Conservation Chat

Eileen Kladivko is a professor of agronomy at Purdue University in Indiana and a founding member of the Midwest Cover Crops Council. Her specific research areas have included tile drainage, cover crops and earthworms. 

Dr. Bob Hartzler is an ISU agronomy professor and an extension weed specialist. After years of removing milkweed from agricultural fields, he is encouraging its re-establishment in strategic locations to help stop monarch butterfly decline as a part of the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium.

Sharon Krause is the owner and operator of Dalla Terra Ranch, a grass fed organic lamb operation in Madison County, Iowa. A native Iowan, Sharon is passionate about lambs, healthy lands and her local community.

In this episode, I chat with Dr. Adam Janke, Assistant Professor and Extension Wildlife Specialist at Iowa State University. His focus is on strengthening wildlife conservation in working landscapes in Iowa.

This episode features a chat with Nathan Anderson, a young Iowa farmer who is passionate about minimizing the off-farm ecological impact of his farming practices so that future generations of his family can continue to farm.

This episode features a chat with Dr. Amy Kaleita of Iowa State University about the relationship between big data, precision technology, soil, water quality and conservation in Iowa.

This episode features a chat with Dr. Lisa Schulte Moore of Iowa State University about the relationship between birds, prairies, trees, fire, water quality and conservation in Iowa.

Enjoy a chat with Iowa's 2016 Conservation Woman of the Year, farmer Sue Kuennen Massman, on her 160 acre farm in NE Iowa. Passionate about conservation, Sue lends her voice and experience to other women landowners.

Dr. Emily Heaton of Iowa State University and Ingrid Gronstal Anderson of the University of Iowa discuss the U of I's goal of using giant miscanthus as a bioenergy crop.

Molly Hanson is the new Executive Director for the non-profit river advocacy group, Iowa Rivers Revival. A native Iowan, Molly is passionate about conservation and clean, free-flowing rivers.  

Dr. Tom Isenhart, Iowa State University professor, chats water ecology and practices that can be implemented to improve stream health and water quality.

A conservation advocate, Rick Juchems farms in northeast Iowa and has implemented numerous conservation practices including cover crops. His daughter Liz is following in his footsteps -- not in farming, but in conservation education and outreach.

Seth Watkins farms his family heritage farm in southwest Iowa. He has a 600-head cow-calf enterprise and a whole farm approach to conservation: rotational grazing, wetlands, late season calving, and row crops integrated with prairie strips and cover crops.

Dr. Matt Helmers is a professor in the Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department at Iowa State University. As one of the writers of Iowa's Nutrient Reduction Strategy, Helmers discusses what it will take to implement this strategy in the state.

Laura Krouse operates Abbe Hills Farm, a 72 acre farming operation near Mt. Vernon, Iowa, where she raises a wide variety of vegetables, fruits, alfalfa, oats, and other small grains. Join host Jacqueline Comito as she chats with Laura about 1 New Thing for Water campaign, thoughts on motivating others to do their part as we collectively strive towards cleaner water and the reduced soil + nutrient export, the ever-growing need to work with women landowners on conservation issues.

Paul and Nancy Ackley have been farming together for 40 years and are adopting multiple conservation practices and restoring the health of their farm. I caught up with Paul and Nancy at the Practical Farmers of Iowa’s annual conference in January 2016. There is a little bit of background noise to the recording.

In this latest episode of the Conservation Chat, Jacqueline Comito visits with Dr. John Lawrence, Associate Dean of Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and Director for Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension. Lawrence discusses his upbringing on a farm in southwest Iowa, his journey to working in Extension, and the role Iowa State University Extension and Outreach plays in developing and implementing the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy.

Sally Hollis of Lanehaven Farms is passionate about helping their eastern Iowa farm improve and grow. Join us as we chat about cover crops, conservation, stewardship and coopertition in their farming operation that includes corn, soybean, seed corn, cover crop, and hogs.

This episode features a chat with Dr. Angie Carter, sociology fellow at Augustana College, on her research with women farm landowners in Iowa.

I Chat with Dr. Rick Cruse, Professor of Agronomy at Iowa State University and Director of the Iowa Water Center, on his work to more accurately estimate soil erosion in Iowa. According to Dr. Cruse, our present methods of estimating soil erosion are badly flawed and may be missing between 20-90% of the erosion in the state.