crop following soybean harvest with limited suc-cess. Cover crops were very successful and estab-lished well following small grain harvest or on pre-vented plant land. Some early sugarbeet harvested ground also was seeded to cover crops. Cover crops in corn can be challenging. Some have tried flying on a cover crop in late August or broadcasting a cover crop when corn is still short enough to drive a high-boy spreader across. Some farmers we are working with are plan-ning to try seeding a cover crop into corn at the V4-V6 stage while side-dressing fertilizer. Designing a cover crop that can deal with being shaded for a while is challenging when seeding that early. For all cover crops, receiving a rain event shortly after

seeding helps with es-tablishment success. Our recommendation is that if you have growing season left on your farm, plant a cover crop and keep a living root in your soil as long as you can.

Many farmers are try-ing cover crops on their own and some are utilizing the USDA’s Environmen-tal Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) program to help them try a cover crop on their land. Ap-proximately 560 acres was seeded to a mix of cover crops that were to be left un-tilled over winter in EQIP in Stevens County. The EQIP program pro-vides producers with a good opportunity to try cover crops on their land. Producers must have an approved EQIP contract to receive payment. Pay-ments in EQIP range from $30-73 per acre, depend-ing on your scenario.

Be sure to work with your crop insurance agent for more details to make sure the cover crop will not interfere with your crop in-surance program. Stop by the NRCS offi ce in Morris for more information on cover crops.

Cattle grazing a cover crop planted in August.

Aquatic Invasive Species – What’s it Have to Do with Stevens County?

Aquatic Invasive Spe-cies (AIS) are a continuous threat to our Minnesota waters, including those here locally in Stevens County. As recreational users of the public waters we love, we should take it upon ourselves to be ed-ucated on the prevention and potential manage-ment of these species. Ste-vens County is currently free of Aquatic Invasive Species based on the MN DNR Infested Waters List although multiple lakes in the surrounding coun-ties have documented infestations of Eurasian watermilfoil and Zebra mussels. The current state

law requires boaters to “Clean/ Drain/ Dispose" each time they leave a body of water, regardless of boater intentions to return to the same lake or travel to another body of water. Most local public water accesses have “Help Stop Aquatic Hitchhikers” signs posted as reminders. Those landings without these signs will be posted early this spring. If you are a boat owner, hunter or make use of public waters for any purpose, please make sure that you take some time to review the necessary information to help prevent further spread of AIS. If you are a

registered boat owner in Stevens County, we will be mailing out an informa-tional brochure “Help Pro-tect Minnesota Waters” in March that will give you a background on where aquatic invasives come from and what you can do to prevent them from spreading. For additional information on Aquatic Invasive Species please visit the MN DNR website @ www.mndnr.gov/ais or stop into our offi ce to look at the informational brochures/factsheets we have available. We can help answer questions for you.

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Saturday, March 5, 2016 - Page 9Morris, Minnesota 56267 MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

Annual Conservation Poster Contest Winners

Northland Niches Program

Each year, the Stevens Soil & Water Conservation District sponsors a poster contest for fi fth and sixth grade students in each of the Stevens County elementary schools. Staff from Stevens SWCD visit each class and present information on a current conservation topic. This year’s topic was “Local Heroes-Your Hardwork-

ing Pollinators”. Students from Morris, Hancock, and St. Mary’s elementary schools listened to presen-tations by SWCD staff and then submitted individ-ual posters or group mu-rals for our contest. Win-ners were chosen at each school. Stevens SWCD gave Pollinator t-shirts to each county winner. Next year’s theme will be “We

All Need Trees.”Congratulat ions to

the Hancock Elementary Poster winners for 2015. Fifth grade winners: Jed Feuchtenberger, Julia Dodd. Sixth grade: Pres-ton Rohloff, Brandon Kel-lenberger, Amanda Wev-ley, Tiffany Schmidgall, and Lindsey Mattson.

St. Mary’s Elementary had seven poster winners in the Stevens SWCD poster and mural contest. (Left to Right) Fifth grade teacher Mrs. Wieck, Jack Mahoney, Avery Frank and Bobbi Jo Wohlers. Missing from the photo Haleigh Velde.

