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Soil Health Symposium
Ventura County Research Symposium
Sustainability Through Soil Health
February 27, 2020
Please join us for a morning of research updates and
speakers highlighting industry trends including:
- Soil Health Assessment and Management:
- Lessons from the Arid and Semiarid Southwest
- Dr. John Idowu, Extension Agronomist & Associate Professor at New Mexico State University
- Messages from Soil Health Research
- in San Joaquin Valley
- Dr. Jeffrey P. Mitchell, CE Cropping Systems Specialist at Kearney Agricultural Research & Extension Center
Crowne Plaza Hotel 450 E Harbor Blvd Ventura, CA 93001
citrus cover crop
Healthy Soils and Water Efficiency Grant Programs
The California Department of Food & Agriculture (CDFA) is NOW accepting
applications for the HEALTHY SOILS PROGRAM!
This program provides cost-share to farmers and ranchers to implement soil health practices, including compost application, cover cropping, prescribed grazing, and much, much more!
The Ventura County Resource Conservation District will be hosting application assistance workshops to help :
Ranchers, vineyards, orchards, row crops, and mixed operations are all eligible
The max grant amount is $75,000
Applications due March 8th
Friday, January 18th 2:30 - 3:30PM
Active Adult & Community Center, 533 Santa Clara St., Fillmore, CA 93015
Tuesday, January 22nd 2:30 - 3:30PM
Help of Ojai, 111 W Santa Ana St., Ojai, CA 93023
Thursday, January 24th 2:30 - 3:30PM
Ventura County RCD Office, 3380 Somis Road, Somis, CA 93066
Monday, January 28th 2:30 - 3:30PM
Oxnard Public Library, Meeting Room B, 251 South A St, Oxnard, CA 93030
Workshops are FREE to attend, but we ask that you RSVP.
PLEASE contact Lexi Ballinger at
(805) 764-5135 or lexi.vcrcd@gmail.com to do so.
AND Also Take the Opportunity for:
The California Department of Food & Agriculture (CDFA)
STATE WATER EFFICIENCY ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM (SWEEP) Application Period is NOW OPEN!
SWEEP reimburses agricultural operations for projects that reduce BOTH greenhouse gas emissions and water use. Projects can include new pumps, irrigation system upgrades, soil sensors, valves, timers, and much more!
Ranches, vineyards, orchards, row crops, and potted plant operations are eligible to apply
Reimbursement max is $100,000
Applications due March 8th 2019
The Ventura County Resource Conservation District is hosting FREE SWEEP program workshops and FREE individual application assistance:
Friday, January 18th 3:30 - 4:30PM
Active Adult & Community Center, 533 Santa Clara St., Fillmore, CA 93015
Tuesday, January 22nd 3:30 - 4:30PM
Help of Ojai, 111 W Santa Ana St., Ojai, CA 93023
Thursday, January 24th 3:30 - 4:30PM
Ventura County RCD Office, 3380 Somis Road, Somis, CA 93066
Monday, January 28th 3:30 - 4:30PM
Oxnard Public Library, Meeting Room B, 251 South A St, Oxnard, CA 93030
Workshops are FREE to attend, but please RSVP.
To RSVP contact
Jamie Whiteford at
(805) 764-5132
- or -
jamiewhiteford.vcrcd@gmail.com.
HSP logo
Farm and Ranch Funding for Healthy Soils and Water Management
- Interested in increasing water productivity while saving money on water and energy bills?
- Considering cover crops, composting or planting a hedgerow?
- Would you like to convert from flush to scrape at your dairy/livestock operation?
Applications are now open for three grant opportunities through the California Department of Food & Agriculture (CDFA). Funding is available to farms and ranches for a variety of practices that can cut on-farm water and energy use, build soil fertility and reduce dairy methane and other greenhouse gas emissions, while providing economic benefit to the operations and enhancing community and environmental health.
Below are some examples of eligible projects for each program. To delve into the specifics of each program and how to apply, please see the CDFA website links to each program below.
State Water Efficiency & Enhancement Program (SWEEP)
Share the SWEEP application flyer!
