The Forests in the Farm Bill Coalition (FIFB) released its 2018 Farm Bill recommendations. The National Association of Conservation Districts has been an active participant in the creation of the recommendations, serving on two of the coalition’s working groups to ensure that NACD’s policies and principles were included. “The public expects clean air and water, healthy soils, and abundant wildlife habitat …
USDA Working with Landowners to Restore Longleaf Pine Forests
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) wants to help private landowners across the Southeast restore and protect 400,000 acres of longleaf pine forests through their new two-year implementation strategy. NRCS Acting Chief Leonard Jordan wants landowners to know they are furthering ongoing efforts to use existing Farm Bill programs and other resources to increase the abundance and improve the health …
Christmas Trees Getting Shaped for Christmas
It is that time of year. Christmas trees start earning their shape. Cathy Isom tells us about the hard work happening on the farm right now, so we can enjoy big another holiday in a matter of months. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. While we are relaxing and enjoying the summer cookouts and the crackling of fireworks across …
Research on Pests and Beneficial Species Funding from USDA
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced 21 grants totaling $7.6 million for research to help manage pests and beneficial species that affect agricultural crops. The funding is made possible through NIFA’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program, authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill. “There continues to be a critical need to …
USDA to Work With Landowners to Restore Longleaf Pine Forests on Private Lands
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) released a two-year implementation strategy to help private landowners restore and protect 400,000 acres of longleaf pine forests, a unique but imperiled landscape of the Southeast. Through the strategy, NRCS furthers its ongoing effort to use existing Farm Bill programs and other resources to increase the abundance and improve the …
USDA Announces $20 Million for Jobs for Young People, Veterans
USDA and partners committed $20 million in 21st Century Conservation Service Corps partnership agreements to provide 4,000 work opportunities for youth, young adults and veterans up to 35 years old, a move that will help the U.S. Forest Service accomplish mission-critical infrastructure and landscape restoration projects on the ground. The U.S. Forest Service is one of seventeen USDA Agencies. The …
Conservation and Forestry Subcommittee Highlights Importance of Watershed Maintenance in Rural America
The House Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry held a hearing to examine efforts to address small watershed infrastructure. Subcommittee Chairman Frank Lucas (OK-3) and members heard from two panels of witnesses who underscored the importance of technical and financial assistance to maintain these watershed structures. “For nearly 70 years, rural communities have benefited from federal investments in watershed projects …
Secretaries Perdue and Zinke Stress Inter-Departmental Collaboration as Wildfire Season Approaches
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue and Interior Secretary Ryan K. Zinke joined forces in Boise, Idaho at the National Incident Fire Command Center (NIFC) for a tour and briefing on the upcoming wildfire season. Following the events, the secretaries sent a memorandum to wildland fire leadership highlighting the importance of inter-departmental collaboration in protecting communities and managing public lands. In the …
Southeast Landowners Reminded about Longleaf Pine Initiative
Landowners across the Southeast are being reminded about the Longleaf Pine Initiative (LLPI) through USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. The program, which started back in 2010, helps agricultural producers and conservation partners restore longleaf forests. NRCS Acting Chief, Leonard Jordan, explains why restoration efforts of longleaf pine forests are so important. Sponsored ContentNuseed Carinata Covers New GroundJuly 31, 2024CIR Agriculture …
UF Scientists Prepare for Devastating Pest in China Before it Makes its Way to U.S.
A previously unrecognized pest is making a name for itself devastating American sweetgum trees in China. Now, University of Florida researchers fear the insect will make its way to the United States and devastate its sweetgum trees. The bug was so obscure it recently had no scientific name until researchers realized it was responsible for the death of thousands of …