Sixth grade poster winners from St. Mary’s Elementary in 2015 were (Left to Right) Gage Tomo-son, Tyler Braegelmann. Missing from the photo was Ivy Kosbab. The theme for 2015 was Local Heroes-Your Hardworking Pollinators.”

Stevens Soil and Water Conservation District named local winners in their poster and mural contest. Morris Area Elementary students include: six graders (back row Left to Right) Madi Solvie, Greta Hentges, Sophia Carlsen, Brynna Olson, Emma Heil, Katie Messner, missing from the photo Lexi Gomer. Front row (Left to Right) Sixth graders Chloe Mogard, Emma Bowman, and fi fth graders Schylar Tanner and Laura Surerus.

This fun program which was for both second and fourth graders in Stevens County explored specifi c adaptations and the ways animals interact with both the living and non-liv-ing components of their Eastern Deciduous Forest habitat. Students got to meet fi rst hand and learn about four different live animals including a sala-mander, snake, porcupine and hawk.

(R i gh t ) Chok i o A l be r t a students learn about the behaviors and habitat of raptors at the Northland Niches program. McKenzie Anderson got dressed up like an eagle for the program. It was especially interesting to observe the eagles’ wings, eyes, talons, etc.

(Above) Fourth grade student Ava Wayne observes Spike the porcupine, who was shared by the Audubon Center of the North Woods in March 2015, sponsored by Stevens Soil and Water.

Minnesota Ag Water Quality Certifi cation Program

The Minnesota Agri-cultural Water Quality Certification Program (MAWQCP) offers an op-portunity for farmers and agricultural landowners to voluntarily implement conservation practices to improve the water quality of Minnesota’s lakes, rivers and streams. Individuals that adopt and maintain these practices will be certified under the new program and will receive “regulatory certainty” and would not be subject to new water quality regulations for a period of ten years. Pro-ducers would also receive priority for technical and fi nancial assistance to help implement practices pro-moting water quality. Cer-tifi cation under this pro-gram allows individuals to be recognized for their continued commitment to protecting water quality. MAWQCP Certification began in June of 2014 and

has since initiated numer-ous structural conserva-tion practices across Min-nesota including: Water Quality Inlet Protection, Water and Sediment Con-trol Basins, Agricultural Waste Facilities, Terrace Projects, Streambank Pro-tection Projects, Conser-vation Cover/Pollinator Plantings, Grassed Water-ways, Filter Strips, Field Borders, Cover Crops and Contour Buffers.

MAWQCP was created as a partnership between multiple state and federal

agencies including: Min-nesota Department of Agri-culture (MDA), Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Minne-sota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR), Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the U.S. Environmen-tal Protection Agency (EPA).

Stevens SWCD is ex-cited about this program and its potential to help farm owners and oper-ators demonstrate their commitment to clean water and to accelerate the adoption of conser-vation practices where needed. Initial assess-ments for the fi rst group of applicants is scheduled for mid-February.

For more information contact Stevens SWCD (320) 589-4886.

The Pomme de Terre River is a valuable natu-ral resource here in west central Minnesota. It helps drain rainwater away from our agricultural, recreational and resi-dential landscape while also providing habitat for many species of plants and animals. Throughout the watershed, the Pomme de Terre River carries water, organisms and nutrients to areas downstream.

For decades, people living in and around the Pomme de Terre River Watershed have been con-cerned about their river, and rightly so. They have witnessed their river turn muddy brown in periods of high flow and green with algae in spots during periods of low fl ow. They recognized that these ob-servances would also have an effect on the lakes of the watershed.

In 1981, a group of con-cerned citizens took action

to begin addressing the issues facing the Pomme de Terre River, its tributar-ies, and the entire water-shed. The group consisted of six Soil and Water Conservation District su-pervisors and six county commissioners from the counties that have land within the watershed (Stevens, Swift, Grant, Ottertail, Douglas and Big Stone). That group fully implemented a Joint Powers Agreement on Au-gust 11, 1981 and called themselves the Pomme de Terre River Association. While the association had little money to deal with initially, they had, at the very least, set the wheels in motion and eventually things started to happen in the watershed.

