West

SARE Brochure

A free-to-order catalog/brochure that includes information about SARE, our grant programs, and our printed and online resources.

Sustainable Production and Use of On-Farm Energy

Using solar or wind energy or producing biofuels from crop feedstocks and anaerobic digestion helps farmers achieve energy independence while improving profitability and reducing fossil fuel emissions.

2017 National Conference on Cover Crops and Soil Health

Session recordings are available from the second National Conference on Cover Crops and Soil Health. The event served as an opportunity to learn recent developments in how cover crops are being used by innovative farmers across the country and gain important insights on improving soil health from producers, conservation leaders and scientists. It was held December 7-8, 2017 in Indianapolis.

Recordings of General Sessions

Opening remarks by Jane Hardisty (USDA-NRCS Indiana) with video message Bill Northey (Iowa Secretary of Agriculture) Keynote: Growing a Revolution - Bringing Our Soil Back to Life, by David Montgomery (University of Washington) Farmer panel: Experiences with Cover Crops and Soil Health, with Dan DeSutter (Ind.), Trey Hill (Md.) and Jimmy Emmons (Okla.) Top 10 Ways Cover Crops Build Soil Health, by Rob Myers (North Central SARE) Plenary session: Carbonomics, by Keith Berns (Neb. farmer and Green Cover Seed)

Digging into Soil Health

Soil Health Principles Soil Health Testing and Practices Soil Biology and Organic Matter

Cover Crop Role in the Cropping System

Cover Crops and Nutrient Management Cover Crop Impacts on Diseases and Insects Cover Crops, Herbicides and Dealing with Herbicide-Resistant Weeds

Economic and Environmental Aspects of Cover Crops

Economics of Cover Crops Business Opportunities with Cover Crops and Soil Health Environmental Impacts of Cover Crop Systems

Special Topics with Cover Crops and Soil Health

Organic and Specialty Crops Grazing Cover Crops Soil Health Policy Issues

Vegetable and Weed Degree-day Models

Pest managers are familiar with the concept of using degree days to predict pest outbreaks. Insects, like many other organisms, develop according to the temperature around them and degree days are a way to measure accumulated temperature. Plants – at least in part – also develop based on temperature, so a team in Oregon is […]

Innovative Assessment Helps Farmers in the Northeast Improve Soil Health

Improving soil health without understanding the soil's condition is not easy and traditional soil tests, though important management tools, don't provide information on the physical structure or microbial life living in the soil. That is why a multidisciplinary team at Cornell University created a soil health assessment, which measures physical, chemical and biological indicators as […]