Conservation tools for success

B y Bill Wickerham

In 2015, the Adams Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) along with USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) was awarded the Mississippi River Basin Initiative (MRBI) grant. At the fulfillment of the grant, producers in Adams County received $1,118,437 that boosted the local economy. These funds were used to pay for seed, stone, pipe, fence, etc., as well as for contractors that performed many of the services.

This program helped producers in specific Ohio Brush Creek sub watersheds complete various conservation practices that improved water quality. To implement several of the practices, there was a real need for a no-till drill to plant cover crops, seed pastures and other areas. Fortunately, Adams SWCD was able to partner with Adams County Farm Bureau to purchase a 10’ no-till Haybuster seed drill through a water quality grant from the Ohio Farm Bureau. This proved to be a wise move as this drill has planted over 6000 acres over the past 9 years.

Although it got the job done, the Haybuster drill has had some limitations. Some of the most common complaints were that it was either too big or too small. Ag producers wanted something larger to cover more ground, while others wanted a smaller drill for food plots or pollinator plots or maybe because they only had a small tractor available. The 10’ transport width was also difficult to travel down some narrow county and township roads.

The time has now come to replace the drill. To address the current shortcomings of the drill, the Adams SWCD Board of Supervisors elected to purchase a 12’ Esch no-till drill using the proceeds from the rental of, as well as the sale of, the previous Haybuster drill. Essentially, this program has proven to be sustainable by being able to fund replacement equipment. What makes this new drill unique is that although considerably larger in the field covering more ground, it swivels for transporting down the road at a width of only 8.5’ making it easier to get down narrow roads safely. Naturally, being a heavier, larger drill, it will require a heavier 9,000-pound tractor to pull it. This “Ag Drill” is available only in Adams County and Adams County Farm Bureau members will continue to receive their membership benefit discount of 25% off any rental. The rental rate is $15 per acre, with a $250 minimum which includes delivery, pick-up and technical assistance.

By getting a larger drill for ag producers it left smaller producers and wildlife enthusiasts without available equipment. To solve that issue, Adams SWCD partnered with the National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) and Adams/Brown Quail Forever (QF) to purchase a smaller Esch no-till drill more ideal for food plots and other small acreage requiring only a 4,000-pound tractor to operate. This 5.5’ Esch no-till “Wildlife Drill” will be available throughout all of Adams County as well as to NWTF and QF members in Brown County. All NWTF and QF members in either county will receive a $50 per day discount. The rental on this drill is $250 per day for up to 15 acres which also includes delivery, pick-up and technical assistance. Additional acres will be charged $15 per acre.

Adams SWCD is very proud of their many successful partnerships and would like to thank the Adams County Farm Bureau, the National Wild Turkey Federation and the Adams/Brown Quail Forever Chapter for their support and dedication in getting conservation on the ground through this partnership. They also appreciate the five elected members of theAdams SWCD Board Supervisors that serve Adams County without compensation. Those supervisors are Jack Hazelbaker, Jake Rhonemus, John Day, Garine Shoemaker and Mark Ross. These folks dedicate their time and talents to help direct available resources in addressing the conservation needs of our county.

The Adams SWCD equipment rental program helps prepare Adams County for the upcoming H2Ohio Program that rolls out to Adams County farms that began April 22. Farmers in Adams County have been waiting a long time to be able to take advantage of H2Ohio funding and programs, but the wait is finally over.

H2Ohio rolled out to farmers in the Western Lake Erie Basin (WLEB) in 2020. The program expanded the following year to additional counties.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s latest budget allocated funding for a statewide rollout of H2Ohio to farmers, but that rollout is on a more limited scale. Farmers in the WLEB can enroll acres for numerous practices, including voluntary nutrient management plan development and implementation, overwintering cover crops, subsurface phosphorus placement, manure incorporation and utilization, drainage water management structures and a new equipment purchase assistance component.

While it’s definitely good news that H2Ohio agriculture programs are expanding into Adams County, it’s important to realize the practices available locally are going to be much more limited. The limitations come in terms of available practices, available acres countywide and available acres per farmer.

Adams SWCD board and staff are excited about the opportunities the expansion provides, but we want to be clear in establishing expectations for our producers.

The expansion of H2Ohio agricultural practices outside of the WLEB is going to be limited to voluntary nutrient management plan development for 2024. That is not necessarily a bad thing; even in the WLEB, having a nutrient management plan in place is a foundational requirement to participate in the other practices. It just makes sense when rolling this program out to triple its footprint across the state that we take it in smaller steps to streamline the expansion process.

A key difference as H2Ohio comes to Adams County is there is a strict limit on the number of available acres to enroll in the program. Counties were grouped into tiers based on the number of row crop acres being farmed. Adams County falls in the range of 30,000-75,000 acres of row crops farmed.

Based on that range, the county can enroll up to 5,000 acres of cropland into the H2Ohio program’s initial expansion, which is about 11 % of Adams County’s cropland, with those acres being capped out to a maximum of 500 enrolled acres per producer.

For questions concerning H2Ohio or renting equipment, call the Adams Soil & Water office at (937) 544-1010 and ask for Bill Wickerham or Brett Barton.

To sign up for H2Ohio you will need to stop in the Adams SWCD office located in the USDA Service Center, 807 NE Main St., Suite B, in West Union during regular office hours of Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.