Today, the group is a conservation machine! Within the past six years, the association has re-ceived over seven grants that total well over $1.8

million in funding, which were used to implement conservation practices that help reduce non-point source pollution. In 2015 alone, the Pomme de Terre River Association was able to install 15 rain gardens, three shoreline buffers, 36 water & sediment control basins, and provide low interest septic loans to sev-eral watershed residents. Additionally, the associ-ation provided funding for local SWCDs to enroll 760.38 acres into federal conservation programs.

The future looks bright for the watershed, as an-other grant was awarded to the Pomme de Terre River Association in 2016 totaling $115,248.00. To stay up to date with all the changes, events, and proj-ects happening within the association please visit our website at www.pdtriver.org or visit our Facebook page Pomme de Terre River Association.

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Page 10 - Saturday, March 5, 2016 Morris, Minnesota 56267MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

Morris Area Schools Excel at Area 2 Envirothon

Education and Promotion Coordinator

The Area 2 Envirothon, an outdoor educational competition for students, was held April 22 at the Prairie Woods Environ-mental Learning Center near Spicer. The area event is modeled after state and national com-petitions. Students in grades nine through 12 are eligible to participate in the senior event. The junior division is designed to introduce sixth through eighth graders to the pro-gram. The competition challenges students’ en-vironmental knowledge and problem solving skills at learning stations based on key areas of the en-vironment. Information is presented by natural resource professionals at five stations: wetlands, wildlife, forestry, soils and the 2015 current issue topic “Urban/Community Forestry in Minnesota.”

The students work collab-oratively to answer test questions at each station. In addition, prior to the event, the senior teams prepare a 10 minute oral presentation about the current issue topic that they present at the com-petition.

Mor r i s A rea H igh School had one high school team competing in 2015. They placed fourth overall and third in the Oral Presentation on “Urban/Community Forestry in Minnesota.”

Stevens SWCD takes an active part in organizing and carrying out the Area 2 Envirothon each year. We know the importance of teaching youth about our ecology and natural resources and the Enviro-thon is a great opportunity to do this. We are happy to provide the chance for area students to take part

and are very pleased that our students consistently do well in the competition.

Thanks are in order to the Area 2 Envirothon committee members, ses-sion presenters, judges, participating schools and sponsors for making the 2015 Area 2 event possi-ble: Soil and Water Con-servation Districts, County Environmental Services offi ces and local Water-shed Districts within Area 2; the USDA-Natural Re-sources Conservation Ser-vice; US Fish and Wildlife Service; Ag Country Farm Credit Services; and Prai-rie Woods Environmental Learning Center.

Contact Stevens SWCD Education & Promotion Coordinator Judy John-ston at 320-589-4886 ext 114 for more information on organizing a team or sponsoring the local event.

Morris Area team placed fourth overall at Area 2 Envirothon, (Left to Right) Eric Staebler, Lindsay Flogstad, Jenna DeRung, Philip Messner and Brittney Cardwell.

Judy Johnston has been with the Stevens SWCD since 1995. As the Educa-tion & Promotion Coordi-nator, she works closely with the education pro-gram and promoting the district’s conservation ac-tivities. Judy coordinates a variety of environmental education programs for youth as well as adults. She is the coordinator for both the Area 2 and

State Envirothons for high school students across the state. Judy also helps when needed with district

services and activities in the fi eld and around the offi ce.

Judy is a graduate of Penn State University with a degree in Agricultural Economics and Rural So-ciology. She lives on a small farm near Morris with her husband Lee. Judy enjoys traveling, outdoor activities, boating and scrapbooking in her spare time.

The Pomme de Terre River Update

SWCD Offers Spot Spraying and Grass Clipping

Clipping and spot spray-ing in combination are very effective ways to manage your conservation site. We are currently set up to do small sprayings, up to 10 acres, on conservation practices such as CRPs, WRPs, and new seedings. Spraying is very benefi cial in managing your practice because it keeps noxious weeds from taking over your site. Spot spraying allows the land owner to control weeds without to-tally eliminating the forbs (fl owers) in your site.

