Riparian Areas
Riparian areas are the water rich land areas surrounding water. They are some of the most productive pastures we have, but must be managed carefully. Learn about grazing management in these sensitive areas at Montana State’s extension service website – Stream and Riparian Managment
Helping Farmers Save Energy and Resources
The National Center for Appropriate Technology website is a great resource for training, publications, websites, technical assistance and helplines about technologies that can help farmers and ranchers keep pace with our changing world. Learn the latest & local info on farm self-sufficiency. Click http://www.ncat.org/
Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan
The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) can help by providing technical and financial assistance for the development of alternative uses of manure, timing and application, storage facilities, and improved feeding management technologies. Check it out at www.mt.nrcs.usda.gov
Irrigation Management
Find out how to maximize production with the minimum amount of water, while protecting our limited resources. Learn about irrigation for alfalfa, wheat and other crops, tools of the trade and more at http://waterquality.montana.edu/docs/irrigation.shtml
Sustainable Agriculture
Sustainable agriculture is one that produces abundant food without depleting the earth’s resources or polluting its environment.
The National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service has resources to help you manage your farm to maximize production and maintain the health of your land. Link directly to their resources below or go to the
- Livestock
- Marketing
- Water Management Water Quality, Conservation, Drought and Irrigation
- Soils & Compost
- Pest Management
- Field Crops
- Farm Energy – Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Targeted Grazing – a natural approach to vegetation management and landscape enhancement
Agricultural Water Conservation Clearinghouse
The Agricultural Water Conservation Clearinghouse website is a portal for all kinds of tools and electronic resources on how to save water in agriculture, through increased crop water use efficiency, improved irrigation application efficiency, increased capture and utilization of precipitation, adoption of new technologies for water management, and other methods. There is a searchable library, a set of tools and guidebooks, and links to state-specific resources. The clearinghouse was developed by university partners in the northern Great Plains, and funded by the US Department of Agriculture.
Farmers & Ranchers
More information is on our Farmers & Ranchers page
Agricultural News
- Montana Specialty Crop Grants The Montana Department of Agriculture is seeking proposals for projects that enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. Projects must qualify in one or more of the following areas: increasing nutrition knowledge and consumption of specialty crops; im...
- Grants for Water Quality Trading Credits Pay off Double The Natural Resources Conservation Service is providing up to $10 million in Conservation Innovation Grants for projects that enhance the effectiveness of water quality credit trading. A producer who implements conservation practices to reduce water quality pollutants can also benefit by generating water quality market credits that could be sold in an open market – reducing the cost of implementing and maintaining the conservation practices.
- Water Quality Technical Advisory Group Meeting You are invited to attend a Technical Advisory Group (TAG) meeting regarding the Flathead total maximum daily load (TMDL) project. The purpose of this meeting is to present and discuss the technical details of the Flathead Lake watershed nutrient and sediment model.
- How to Cut Ag Costs and Increase Soil Health Ray Archuleta spoke to a full house on soil health at the recent Mt Association of Conservation Districts convention. Read about what he had to say by going to this link on the Ag Support page....
- Looking for Landowners to Field Test Plants Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is looking for landowners to field test new grasses, forbs, and woody plants: The Plant Materials Program is looking for places throughout Montana to test new selections of grasses, forbs, woody plants, technology for their cultivation, and benefit to resource concerns.