Below is a listing of upcoming conservation field days around the state. For a complete listing of future conservation field days, click here.  

Upcoming Field Days

Connecting Agriculture and Conservation 

Saturday, June 25 (10am-1pm)

Nutty Farmer Chestnuts

27242 E Ave, Radcliffe, IA 50230

Are you curious about how you can add more diversity, habitat or conservation practices to your farmland? Join us this summer at Nutty Farmer Chestnuts to learn how Heath Stolee has integrated chestnut trees, prairie strips, a 16-acre Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) wetland – and more – on his Hardin County farm.

Heath will share how he has integrated conservation with agriculture on his farm, and connected with organizations like Ducks Unlimited and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship to create habitat and diversity. Nutty Farmer Chestnuts is a veteran-owned family farm that grows chestnut trees and has integrated other conservation practices throughout the years.

For more information and to register, click here by June 20.


Myth: “Tile and Conservation Don’t Mix” – Drainage Opportunities & Challenges

Monday, June 27 (1pm-2:30pm)

Live Webinar Series Part 3

The myth “Tile and Conservation Don’t Mix” is a misconception that may be limiting farmers’ interest in adopting conservation practices. Tile systems can be designed to mitigate the risk of nutrient loss often associated with drainage, while also providing a foundation for soil health systems to thrive. Hear a farmer’s perspective on how conservation drainage practices have impacted his operation.

For more information and to register, click here.


Iowa Learning Farms Webinar: Reclaiming Iowa’s Abandoned Coal Mines

Wednesday, June 29 (12pm)

Live Webinar

The Iowa Learning Farms conservation webinar taking place June 29 at noon CDT will feature Vince Sitzmann, mines and minerals bureau chief, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS). Sitzmann is leading efforts through the IDALS Abandoned Mine Land Program to reclaim some 12,000 acres across 300 abandoned surface coal mine sites in Iowa. Employing mass grading, neutralization and installation of conservation practices, the program is returning these sites to working lands.

In the webinar, Sitzmann will offer an overview of Iowa’s historic position as a coal-producing state and the legacy left behind after generations of production. He will discuss the hundreds of currently abandoned mines that include hazardous features that continue to impact the environment. He will also provide an in-depth perspective on how these sites are being reclaimed through hazard abatement strategies and the elimination or reduction of negative environmental impacts and the restoration of adversely affected waters and land to beneficial use.

For more information, click here. 


Iowa Learning Farms Conservation Webinar Series

Wednesday, July 6 (12pm)

Live Webinar

The Iowa Learning Farms conservation webinar taking place July 6 at noon CDT will feature Jane Frankenberger from Purdue University.
 
For more information, click here.


Soil Health and Grazing Series: Part 1

Wednesday, July 6 (12:30pm-3pm)

Kubik Family Farm, 2587 130th St. Traer, IA 50675

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and Iowa Learning Farms are offering three field days focused on soil health in grazing systems. In These hands-on field days, attendees will learn how to assess soil and pasture conditions.
 
For more information and to register, click here.


Soil Health and Grazing Series: Part 2

Thursday, July 7 (12:30pm-3pm)

Nelson Family Farm, 27996 Harding Rd. Clermont, IA 52135

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and Iowa Learning Farms are offering three field days focused on soil health in grazing systems. In These hands-on field days, attendees will learn how to assess soil and pasture conditions.
 
For more information and to register, click here.


Oat Production: From Variety Selection and Seeding to Baling and Cleaning

Thursday, July 7 (10:30am-12:30pm)

Voss Farm, 1926 Sisley Grove Rd. NW, Palo, IA 52324

Join the Vosses on their farm outside of Atkins, Iowa, to see and hear about cover crops, working oats into an extended rotation and more. Dan, winner of the 2021 “Forward Thinking Farmer” award, was early to adopt cover crops in his corn and soybeans and has been growing small grains for the entirety of his career. With his son, Brian, he no-till farms about 600 acres of corn and soybeans, alfalfa hay and oats for feed and straw.

The Vosses will discuss cover crop practices and species they’ve used, lead guests on a tour of an oat crop and discuss management from variety selection to post-harvest. Guests will also see the Vosses’ equipment set-up for drilling oats. Attendees can stick around following the field day to see the bioreactor and saturated buffer, installed at the end of 2021. There’s plenty to learn and see during this field day!

For more information and to register, click here by July 1.