Along with spraying, Stevens SWCD does offer mowing on all conser-vation practices. This in-cludes total site mowing or spot mowing of weeds and small trees. In 2015 Ste-vens SWCD mowed about 350 acres. These mowings were done to control the spread of invasive weeds and voluntary trees, and to promote growth of newly planted sites.

In order to establish a good stand of grass it is essential to mow new plantings for the first one to three years. Many times new seedings will

need to be mowed two or three times the fi rst year depending on the time of year planted and the amount of weed compe-tition. Mowing can be cut back the next couple years, but keep in mind that you still want to clip weeds if they are predominant. The weeds provide a thick canopy over the grasses that restricts them from needed sunlight and mois-ture, which is critical in the early stages of building a root base.

Clipping is also done after the grasses are estab-lished. Many conservation contracts require some sort of mid-contract main-tenance, and on all estab-lished seedings, it is im-portant to control invasive weeds and/or voluntary trees. These established sites should be clipped at 8-12 inches high. Probably the biggest problem with invasive weeds in our area is Canada Thistle. Clip-ping of any invasive weed should be done before the weed goes to seed. If done at the right time, this can be an effective way of con-trolling these weeds. Also,

many of the conservation contracts do not allow the growth of trees on the site. These trees can be clipped when they are small to pre-vent having to go in later with large machinery to remove them. If the trees are too large, it is very ex-pensive to remove them.

With the combination of mowing and spraying we are hoping to control some of these invasive weeds more effectively, especially Canada Thistle, with minimal or no harm to the native fl owers. A good method of controlling this-tle is to spot clip the thistle patches, before they go to seed, and then come back in the fall, around the end of September or early Oc-tober, and spot spray those spots when the plant is trying to absorb nutrients for winter. They say that this is a very effective way to control thistle.

Please contact Matt or John at Stevens SWCD, (320)-589-4886 ext 3, if you have any questions or are interested about weed control on your conserva-tion acres.

Saturday, March 5, 2016 - Page 11Morris, Minnesota 56267 MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD

Pope and Stevens County Water Fest in its 10th year in GlenwoodOn September 11, over

300 sixth grade students and teachers from Pope and Stevens counties at-tended the tenth Annual Pope & Stevens County Water Fest. Students from Minnewaska, Bel-grade-Brooten-Elrosa, Morris Area Elementary, St. Mary’s, Hancock, and Glacial Hills attended this year’s event, which was held at the Pope County Fairgrounds in Glenwood. The students were in-volved in a day of hands-on learning about the water

cycle, water conserva-tion, macro invertebrates, aquatic intruders, bubble-ology, incredible journey and the lake game. The presenters were from vari-ous agencies including the Science Museum of Min-nesota, Pope & Stevens Soil & Water Conservation Districts, Middle Fork Wa-tershed, MPCA, Natural Resources Conservation Service, North Fork Crow River Watershed District, and the Glenwood DNR offi ce.

Jared House, Pomme de Terre River Coordinator, shares infor-mation on life under water to Morris Area sixth grade students at Water Fest in Glenwood.

Minnesota Science Museum presents a session on water conservation at Water Fest 2015.

How do Whales relate to Minnesota?

It may sound strange to talk about these marine mammals here in the mid-dle of North America, but it makes perfect sense when you understand that Min-nesota shares the same big watershed as these enormous, gentle giants! Coordinated by the Ste-vens SWCD and paid for by the Stevens County Water Plan, Stevens County el-ementary students had the opportunity to learn about features that classify whales and humans into the same animal group, the variety of whales in our oceans, what they eat, how they live and other fascinating details about

whales.To add even more fun,

the “Whale in our School” assembly culminated with a tour inside a life-size model of the biggest whale of all – the Blue Whale! Classroom workshops dive deeper into ocean life and whale adaptations with experiments and activi-ties to learn more about the amazing features of these gentle giants of our oceans.