- Applications due March 8, 2019
- Incentives grants for up to $100,000 available
- $9.5 million total available
Improve irrigation efficiency and reduce water and energy costs through projects like:
- Installation of solar panels for irrigation systems
- Micro-irrigation and drip systems
- Soil moisture monitoring, weather station, and telemetry equipment for irrigation scheduling
- Pump retrofits
- Low-pressure systems
- Variable frequency drives
Healthy Soils Initiative: Incentives Program & Demonstration Program
Share the Healthy Soils Program application flyer!
- Applications due March 8, 2019
- Incentives grants for up to $75,000
- Demonstration grants for up to $250,000 (must implement new practice(s) and do farmer-to-farmer outreach and field days)
- $15 million total available
Adopt/expand the use of 25+ eligible soil health practices. A few examples:
- Cover crop
- Compost
- Hedgerows, wind breaks, riparian plantings
- Prescribed grazing on pasture
- No-till or reduced till
- Mulching
- Silvopasture
- Crop rotations
Alternative Manure Management Program (AMMP)
Share the AMMP application flyer!
- Applications due April 3, 2019
- Up to $750,000 for individual dairy/livestock operations
- Demonstration grants available (must do farmer-to-farmer outreach and field days)
- $19 – 33 million total available
Manage dairy/livestock manure in ways that can reduce water use and methane emissions, through projects like:
- Conversion from flush to scrape and/or solid separation of manure solids with alternative manure handling (e.g. daily spread, solar drying, composting, etc.)
- Compost bedded pack barns
- Pasture based practices, including conversion to pasture and increased time animals spend on pasture.
More Information & How To Apply
Matching grants from programs like USDA's NRCS EQIP are encouraged for AMMP and the Healthy Soils Program, but not required (EQIP match not permitted for SWEEP).
Some funding will be prioritized for awards to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, consistent with the Farmer Equity Act (AB 1348). CDFA will also give special consideration to projects located within or that show demonstrated benefits to severely disadvantaged communities (you can use this site to find out if you are located in such a community).
Go to CDFA's websites, linked above, for more detailed information and access to the applications.
irrigATING CITRUS
What's the Difference - Dirt, Soil, Earth?
Soil and agriculture courses are being taught again at Ventura College. This was a commitment of outgoing President, Greg Gillespie. There are only a handful California community (junior) colleges that still teach soils. Luckily Santa Barbara City, Allan Hancock, Pierce, Mira Costa and a few other community colleges in the Central Valley have at least introductory courses in soils. Many of the leading growers in Ventura County got their start in college taking soils courses at Ventura College, then went on to four-year colleges to round out their educations. The community college classes have always been a taste, a dusting of understanding of soils and if someone wanted to dig deeper, they would go on to somewhere like Davis, Fresno, Riverside, Pomona or San Luis. The community colleges are part of the continuum, start there and then go anywhere.
Dr. Jennifer Charles-Tollerup, the incoming Agriculture Instructor at Ventura College, brings a diverse set of experiences including 5 years in agricultural production systems, 4 years in agricultural research and education, 6 years in community college instruction as well as appointments in program development. She holds a PhD from the University of California, Riverside in Entomology with a concentration in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and Statistics along with a Bachelor's from the University of California, Santa Cruz in Biology and Environmental Studies with emphasis in Botany and Agroecology. Jennifer trained as an Apprentice in Ecological Horticulture at UC Santa Cruz's Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. She has worked on market gardens, family farms, and large-scale operations in citrus, grapes, nurseries, strawberries, herbs, lettuces, and edible flowers. Jennifer has used her academic and professional experience to coordinate elementary school garden programs.Jennifer readily supports the mission of the community college, to transform lives through education. Her approach involves building relationships with students and with agriculture partners, connecting the two together, and launching students into their life's work in agriculture. (this from CA Women in Ag newsletter, http://www.cwaventura.com/).More information about the Ventura College Agriculture Program can be found at http://www.venturacollege.edu/departments/academic/agriculture
Soil and agriculture courses are being taught again at Ventura College. There are only a handful California community (junior) colleges that still teach soils. Luckily Santa Barbara City, Allan Hancock, Pierce, Mira Costa and a few other community colleges have at least introductory courses in soils. Many of the leading growers in Ventura County got their start in college taking soils courses at Ventura College, then went on to four-year colleges to round out their educations. The community college classes have always been a taste, a dusting of understanding of soils and if someone wanted to dig deeper, they would go on to somewhere like Davis, Fresno, Riverside, Pomona or San Luis. The community colleges are part of the continuum, start there and then go anywhere.
