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Darke Southwest Conservation
New Grazing
Concept Benefits the Bird and the Herd
Sign-up Deadline is January 19, 2018
Columbus, OH, November 14, 2017 – If you think livestock and quail
don’t mix, a new concept in managed grazing may just change your mind.
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is now accepting
applications for a unique program that focuses on establishing
productive warm season forages to improve livestock production and
provide large areas of prime habitat for ground nesting birds and other
wildlife.
Ohio’s Northern Bobwhite in Grasslands project is part of a national
Working Lands for Wildlife (WLFW) partnership, a collaborative approach
to conserving habitat for declining species on farms and working
forests. NRCS works with partners and private landowners to focus
voluntary conservation efforts on working landscapes.
The Northern Bobwhite in Grasslands project is designed to help bring
back the quail that were once an integral part of Ohio’s farming way of
life. Leading researchers have documented the wildlife benefits of
managed grazing on native summer forages, concluding that this approach
enhances the habitat for the ground nesting birds while improving
livestock weight gains.
“Ohio’s new project is a ‘win-win’ for producers by enabling them to
continue grazing on land with installed conservation measures,” said
Terry Cosby, NRCS State Conservationist in Ohio. “By replacing fescue
with native grasses, participants can improve or maintain average daily
weight gains, enhance soil health, and hedge against summer drought
with fewer inputs.”
NRCS utilizes the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to
offer technical and financial assistance to eligible livestock
producers to implement conservation practices to address habitat loss
without taking their land out of production. NRCS will conduct targeted
restoration activities with a focus on 30 southern Ohio counties (see
map).
All NRCS financial assistance programs are offered in a continuous
sign-up; however, to be considered for Northern Bobwhite in Grasslands
funding, applications must be received by January 19, 2018.
To learn more about technical and financial assistance available
through NRCS conservation programs, visit Get Started with NRCS or a
local USDA Service Center.
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