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-Klondike Farms “Staying“ Green
Environmental stewardship is an important facet of Klondike Farms' operations. While we strive to do what we can do to maximize production, we believe that good yields can be reached without deteriorating the environment around us.
Some things that Klondike Farms does in an effort to reduce our impact on the local environment include:
No till and minimum tillage -
90% of the acres we cover are no tilled or strop tilled. This greatly reduces the chance of soil erosion by leaving reside undisturbed on the soil surface. This increases waters ability to enter the soil profile and reduces its ability to flow across the soils surface undeterred. Strip tilling also offers benefits by placing the nutrients into the soil profile where they are less apt to wash away as they are not on the soil surface where run off may occur.
Side Dressing -
Klondike farms commonly splits nitrogen applications in an effort to feed the corn plants when the corn plant is looking for the fertilizer. This deters run off and leaching because it limits the amount of time that the fertilizer is exposed in the soil profile before taken up by the plant.
Strip Tilling -
Strip Tilling is tilling a small band of soil while deep placing potash, phosphorus and where appropriate nitrogen fertilizer. That band is then planted into. This leaves the remainder of the soil undisturbed, reducing the possibility of nutrient run off and soil erosion.
Grid Sampling -
Grid sampling is site-specific soil sampling on small grids to determine where nutrients are needed and where they may already be plentiful.
Variable rate application -
This is the process of varying the rate at which fertilizers are applied in conjunction with grid samplers. By utilizing this technology we can place fertilizer wher it needs to be. Lessoning the chance of over applying and leaching or runoff.
Developing a Nutrient Management Plan -
This plan established by local agronomy advisor incorporates our grid samples to formulate the fertilizing plan for each acre. This plan also takes into consideration fertilizer removal by previous and upcoming crops in an effort to only apply fertilizer in amounts that have been depleted or plan to be removed by the current crop.
Buffer Strips -
Klondike farms has installed many 120’ wide natural grass and vegetable buffer strips along open drainage ditches and waterways. These strips help to filter any nutrients that may have washed off of the field and are headed for our watersheds. These strips also provide excellent cover for many types of animals and wildlife.
Some other things that Klondike farms include in their farming practices are:
- Installing grassed water ways where needed
- Tiling poorly drained soils
- Deer and animal plots
- Tree plantings for wildlife
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