This is a favorite class-room presentation among third grade students in Stevens County. They just love the chance to go inside a very life-like 70 foot whale.

Did you know a baby blue whale consumes 90 gals of whale’s milk per day? Did you know it has 50% fat to keep their bodies warm? Morris Area 3rd grade students learn how whales relate to Minnesota water at the “Whale in our School Program,” sponsored by Stevens Soil and Water.

Wetland Conservation Act – WCA for Tiling, Mitigating, or Wetland Banking

What is the state law?

The Minnesota Wet-land Conservation Act (WCA) is a state law that regulates the activities that result in the draining, filling, or excavating of wetlands in Minnesota, including those on agri-cultural land. It is adminis-tered by local government units; in rural areas this is usually the County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD). SWCDs also provide technical assistance to landowners.

Federal and Minnesota laws were enacted a cou-ple decades ago to address the draining and fi lling of wetland areas. Both sets of laws rely on the knowledge and actions of landowners to assure compliance with their requirements. It is

important for agricultural producers to be aware of these regulations in order to limit their risk. Land-owners need to know that just because you’re in com-pliance with one program doesn’t always mean that you’re in compliance with others.

What should you do before you start a

project?1 . Comp le t e your

“AD1026” form for you local USDA offi ce.

2. Bring a copy to the WCA Administrator and explain what you plan to do.

If you are interested in tiling, mitigating or putting some previously drained acres into the wet-land bank, the WCA Ad-ministrator can advise you if your project is allowed

under WCA or if you need to submit an application to the local government. In-volving the WCA Adminis-trator from the beginning is the easiest and best way to avoid problems.

Request a fi eld visit by the WCA administrator. This can help identify reg-ulated wetlands on your property, and regulations that could affect your proj-ect. Many wetlands do not contain standing water or are only saturated for part of the year, and can be diffi cult for landowners to identify.

If you need a con-tractor, make sure they submit a “Contractor Liability Form”. Contrac-tors who conduct projects that will impact a wetland are required to notify the local government.

The Contractor Respon-sibility and Landowner Statement From is avail-able at www.bwsr.state.mn.us/wetlands/forms and must be mailed to the local government prior to starting work.

Communication is the key! Compliance with USDA (Swamp buster) does not mean compli-ance with other wetland laws. A quick call or stop at your SWCD offi ce prior to beginning your project will help you comply with the laws and save a project from potential additional costs and delays.

The WCA contact for Stevens County is Matt Solemsaas, District Ad-ministrator at Stevens SWCD. If you have any questions stop by or call (320)589-4886 ext 112.

Helping Farmers Control Gully ErosionGullies and washouts

caused by concentrated overland water fl ow can create major headaches for farmers and landown-ers in Stevens County. Much of Stevens County experienced severe gul-lies from large rainfalls in a short duration of time in 2015. These gullies and washouts are often un-crossable, degrade the condition of the soil, remove tons of valuable top soil, and remain un-productive areas in a fi eld.

The Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) in Morris has suc-cessfully installed many erosion control practices in recent years. These prac-tices typically include a grassed waterway, a lined waterway or a Water and Sediment Control Basin

(WASCB). The layout and practice needed to address a resource concern deter-mines the practices used. Several operators in the county have installed one of these practices and have succeeded in both increasing the productiv-ity of a fi eld and stopping erosion. A grassed water-way involves reshaping the gully channel and seeding it to grass to sta-bilize that channel. A lined waterway is similar to a grassed waterway, but includes a reinforced matting that lines the wa-terway. Grass is seeded before installing the mat-ting and grows through the matting. These are typically installed where there is a concern of high volume fl ows and where grass alone will not hold

the soil in place. A WASCB system works by slowing down surface water by creating small dikes and installing Hicken bottom style tile-inlets upstream of the dike, to draw down retained water in less than 24-48 hours. A WASCB are usually two to six feet tall and can be installed to be farmable with 8:1 side slopes or with a grass slope.

