Resources

All of our resources are available from this page. You can also visit the specific pages for individual topics to get focused information on those areas.

Conservation

Conservation encompasses many areas - soil, water, and crop considerations all play a part. We offer a variety of practical resources to help you find the answers to your questions.

"How resilient are our lands here in the Midwest? What is our ability to retain productivity if we have another long drought or continual flooding? Will people still be farming in Iowa 1,500 years from now? Or even 200 years from now? The decisions we make today about our natural resources will affect agricultural production 50 years from now."
--from the video "The Work of Our Hands"

Conservation Resources

Cover Crops

Cover crops are a great way to improve soil health. Many Iowa farmers are adding cover crops to their crop rotations so soil stays covered when the fields are not growing other crops. Cover crops also improve soil organic matter and slow water runoff.

Farmers have many questions about incorporating cover crops. Most asked questions include: what kinds of plants can be used, when and how to seed and when and how to terminate. With field days and workshops, Iowa Learning Farms strives to help farmers, and other interested people, find the answers to these questions and more.

Cover Crop Resources

Edge of Field

Edge-of-field practices play a crucial role in meeting the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy goals of improving water quality through reducing nitrogen and phosphorus in Iowa's water bodies. Edge-of-field practices involve drainage water management, bioreactors, buffers, saturated buffers, denitrifying wetlands, terraces and sediment control.

Edge of Field Resources

Relay Intercropping

Relay intercropping is a multi-year, multi-species cropping system that allows for 3 harvestable crops (small grain, soybean, corn) in 2 years.

View recent webinars, blogs and publications from ongoing research farm and on-farm demonstrations.

Relay Intercropping

Field Day Toolkit

This Field Day Toolkit is the product of Iowa Learning Farms’ many years of planning and hosting field day events across the state of Iowa. While ILF utilizes many different outreach approaches, the importance of farmer-to-farmer interactions cannot be overstated. Field days do matter!

Field Day Toolkit

Recent Resources

Posts in Water Conservation

May 1, 2024: Urban Wetlands 101

May 1, 2024: Urban Wetlands 101

With John Swanson

Conservation, Webinars, Water Conservation, Edge of FieldAlena WhitakerMay 1, 2024wetlands, water quality, flood mitigation, urban conservation

April 17, 2024: Pay for Performance: Cost-share Alternative to Increase Nonpoint Source Pollution Reduction

April 17, 2024: Pay for Performance: Cost-share Alternative to Increase Nonpoint Source Pollution Reduction

With Timothy Rosen

Conservation, Webinars, Soil Conservation, Water ConservationAlena WhitakerApril 18, 2024watershed, cost share, nonpoint source, pollution

March 13, 2024: Winter Cover Crop Effects on the Optimum N Rate of Corn Across Multi-state Field Experiments

March 13, 2024: Winter Cover Crop Effects on the Optimum N Rate of Corn Across Multi-state Field Experiments

With Hanna Poffenbarger

Conservation, Webinars, Water Conservation, Cover CropsAlena WhitakerMarch 14, 2024cover crops, N rate, nitrogen, winter cover crop

March 6, 2024: Does Tile Drainage Pay if You Only Get 20 inches of Precipitation?

March 6, 2024: Does Tile Drainage Pay if You Only Get 20 inches of Precipitation?

With Lindsay Pease

Conservation, Webinars, Water ConservationAlena WhitakerMarch 7, 2024water management, tile drainage, precipitation, economics

February 14, 2024: Woodchip Bioreactors: Expanding Carbon Sources and Implementation Strategies

February 14, 2024: Woodchip Bioreactors: Expanding Carbon Sources and Implementation Strategies

With Michelle Soupir

Webinars, Conservation, Edge of Field, Water ConservationAlena WhitakerFebruary 14, 2024bioreactos, woodchips, nitrate, nitrate reduction, corn cob

Field Day Archive: Woodchips and Water Quality: Exploring Species and Chipping Methods to Maximize Bioreactor Efficiency

Field Day Archive: Woodchips and Water Quality: Exploring Species and Chipping Methods to Maximize Bioreactor Efficiency

