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Extreme weather conditions like the recent excessive rains and tornadoes have negatively impacted Ohio farmers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service will invest $4 million to help Ohio agricultural producers recover. Technical and financial assistance is now available to producers who were unable to plant their crops due to flooded or wet fields. This sign-up is an opportunity for farmers to plant a cover crop.

“NRCS can be a valuable partner to help Ohio landowners with their agricultural recovery effort,” said State Conservationist Terry Cosby for NRCS in Ohio. “This special sign-up encourages farmers to plant cover crops to improve water quality and soil health, prevent soil erosion and suppress weeds on areas not planted to crops.”

NRCS will use the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) for this special disaster recovery sign-up. EQIP is a voluntary conservation program that helps agricultural producers protect the environment while promoting agricultural production.

Cover crops provide an alternative to fields going fallow and remaining uncovered. Cover crops also improve soil vitality by adding nutrients and organic matter. Many fields that are saturated for a long period of time face a loss of soil organisms. Cover crop roots re-establish soil health and create pathways for air and water to move through the soil, which is key to restoring it.

There are significant changes with cover crops and NRCS wants producers to be successful in their 2020 planting year. Educational cover crop workshops and field days are readily available throughout Ohio to learn more. Additional information is also available on the NRCS website and at USDA’s farmers.gov site.

Landowners should coordinate with other USDA farm agencies when participating in related programs. It is a producer’s responsibility to work directly with their insurance agent and RMA to ensure they understand their policy.

To apply for this special EQIP opportunity, visit your local USDA Service Center. Applications will be accepted beginning July 1, 2019 until funding is exhausted.

Online Extra

With the lagging planting season across Ohio, many fields that should be filled with lush green corn and soybeans are instead brown and overtaken by weeds. Thanks to a new $4 million NRCS program, many of those acres will be incentivized by planting a cover crop, including corn and soybeans. Ty Higgins gets all of the details from state Conservationist Terry Cosby in this Ohio Farm Bureau podcast.