Magic Valley Soil Health Forum Set For January

Farmers across southern Idaho are invited to share their successes and failures with agronomic practices during next month’s annual Magic Valley Soil Health Forum.  The free event is scheduled for January 8th at the College of Southern Idaho campus.

Linda Schott, an assistant professor and UI Extension specialist of nutrient and waste management at the Twin Falls Research and Extension Center, and Courtney Cosdon, a soil health Extension instructor at the Idaho Water Center based at University of Idaho-Boise, are the forum’s lead organizers. 

Breakout sessions will cover topics such as reducing inputs, rotational considerations when using cover crops, late-season cover cropping, soil health practices that work best for farmers who raise root crops, getting started with soil health practices, integrating livestock with cover cropping, the economics of soil health, making decisions about cover crops and no-till farming. 

“We are a national leader in growing a lot of really important crops and we need to ensure Idaho can continue to grow those crops and be profitable,” Schott said. “We don’t have as much organic matter as in the Midwest and we never will, but we need to protect and grow what we do have.” 

The forum was started several years ago by a former district conservationist with NRCS, Steve Schuyler. Last year’s forum drew about 90 farmers from throughout southern and eastern Idaho.

“This is a farmer-to-farmer learning network about soil health,” Schott said. “Farmers will get up and talk about their experiences with implementing soil health practices – good and bad – and lessons learned so others can learn from that. 

Those interested in participating are asked to R-S-V-P by January 3rd. 

No admission will be charged to attend the forum, which will be hosted from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the CSI Taylor Building and will include lunch. However, farmers are asked to RSVP by January 3rd.

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