Field Day Archive, Conservation, Water Conservation, Edge of FieldAlena WhitakerFebruary 9, 2024water quality, forestry, bioreactors, woodchips

January 24, 2024: Engaging Farms in Conservation Leadership

January 24, 2024: Engaging Farms in Conservation Leadership

With Amanda Gumbert

Webinars, Conservation, Water ConservationAlena WhitakerJanuary 24, 2024nitrogen, Mississippi River, water quality, conservation, farmers

Field Day Archive: Pasturing Oxbows: Optimizing Benefits to the Farm, Water and Wildlife

Field Day Archive: Pasturing Oxbows: Optimizing Benefits to the Farm, Water and Wildlife

Field Day Archive, Conservation, Water Conservation, Soil Conservation, Edge of Field, LivestockAlena WhitakerJanuary 18, 2024livestock, grazing, wetlands, oxbow, native grasses, perennial, water quality

January 17, 2024: Tile-drainage Decision Tool Helps Manage Agricultural Land and Reduce Nitrogen Pollution

January 17, 2024: Tile-drainage Decision Tool Helps Manage Agricultural Land and Reduce Nitrogen Pollution

With Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu

Webinars, Conservation, Water ConservationAlena WhitakerJanuary 17, 2024nitrogen, water quality, Mississippi River, tile drainage

January 10, 2024: Managing Saturated Buffers in a Flat Field: Impacts on Flow and Nitrate Load Treatment

January 10, 2024: Managing Saturated Buffers in a Flat Field: Impacts on Flow and Nitrate Load Treatment

With Gabe Johnson

Webinars, Conservation, Edge of Field, Water ConservationAlena WhitakerJanuary 10, 2024nitrogen, whole farm conservation, saturated buffers, water quality, edge of field

December 20, 2023: Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program: Certifying that Minnesota's Farms and Waters can Prosper Together

December 20, 2023: Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program: Certifying that Minnesota's Farms and Waters can Prosper Together

With Brad J. Jordahl Redlin

Webinars, Conservation, Conservation Crops, Soil Conservation, Water ConservationAlena WhitakerDecember 21, 2023water quality, whole farm conservation, Minnesota Dept of Agriculture, soil health

Field Day Archive: A Vision for Iowa: Growing Food for People through Diversified Agriculture Systems

Field Day Archive: A Vision for Iowa: Growing Food for People through Diversified Agriculture Systems

Field Day Archive, Conservation, Water Conservation, Soil ConservationLiz RipleyDecember 15, 2023trees, diversity, diversified agricultural system, Kernza, livestock, silvopasture, grazing, perennial

November 22, 2023: Impact of 100 Years of Agricultural Practice Changes on Sediment and Nutrient Loss from One Farm in Osceola County, IA

November 22, 2023: Impact of 100 Years of Agricultural Practice Changes on Sediment and Nutrient Loss from One Farm in Osceola County, IA

With Matt Helmers

Webinars, Conservation, Conservation Crops, Water Conservation, Soil ConservationLiz RipleyNovember 22, 2023soil, soil erosion, water quality, nutrient loss

November 15, 2023: Perennial and Winter Annual Crops for Economic and Environmental Benefit

November 15, 2023: Perennial and Winter Annual Crops for Economic and Environmental Benefit

With Matt Leavitt

Webinars, Conservation, Conservation Crops, Water Conservation, Soil ConservationLiz RipleyNovember 15, 2023soil, soil erosion, water quality, perennial, perennial cover, Kernza, small grain

October 18, 2023: Water Issues in Iowa: The Urban-Rural Divide Revisited

October 18, 2023: Water Issues in Iowa: The Urban-Rural Divide Revisited

With Jacqueline Comito

Webinars, Conservation, Water ConservationLiz RipleyOctober 18, 2023water, water quality

October 11, 2023: Does Climate Change Change Our Water Quality Challenges and Design of Drainage Systems?

October 11, 2023: Does Climate Change Change Our Water Quality Challenges and Design of Drainage Systems?

With Matt Helmers

Webinars, Conservation, Water Conservation, LivestockLiz RipleyOctober 11, 2023water, water quality, nutrient loss, drainage, climate change