MONTICELLO — The Farmers of the Sugar River concluded their field day Tuesday, June 18 east of Monticello at Feller farm. The group was very grateful for the 30 or so farmer and public that attended despite the heat. The majority of the time was spent in the shade of the shed with good discussion and conversation.
The rainfall simulator was presented by Tonya Gratz, Soil Conservationist for the Green County Land and Water Conservation Department and collaborator for the group. She explained the effect of rainfall on the soil. Tonya collected samples from five different land management areas yard grass, established prairie, no till, vertical till, and conventional tilled field. While watching the rainfall simulator you could see the negative affect (soil erosion) that tillage had on the field compared to prairie grass when it rains.
Dane Elmquist, Conservation Cropping Outreach Specialist with UW Extension, educated the farmers and public about earthworms. He described the benefits of earthworms provide in agricultural systems. There are three main classes of worms found in Wisconsin fields. He highlighted that some worms only make vertical tunnels while others go more horizontal. Dane showed a pocket guide put on by Xerces Society for soil invertebrates as bioindicators.
After enjoying lunch provided by the producer led group the event concluded with Jamie Patton, Soil Scientist, chatted about the soil. She and Tim Feller went through the history of the soil management on the farm. Jamie was able to identify the different tillage through the years just by looking at how the soil broke apart. She also discussed the importance of cover crops and roots to improve soil health. The group went to the soil pit and saw where Jamie had used blue tracing dye to show where and how the water infiltrated into the soil. She was able to show water does not uniformly flow through the soil profile it took the path of worm and root cannels to get lower in the soil profile.
Farmers of the Sugar River is a producer-led group that is supported by a Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) grant. The group works to educate farmers and the public about practices that promote soil health and erosion reduction. They believe if the soil is healthy that there would be minimal erosion, leading to clean surface waters.
