Alabama NRCS

Tech NewsAlabama NRCS

Tech News

In this Issue:Riparian Forest Buffersare Working inLauderdale County ..... 2

EngineeringSoftware ..................... 4

Grazing Systems ........ 5

Soil Data Mart ............. 6

Alabama Litter Dis-tribution Project InitialTrends Report ............. 7

Conservation PlantReleases ..................... 7

March 2004

1

Calendar of Events

March 23-24 - AlabamaSoil Survey Conference,Tuscaloosa, AL

March 24 - StateCommittee Meeting/Executive PlanningCommittee Meeting,Montgomery, AL

March 24 - One-dayGrazing School,Tennessee ValleyExperiment Station,Belle Mina, AL

March 25 - One-dayGrazing School,Ashville, AL

May 24-28 - ARC-GISTraining, AuburnUniversity, AL

June 4 - AlabamaChapter of Soil andWater ConservationSociety Annual Meeting,Grand National,Opelika, AL

June 7-9 - 26th AnnualConservation TillageConference forSustainable Agriculture,Raleigh, NC

For more information,contact the NRCS StateOffice at 334-887-4535.

Jane Kourkoulis ownstwo tracts of land inMacon County nearWarrior Stand. Theprimary objective for bothtracts is quail and turkeymanagement, with timberproduction as another.Jane’s brother, AndyHornsby, manages theland with the help offorestry consultants. Mr.Hornsby sought NRCStechnical assistance todevelop a conservationplan to meet thelandowner’s objectives.The conservation plan

emphasized wildlifemanagement. NRCSexplained the focus ofwildlife management asconservation rather thanpreservation. Con-servation means wise useof the resourcesavailable.

NRCS identifiedseveral practices thatwould help the landownermeet her identified goals.Suggested practicesincluded site preparation(kudzu was a majorproblem), Longleaf pineplanting, and wildlife

habitat uplandmanagement. Instrategic locations,openings, hedgerows,and strip-disking wereplanned. Prescribedburning was also plannedas an importantcomponent in themanagement of this landfor wildlife habitat.

NRCS explained toMs. Kourkoulis thebenefits of the WildlifeHabitat IncentivesProgram (WHIP). WHIPis a voluntary programthat encourages creationof high quality wildlifehabitats that supportwildlife populations. Ms.Kourkoulis applied forfinancial assistancethrough the WHIPprogram in 1998. Fundswere limited and herapplication was notfunded. She appliedagain in 1999, and wasapproved for funding.

Longleaf pine treeswere planted in 2000, butbecause of drought, thetrees died. They werere-planted in 2002.

(continued on page 3)

Wildlife Management in Macon County by Shannon Weaver, Assistant State Conservationist for Field Operations,USDA-NRCS, Auburn, AL

Land manager Andy Hornsby; NRCS employee ZonaBeaty; Gene Cook, a member of the Bob Cat Flats QuailClub; and Stan Stewart, wildlife biologist with AlabamaGame and Fish Division; talk about the conservationplan for the land.

Riparian Forest Buffers are Working in LauderdaleCountyBy Russell Harper, District Conservationist, USDA-NRCS

The Cypress Creek Buffer Initiative in LauderdaleCounty is a prime example of the effectiveness ofinteragency partnerships working for the good of thepeople and the natural resources of Alabama. TheCypress Creek watershed is 54 percent agriculturaland includes extensive beef production. The City ofFlorence relies on Cypress Creek for one of its twomain sources of water. Livestock with access toCypress Creek upstream of the city utility’s intakecontribute to high raw fecal coliform levels in the watersupply, particularly during drought.

In an attempt to protect this vital water source forFlorence, riparian forest buffers are being used.

The riparian forest buffer is defined as an area oftrees and/or shrubs located adjacent to streams,lakes, ponds, and wetlands.

The purpose of a riparian buffer is to reduceexcess amounts of sediment, nutrients, pesticides,and other materials in surface runoff and to reducenutrients and other pollutants in shallow subsurfacewater flow.

How Riparian Buffers Work 1. Provide contact time for the buffering processto occur.

Riparian forest buffers are divided into three zonesto allow contact time for the buffering process tooccur. Zone 1 is an undisturbed forest where maturingtrees provide a stable ecosystem adjacent to thewater’s edge and help maintain lower watertemperature vital to fish habitat. Zone 2 is a managedforest that begins at the edge of Zone 1 and providescontact time for buffering process to occur. Zone 3, arunoff control zone planted to grass, is only necessarywhen severe erosion problems occur. If necessary,

Zone 3 begins at theedge of Zone 2 andextends horizontally inthe direction of the waterflow. These three zonesreduce or buffer thestream energies duringhigh flows or floods.

2. Sequestersnutrients, organic matter,pesticides, sediment, andother pollutants.

The mostimportant role ofvegetation isuptake and long-term storage ofnutrients in woodymaterial. Periodicharvesting isnecessary in Zone2 to removenutrientssequestered in treestems andbranches and to maintain nutrient uptake throughvigorous tree growth.