Dr. Jennifer Charles-Tollerup, the incoming Agriculture Instructor at Ventura College, brings a diverse set of experiences including 5 years in agricultural production systems, 4 years in agricultural research and education, 6 years in community college instruction as well as appointments in program development. She holds a PhD from the University of California, Riverside in Entomology with a concentration in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and Statistics along with a Bachelor's from the University of California, Santa Cruz in Biology and Environmental Studies with emphasis in Botany and Agroecology. Jennifer trained as an Apprentice in Ecological Horticulture at UC Santa Cruz's Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. She has worked on market gardens, family farms, and large-scale operations in citrus, grapes, nurseries, strawberries, herbs, lettuces, and edible flowers. Jennifer has used her academic and professional experience to coordinate elementary school garden programs.
Jennifer readily supports the mission of the community college, to transform lives through education. Her approach involves building relationships with students and with agriculture partners, connecting the two together, and launching students into their life's work in agriculture. (this from CA Women in Ag newsletter, http://www.cwaventura.com/).
More information about the Ventura College Agriculture Program can be found at http://www.venturacollege.edu/departments/academic/agriculture
Come learn the dirt on the differences - ground, alluvium, subsoil, topsoil, mud, muck, marl, mire, smut - there are, but some terms are more subtle than others. Check out your local college for their soils course work.
soil weathered from rock
California State Soil - San Joaquin Series
Many states have a designated state bird, flower, fossil, mineral, etc. In California, the state bird is the California Valley Quail, the state flower is the Golden Poppy, the state fossil is the Sabertoothed Cat, and the state mineral is Native Gold. The state rock is Serpentine which contains chrysolite asbestos which is a carcinogen. It's a beautiful rock, though.
The state soil is the San Joaquin series. The series concept is that a given soil has certain properties like pH, depth, color, texture, etc. that distinguishes it from other “soils” or series. So wherever this soil is found it is given the same name. San Joaquin series is a soil that is found primarily along the foothills of the Sierras in the Central Valley. The name comes from where it is first described, in this case, San Joaquin, but it is found in other places. Yolo series is named after a soil on the campus at UC Davis in Yolo county, but it is also found in San Diego county, and in other states.
A description of the state soil can be found at the link below, as well as the state soils in other states:
http://www.soils4teachers.org/files/s4t/k12outreach/ca-state-soil-booklet.pdf
http://www.soils4teachers.org/state-soils
Soils can be highly variable depending on the context in which they are found. Going to flat old Kansas which is actually flatter than a pancake (http://www.usu.edu/geo/geomorph/kansas.html), the variability from spot to spot across miles can be minimal. But going to a place like Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo Counties of the Sierra foothills, you can't step on the same soil twice. That's because of the terrain and landforms. Where there is natural erosion (yes, it doesn't take humans to cause erosion) or accelerated erosion (this is where humans have often changed the landscape with roads, houses, removing ground cover) soil gets moved around and deposited in different positions and over time forms different soils with different properties. On large tracts of land that have not been altered much, such as avocado orchards, the naturally formed soils can be seen. In a housing tract where soil has been moved around to level and compact housing pads, it is often hard to find a natural soil because it is so highly disturbed. The soil can have been moved from one end of a 100 acres tract to the other with big equipment. It's all one big homogenous mix down to several feet at times depending on the slope.
In many cases, it is still possible to see the natural soils and knowing their series classification, it's possible to learn some of the properties and some of the problems that will be encountered when working with them. Knowing the pH prior to working it means that it could be adjusted before planting. It's a whole lot easier to adjust before planting than when the plants are in the ground.
You can see the soils in your area by going to the USDA-NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service) website - https://websoilsurvey.sc.egov.usda.gov/App/HomePage.htm - and typing in the area code to find the soil at a given site. It probably isn't the state soil series, but it's your soil series.
For a great text on understanding soils, check out Soils: An Introduction by Michael Singer and Don Munns.
soils
