Soil Health Management Practices Online plus Dodgeville (Linden) WI Field Day on Oct. 16, 2014

This intermediate-level online course will emphasize the importance of soil health in in terms of agronomic, economic and societal benefits. Course materials will explore the key agronomic management principles to improve soil health, including: reduced tillage, cover crops, crop rotations and mulching. Emphasis will be placed on understanding the benefits and challenges of implementing various soil health management practices within diverse agricultural production systems. The course will guide participants through the process of selecting appropriate soil health management practices to meet farm-specific management requirements and goals and includes a field day

The one-day, intermediate-level field training will build on the online course topics through hands-on activities and farm scenarios. The field training will focus on the evaluation of various agricultural practices on soil health parameters and selling these concepts to producers. Participants will utilize basic evaluation methods to document soil, water and plant properties in the field. Activities will develop participants’ data collection, communication and problem-solving skills through in-field case studies. The cost of this field training is included in the online Soil Health Management Practices course, and will take place on October 16, 2014 at the Bill Spurley farm. (2263-2273 County Highway G, Montfort, WI 53569)