Stevens County has had excellent success in recent years working with landowners to treat their gully erosion concerns. In 2015, over 25 WASCBs and a lined waterway were installed, and numerous others are planned to be installed in 2016 by oper-ators and landowners in Stevens County, with the assistance of the USDA

EQIP and other local pro-grams.

If you have areas of noticeable erosion on your land please stop at our offi ce and we would gladly discuss which ero-sion control practice might work best for you and your operation. We have very good maps now and topo-graphic programs that make it easy to pick out erosion trouble spots. We have qualifi ed staff that work with you to design and provide oversight on the project to make sure the practice is installed as designed. Financial assistance is also available from NRCS and/or local government units.

Stop by the offi ce today and let our staff put to-gether a plan to help con-trol erosion on your farm!

Matt Rose started work at the Stevens County NRCS Field Offi ce in Mor-ris in May 2012. He is the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) Contract Technician, a position coordinated by Ducks Un-limited. The goal of the po-sition is to acquire land for wetland restoration. This increases native habitat which in turn will increase wildlife populations. Rose provides technical service to current WRP easements and to landowners that are interested in enrolling their land into the WRP.

Along with Stevens County, Matt also works on WRP easements in Big Stone and Swift counties. Matt grew up in North Da-kota and graduated high school in Minnesota. He attended St. Cloud State

University where he re-ceived his degree in Field Biology-Wildlife Manage-ment. Through the years he has been an active vol-unteer with the Minnesota DNR, Minnesota Depart-ment of Agriculture, and the Wildlife Society. When not at work Matt enjoys fi shing hunting, camping and spending time with his friends and family.

Contract Technician Assistant TechnicianJohn Lembcke started

employment with Stevens SWCD in April 2013. As the district’s Assistant Technician, he works with planting native grasses, trees, rain gardens, and with weed control. He resides in Morris where he was born and raised. After high school John attended Minnesota State University Moorhead and received a degree in Busi-ness Administrations. Fol-lowing college he returned back to Morris and worked for Lembcke’s Garage for nine years. John is pres-ently serving as Second Assistant Chief with the Morris Fire Department,

which he has been a mem-ber of since 2006. When not working, John enjoys playing slow pitch soft-ball, golfi ng, hunting, ice fi shing, and playing darts. Most of all he enjoys being with friends and family.

Ecology Bus Center presenter Chrystal Dunker of New Elm, shares life as a whale with 3rd grade students at Morris Area.

Stevens County Producers Continue to Utilize EQIP – Environmental Quality Incentives Program

EQIP is a voluntary conservation program from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). EQIP provides technical as-sistance, and incentive payments to assist crop, livestock, and other ag-ricultural producers with environmental, conser-vation and energy im-provements to their op-erations. This assistance is to help landowners implement structural, vegetative, management practices, and Conserva-tion Activity Plans (CAP).

Some common prac-tices in Stevens County are cover crops, grassed waterways, water and sediment control ba-sins, terraces, convert-ing irrigation systems to

low pressure systems, nutrient management, pest management, no-till, strip-till, closure of waste impoundments, brush management, con-servation crop rotation to organic production, seasonal high tunnels, drainage water manage-ment, windbreaks/shel-

terbelts, native prairie seeding, prescribed burn-ing, and rotational graz-ing systems consisting of fence, pipeline, well, water tanks, and pasture seeding. If you have a resource concern on your land, EQIP probably has a practice that may be eligi-ble for fi nancial assistance

that could fix your re-source concern. Producermust be signed up in EQIPand be in compliance withall USDA Farm Bill provi-sions in order to receivefi nancial assistance.

In 2015, over 2,170 acres had practices installed totreat resource concerns inStevens County. Practicesincluded cover crops, shelterbelt windbreaksand soil erosion control. If you have future plans,contact us soon so we cando good onsite evaluationof the site to address ideasfor treating your resourceconcerns and generate agood plan so you are notrushing into a project. Funding preference is alsogiven to complete plans.Applications are acceptedon a continuous basis.

EQIP technical and fi nancial assistance is available for rotation grazing systems.

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Page 12 - Saturday, March 5, 2016 Morris, Minnesota 56267MORRIS SUN TRIBUNE - SWCD