New Mexico Healthy Soils Program
Healthy Soils Workshop Number 1 of 2: Soil Testing, Compost Building, & Practical Applications for Reviving Degraded Land.
We are at a critical time for agriculture and the environment. The realities of extreme weather events, conflicts over water, the blight of rural communities, and diminishing natural resources are bearing down on all New Mexicans, with farmers and ranchers at the forefront of these serious problems. At the same time, the awareness that soil stewardship can be part of the solution to the climate crisis has been rising and new approaches, mutually beneficial for agriculture and the environment, are gaining traction. Agriculturalists are looking for ways to improve their soil, but they require know-how, sustained technical assistance, help in overcoming institutional barriers, financial incentives, and risk mitigation.
- Ben Wright of the Taos Land Trust and Amy Larsen of New Mexico State University – Alcalde hosted this online workshop on Monday, August 31, 2020, at 5:30 PM (MST) from Rio Fernando Park in Taos, New Mexico.
- In this first of a two-part workshop series, we cover soil testing, compost building, and practical applications for reviving degraded land. Part 2 of the workshop will introduce cover crops, no-till seeding, and further assessments of soil health.
Healthy Soils Workshop Number 2 of 2: Cover crops, no-till seeding, and home garden applications
- Ben Wright of the Taos Land Trust Land Projects and Education Coordinator and Chris Pieper of Flourish Farms in Arroyo Seco, New Mexico hosted this online workshop Monday, October 26th, 2020 at 5:30 PM (MST) from Rio Fernando Park in Taos, New Mexico.
- In this second of a two-part workshop series, we discuss cover crops, no-till seeding, home garden applications, and other practical applications and assessments for reviving degraded land.
The Healthy Soil Program is administered by the New Mexico Department of Agriculture (NMDA). The Healthy Soil Working Group is the advocacy organization behind the bill. NMDA developed the program and is administering the funds. For more information on the Healthy Soils Initiative in New Mexico, visit www.nmhealthysoil.org
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Taos Land Trust and Taos Valley Acequia Association Cooperate on Healthy Soils Initiative
Taos Land Trust (TLT) and Taos Valley Acequia Association (TVAA) received a Healthy Soils grant from NMDA to offer training, education, outreach, and support to acequia parciante landowners in the Rio Fernando de Taos watershed to implement Healthy Soil practices on their land. Judy Torres, Executive Director of TVAA, Maya Anthony, Outreach & Stewardship Coordinator at TLT, and Ben Wright, Education & Land Manager at TLT worked with a pilot cohort of landowners in this watershed to conduct soil testing, analysis, and gather recommendations to improve soil health through the 5 Principles of Healthy Soil. Due to Covid-19, our plans to host a panel discussion with the community had to take another form but luckily we ended up with a short film documenting the process produced by Taos Sound & Media (https://www.taossound.com/)
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