Sept. 20, 2024

Dear Healthy Soil Program stakeholder:

Are you intending to apply for a Healthy Soil Program grant when the application goes live in early 2025?  If so, we encourage you to register for one of our pre-application webinars happening Thursday, November 7:

• ELIGIBLE ENTITIES: This is the webinar to attend if you will apply on behalf of a New Mexico pueblo, tribe, or nation; acequia; land grant; soil and water conservation district (SWCD); NMSU-Cooperative Extension Service office; or another local governmental entity with “proven land management capacity to support healthy soil”.  This webinar is set for 10 to 11:30 a.m. Mountain Time.  ELIGIBLE ENTITIES, register here.

• INDIVIDUAL APPLICANTS: This is the webinar to attend if you will apply on behalf of yourself, your business, or your nonprofit – no matter which of those three hats you wear, you must be actively engaged in farming, ranching, or another form of land management in New Mexico.  This webinar is set for 3 to 4:30 p.m. Mountain Time.  INDIVIDUAL APPLICANTS, register here. 

You’ll find more soil health-related information – events, funding opportunities, and news – further down.  The inclusion of such items does not imply NMDA’s endorsement.

NMDA’s Healthy Soil Program

Learn more: https://nmdeptag.nmsu.edu/healthy-soil-program.html

Be in touch: [email protected]

EVENTS, IN-PERSON AND ONLINE

WHAT (click on a link below to learn more or register)	WHEN	WHERE	WHO (event organizer)
Small Acreage Stewardship and Homesteading Skills workshop series	Now through Oct. 3	Alcalde	NMSU Cooperative Extension Service
Grazing Land Management and Soil Carbon: A Climate Hubs – LTAR Webinar Series	Now through Dec. 16	Online	USDA Long-Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) Network
Grant Writing Webinar Series for Undergraduates and Agricultural Producers(see attached flyer)	Tuesdays, Sept. 24-Oct. 29	Online	Dr. Eva Stricker (University of New Mexico + Quivira Coalition)
Jujube Fruit Tasting Workshop(learn more here)	Sept. 21	Los Lunas	NMSU Agricultural Experiment Station
Climate Smart Mitigation and Adaptation – Building Resilient Working Lands	Sept. 24	Online	USDA NRCS Science and Technology
Agriculture’s Potential to Become a Net [Carbon] Sink	Sept. 24	Online	Climate Week NYC + U.S. Farmers and Ranchers in Action
Increasing Operation Profitability for U.S. Agricultural Producers	Sept. 24-25	Stillwater, OK	Noble Research Institute
Great Plains Biochar Conference	Sept. 24-26	Lincoln, NE	University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Increasing Diversity Field Day	Sept. 25	Albuquerque	NM Healthy Soil Working Group
An ecosystem approach to restoration: examples of embracing Traditional Ecological Knowledge in ecosystem restoration from across the Americas	Sept. 25	Online	The Society for Ecological Restoration
Artesia Agricultural Science Center Annual Field Day(learn more here)	Sept. 26	Artesia	NMSU Agricultural Experiment Station
Assisted Migration 101 — Seed Source Considerations	Sept. 27	Online	The Forest Service National Center for Reforestation, Nurseries, and Genetic Resources
Farmer to Farmer education, outreach, and networking(see attached flyer)	Sept. 28,Oct. 19	Albuquerque	Chispas Farm + Rodale Institute
Cultivating Agricultural Partnerships for Sustainability	Oct. 1-2	Salt Lake City, UT	Western SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education)
Chile Preservation Presentations	Tuesdays, Oct. 1-22	Online	Sandoval County Extension Service + Valencia, Santa Fe, Bernalillo, and McKinley CES offices
Practical Approaches to Building Soil Health on Rangelands	Oct. 5	Perryton, TX	Quivira Coalition
REGENERATIVE FOOD SYSTEMS INVESTMENT FORUM	Oct. 9-10	Denver, CO	Regenerative Food Systems Investment
Graze Days: An Urban Grasslands Restoration Project in the Railyard Park(see attached flyers)	Oct. 18-19	Santa Fe	Railyard Park Conservancy
REGENERATE Conference – A conference about regenerative agriculture	Nov. 6-8	Denver, CO	American Grassfed Association + Holistic Management International + Quivira Coalition
Sustainable Agriculture Summit	Nov. 20-21	Minneapolis, MN	Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture + Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy + U.S. Poultry & Egg Association + U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef

Have a soil health-related event happening this month or next?

Please send details (registration website, etc.) to [email protected]

OTHER FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES AND RESOURCES

1. Ciudad Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD): Apply to be compensated for seed collection: Wildland Seed Harvesting Pilot Program
2. U.S. Forest Service: Apply by Sept. 30: Forest Landowner Support
3. USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service: Apply by Sept. 30: USDA Announces $300,000 in Funding Available to Support U.S. Sheep Industry
4. Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education: Apply by Oct. 22 for a Professional + Producer grant
5. New Mexico State University: Apply by November 1: NMSU accepting applications for New Mexico Agricultural Leadership Program
6. Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education: Apply by November 6: Local Education and Demonstration Grants
7. Organic Farming Research Foundation: Apply between Oct. 14 and Dec. 1: Farmer-Led Trials Program
8. Quivira Coalition: Apply for SOIL TO SUPPER: Strengthening Southwest Livestock Value Chains for Climate Resilience
9. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association: Apply before attending an educational event: Rancher Resilience Grant

SOIL HEALTH NEWS, organized by the 5 soil health principles

Keep soil covered.	Green Cover Seed: Fill the Weed Niche with CoversAdvancing Eco Agriculture: [Listen] Diverse Cover Crop Systems with Keith BernsHay & Forage Magazine: Desertification and human-induced climate change
Minimize soil disturbance on cropland and minimize external inputs.	Farm Progress: 5 reasons to ditch fall tillageXtremeAg: [Watch] Does No-Till Farming Work Across Different Geographies?Future Farming: SmartProbe lets farmers use smartphones to tackle soil compactionU.S. Biochar Initiative + U.S. Forest Service: [Watch] Assessing Challenges and Opportunities for Biochar Adoption in New Mexico
Maximize biodiversity.	Noble Research Institute: Embrace Change: Cultivating Pasture Diversity
Maintain a living root.	National Center for Appropriate Technology:Seeding Root Crops
Integrate animals into land management, including grazing animals, birds, beneficial insects or keystone species, such as earthworms.	American Cattlemen: American Cattlemen’s Podcast…Tips for Overseeding and Improving Your Pasture This Fall
Multiple principles addressed, plus other news	No-Till Farmer: Making No-Till, Cover Crops Work in Harsh ClimateFarm Journal: [Watch] Flip Your Soil: No One Secret Sauce to Healthier SoilGrowing Produce: What The Next Frontier Of Soil Health Might Look LikeUSDA Farm Service Agency: Amplifying Tribal Voices in USDA Farm Service Agency County Committee ElectionsNew Mexico State University: NMSU Artesia field day to focus on pest management, crop research