Farmers and landowners who want to increase pollinator habitat while also improving water quality should consider the benefits of saturated riparian buffers enhanced with native wildflowers.
Establishing pollinator habitat within riparian zones, where the agricultural value is lower and where the conservation and wildlife benefits are likely high, can be a win-win.
“Landowners looking for the combined benefits of native habitat and water quality can capture both by establishing pollinator-friendly species on top of saturated buffers,” said Dana Schweitzer, program coordinator with the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium at Iowa State University.
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Iowa Learning Farms, in partnership with the Iowa Nutrient Research Center, Conservation Learning Group, and Prairie Rivers of Iowa, is hosting a free, virtual saturated buffer field day on Thursday, June 11 at 1 p.m. The virtual field day will explore the first-ever saturated buffer that was installed in 2010 within an existing riparian buffer along Bear Creek in Hamilton County. Read more about Virtual Field Day at Bear Creek Saturated Buffer
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach is partnering with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) to bring meaningful water quality improvements to the South Skunk River watershed. We directly engage with farmers and cropland owners in the South Skunk River watershed to encourage adoption of water quality practices. Specifically, edge-of-field practices such as saturated buffers and bioreactors. Providing in-depth technical assistance and cost-share to facilitate planning and installation of these practices.
Iowans will have three in-person and online opportunities to learn about edge-of-field nutrient management practices in early December, with a special focus on projects being done within the South Skunk River Watershed in central Iowa. Practices to be discussed include saturated buffers and bioreactors, their benefits, who is eligible, and funding opportunities. Technical assistance and cost-share funding are available, and these practices are supported by the federal Conservation Reserve Program, as well as the Iowa Water Quality Initiative...
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The Iowa Learning Farms conservation webinar will feature Catherine DeLong, water quality program manager with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. DeLong works statewide to bring people together to share resources, ideas, and perspectives about water quality, and to help Iowans understand the role they can play in the future of Iowa’s water resources. Read more about Webinar - Happily Ever After? Improving Edge-of-Field Practice Implementation after the Landowner Says "Yes"
The Iowa Learning Farms conservation webinar taking place Jan. 12 at noon CST will feature Matt Helmers, professor and agricultural engineering specialist with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, and director of the Iowa Nutrient Research Center. Helmers leads research on the impact of agricultural management and conservation practices on water quality. He will draw on his expertise with field drainage systems and drainage water quality in this session. Read more about Webinar: Better Utilizing the Field Edge: Saturated Buffers and Bioreactors
