West

Using an Alternative Feed to Bring Stability in the Face of Drought and Rising Costs

Texas farmer Diana Padilla secured a SARE grant to investigate whether farm-grown moringa oleifera could serve as a practical and sustainable feed substitute.

SARE Seeks Outreach Products to Advance Sustainable Agriculture

SARE Outreach is seeking recommendations for information products or outreach initiatives that extend research-based sustainable innovations to improve the sustainability of American agriculture.

Ranchers Turn to Compost to Improve Soils and Boost Forage Production

Zachary Withers used a Western SARE Farmer/Rancher grant to examine whether applying compost could help his soil retain more rainfall, reduce erosion and improve forage production.

Redefining Learner-Centered Education to Build High Impact IPM Partnerships

Engaging farmers as self-directed learners and co-educators can improve the effectiveness of extension trainings.

Promoting Soil Health for Cut Flower Production

With support from a Western SARE Partnership grant, Melanie Stock of Utah State University partnered with cut flower farmers to explore sustainable fertilization practices for dahlia production.

Enterprise Budgets for Diversified Farms

SARE’s newest bulletin, Enterprise Budgets for Diversified Farms: Tools for Understanding Your Bottom Line provides guidance on using enterprise budgets, recordkeeping systems and partial budget analysis to evaluate management decisions for diversified farm operations.

2025/2026 National Cover Crop Survey Is Now Open for Farmer Input

Farmers across the U.S.—whether they use cover crops, formerly used them, or have never planted covers—are invited to share their insights on cover crops in the National Cover Crop Survey.

Improving Cattle Production Efficiency and Health Through Breeding and Probiotics

SARE-funded research conducted by Peixin Fan may provide insights on microbiome-guided strategies that offer beef and dairy farmers new options for improving livestock resilience and profitability.

Impacts of Silage Tarps on Soil Arthropods, Soil Properties and Crop Yields

Tarps dramatically reduced weed cover (around 30% weed cover in tarped plots versus 90% in control plots) and doubled crop yields.

Farmers and Ranchers Are at the Core of SARE’s Research Investments

SARE provides grants directly to producers, which removes the financial risk of testing new ideas for making their operations more profitable, productive and sustainable. And all of SARE’s grant programs require producer engagement throughout their project activities.