Hamilton County SWCD Staff Attends IASWCD Conference

Members of the Hamilton County SWCD staff attended the IASWCD Annual Conference in Indianapolis at the Westin Hotel on January 24 & 25, 2022.  Educational sessions, round table discussions, and networking to build partnerships for conservation was the highlight of the conference for the district staff.  

Soil armor (surface plant materials/residue) is important for reducing water and wind erosion, decreasing water evaporation, moderating soil temperatures, reducing the impact of energy from raindrops, suppressing weed growth and providing a habitat for surface dwellers, which are an important part of the soil food chain.

A continual living plant root either from the commodity crop, cover crop or forage crop provides carbon exudates to feed the soil food web, which is exchanged for nutrients for plant growth. This process is also important for soil aggregate formation, which increases soil pores for improved water and air exchange.

Minimizing soil disturbance, either biological, chemical, or physical tillage, enables the soil armor to persist. Biological disturbance includes overgrazing of forages that reduce soil armor and below ground biomass. Physical and chemical disturbance occurs from tillage burying crop residues and over stimulating microbial breakdown and excessive carbon release into the atmosphere.

Prairie plant diversity aided and allowed soils to develop prior to the introduction of annual cropping systems. Plant diversity uses sunlight and water to sequester carbon and other nutrients, preventing leakages into ground and surface waters. Understanding the four crop types — warm-season grasses and broadleaves, and cool-season grasses and broadleaves — is necessary for designing cropping systems that improve soil health.  Livestock integration balances soil carbon and nitrogen ratios by converting high carbon forages to low carbon organic material, reducing nutrient transport from the soil, and promoting pasture and rangeland management in combination with cover crop grazing.

You Can Identify Invasive Species this Winter!

Tired of Invasives? Winter is a great time to manage invasive plants and get a head start on spring management. Several invasive species can actually be easier to identify in the winter and early spring than in the summer. This can be because they’re evergreen, they have a distinct winter color, or they produce leaves before native plants do. Many people take advantage of this by working on invasive management during the winter, or by marking the easily identifiable plants, and then treating them when it's warmer. Below are several species that are easily identified during the winter months as well as species you can treat now. 

What can you ID?
If you aren’t confident with identifying invasive species, the below species are easy to identify in winter and early spring. They can be marked, often with spray paint or flagging tape, and then treated when it’s warmer. 

• Vinca major and Vinca minor: Commonly known as periwinkle, this evergreen vine was introduced and commonly sold and planted by gardeners.  It is easy to identify year-round with its opposite glossy leaves.

• Bradford Pear: Occasionally pear trees will hold on to some of its fall foliage through the winter months. The leaves are a distinct maroon red color. More importantly, pear trees are some of the first trees to produce leaves in the springtime. This makes them easy to identify against a mostly grey landscape. Pears also boom in spring, sporting several white flowers. Many people comment that the flowers have a distinct foul smell. 
• Asian Bush Honeysuckle: Sometimes this shrub will have small red berries through the winter months, and it has a somewhat distinct striped bark. More importantly, Asian bush honeysuckle is one of the first plants to produce leaves in the springtime. This makes it easy to identify against a mostly grey landscape. 
• Garlic mustard: This is a biennial plant that produces evergreen basal leaves in the first year of its life cycle. These leaves grow close to the ground and stay green-ish through the winter. The leaf shape of the basal leaves can be easy to confuse with native violets and some other native species. To positively identify garlic mustard, you can grind a leaf between your fingers and it should have a distinct garlic/onion scent. In spring, garlic mustard will shoot up into 2-3 foot tall stalks.

Why is Affiliate Membership Important to Us?

By becoming an Affiliate Member of Hamilton County Soil & Water Conservation District, you are helping our organization provide services and educational programs which protect and enhance the natural resources of Hamilton County.  

Donations, whether volunteer hours or a financial contribution, are a valuable asset. Our supporters ensure we can hold workshops and programs for all ages, produce educational publications, establish demonstration sites, and support the many services offered by the SWCD. 

All giving levels receive a Friend of Conservation t-shirt and will be recognized at the Annual Meeting, on our brochure, and on our website.  We would like to express a special thank you to our current members listed below.