It’s new! And it’s our 9th and final workshop of our 2nd Cycle of Certification Workshops.
Soil Health is scheduled Saturday, April 30. A PayPal registration link has been added to the Certification tab of this website. Please register as soon as possible so I can tell the workshop leaders how many of us are coming.
The leaders of this workshop are Rachel Stout-Evans of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service and Dr. Bill Patterson, La Tech faculty member. I urge you to watch the following 6 1/2-minute video in preparation for this workshop.
Our workshop will focus more on farm soil health, but the video introduces some important principles of soil health that apply everywhere.
We will gather at 9 a.m. on Marty Earnest’s farm near Columbia, La. The address is 1536 Hwy 133, Columbia, which is exactly .11 miles north of McClanahan Road and .35 miles south of Kelly Road. BTW, Google Maps is not accurate for this address; Apple Maps is.
Farmer Earnest is working with the NRCS to increase his soil health by practicing no-till and using cover crops. This workshop will be a combination of looking at soils in a field and some brief, interactive laboratory demonstrations, like aggregation and slake tests, and a sprinkler test to see infiltration vs. runoff. It is likely that they will have some soil test data and crop yield data to share.
I am not certain how long this workshop will run, but, as always, come dressed to be outside, and, as a product of an Iowa farm, I’m assuming that includes water/mud-competent footwear. Bring your own water, snacks/food, bug repellent, etc. Oh, and a cap. You can’t be on a farm without a cap. It’s just not allowed!
Woohoo! I am so excited for this workshop, I’ve already registered.
Louisiana Master Naturalists - Northeast 