Sand County Foundation is empowering farmers with real-time data about their conservation practices.
This project provides 30 farmer collaborators from Minnesota and Wisconsin with on-farm data of how their management influences soil temperature, nutrient runoff potential, and other factors.
This work was one of 12 projects funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's “Farm to Farmer” grant funding in 2021.
Sand County Foundation teamed up with Farmers Edge and the University of Minnesota to develop this demonstration.
Farmers using a soil health management system are paired with a neighbor with similar soils but a more conventional management approach. The aim is to quantify how infiltration, water holding capacity, soil trafficability, leaching potential, aggregate stability, and other soil properties are influenced by management.
Farmers Edge installed soil sensor technology in each field that provide each farmer access from their cell phone to their own real-time soil moisture and temperature data.
Other key partners in the project include: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Minnesota Soil Health Coalition, Benton Soil & Water Conservation District, Mower Soil and Water Conservation District, Soil Solutions Consulting LLC, Watershed Protection Committee of Racine County, and Dodge County Farmers, Healthy Soil Healthy Water.
"Within 2-4 hours following a heavy rainfall event, my sensor were showing that moisture had already reached the bottom of the soil probes. I believe this rapid infiltration is 100% because of my no-till system!" -- Chris Schmidt, Minnesota farmer.
In the News:
Read the EPA Awards 'Farmer to Farmer' Grant to Sand County Foundation press release.
For more information contact:
Heidi Peterson, PhD. - 612.504.7186
hpeterson@sandcountyfoundation.org