3. Provide sediment filtering and nutrient uptake.Riparian forest buffers of sufficient width intercept

sediment, nutrients, pesticides, and other materials insurface runoff and reduce nutrients and other pollutantsin shallow subsurface water flow. Sediment is probablythe most common and most easily recognized of thenonpoint source pollutants filtered by the buffer. Also bydispersing flood waters and slowing down flowing water,riparian buffers permits sediment to be deposited in anatural way that, over time, allows alluvial valleys andflood plains to develop.

4. Provide space to convert concentrated flow touniform flow.

A third zone is established if periodic and excessivewater flows, erosion, and sediment from upslope fieldsor tracts are anticipated. Zone 3 generally consists ofherbaceous plants and grasses, and, if needed, adiversion or a terrace.

According to a nine-year study by the AgriculturalResearch Service in Tifton, GA., riparian buffers retainedor removed 60 percent of the nitrogen and 65 percent ofthe phosphorus that entered it from an adjacent site.

When establishing a riparian forest buffer under theConservation Reserve Program (CRP), specific zonepolices guide the minimum width and maximum width ofeach zone.

For more information on riparian forest buffers checkout the following web sites:

http://www.unl.edu/nac/riparian.htmlhttp://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/n_resource/

buffer/cover.htmFences will exclude live-stock from Cypress Creek.

2

Riparian forest buffer planted onbottom fields protect water quality.

(Graphic of zones on page 3)

3

Riparian Forest Buffer Zones

Many other practiceswere installed in 2002,including fire lanes, strip-disking, and prescribedburning.

Ms. Kourkoulis boughta second tract of non-merchantable timber,initially as an investment.After the trees were cutfor salvage, she began toplan for wildlifemanagement. Again,NRCS developed aconservation plan on thesecond tract of land, withthe landowner’s objectivesin mind, Two hundredacres are managed forquail habitat. Half of thisacreage has undergonesite preparation andplanted in Longleaf pine.

The other half of this

acreage is managedwith strip-disking, fire,and partridge peaplantings. Ms.Kourkoulis againreceived assistancethrough WHIP to assisther in implementingthese practices.

Jeff Thurmond,NRCS Wildlife Biologist,says, “Most wildlifespecies have thepotential to dramaticallyincrease theirpopulation. However,this growth usually islimited by one or morehabitat factors, such asfood or cover. TheWHIP program helpsthe landowner create anenvironment thatsupplies everythingwildlife needs: food andcover in the correct

spatial arrangement.When these habitatfactors are in good supply,they ensure healthyindividual animals, as wellas a healthy overallpopulation.”

According to Ms.Kourkoulis, “With the

technical assistanceprovided by NRCS andthe financial assistanceof the WHIP program, myland and the wildlife on itare now thriving andsupporting a small quailhunting group.”

Afterinstallingseveralwildlifemanagementpractices,Ms.Kourkoulis’land nowsupports asmall quailhuntinggroup.

(continued from page 1)

Engineering Softwareby Perry Oakes, State Conservation Engineer, USDA-NRCS, Auburn, AL

Most of the olderNRCS engineeringsoftware does not worksmoothly in the newerMicrosoft Windowsenvironment of today’scomputers. Efforts havebeen underway tomodernize some of thesetools for field office use.

Two such programsrecreated as Windows-based tools have recentlybeen approved for use.These engineeringprograms are EFH2(Engineering FieldHandbook Chapter 2)and Hydraulics Formulas.

EFH2 is a programdesigned to calculatepeak discharge andrunoff volumes usingNRCS runoff curvenumbers (RCN)procedure. Peakdischarge is often usedas the basis for designs

of most engineeringpractices. The programhas several built-inlimitations which keepthe user frominadvertently using theprogram wrong. Onesuch limitation is that thedrainage area can haveno more than 10 percenturban area (TR-55procedures must beused in these cases).Rainfall amounts for theseven major stormevents (1-yr to 100-yr)are automatically pulledinto the programaccording to the countyentered. EFH2 alsoprovides some tools thatare handy. A “HGS”button has been addedin the RCN routine tohelp the user determinethe hydrologic group forthe soil by using a drop-down box of all the soils

in the state. A slopecalculator button hasalso been added to helpthe user determine theaverage watershedslope for the drainagearea. By entering thelength of the contours inthe basin, the contourinterval, and drainagearea, the averagewatershed slope iscalculated.

Hydraulics Formulaswere originallydeveloped for thecomputer by USDA-NRCS in Ohio as part ofthe Ohio EngineeringPrograms, developed byClint Liezert. Thisprogram was adapted torun in Windowsenvironment by acontractor underagreement with USDA-NRCS in Illinois. Theprogram has now beenadopted as national

NRCS software. Thisprogram containssolutions to the hydraulicequations that arefrequently encounteredon soil and waterconservation activities. Allof these solutions arepresented in a graphicalform that more readilydisplays the inputs andsolutions. Printed reportsare available from all ofthe hydraulic solutionsthat will satisfy mostdocumentationrequirements.

These programs areapproved for use on CCEcomputers bydownloading from theCCE site and having theIT staff install thesoftware. Some otherprograms to look for inthe near future includeWINPOND, SURVEYMAP, and AGPIPE.

4

5

Grazing Systemsby Zona Beaty, USDA-NRCS, Resource Conservationist, Auburn, Alabama

Phil Pelham ownsand operates a cow/calfoperation in BullockCounty, Alabama, on alittle more than 500acres of his farm.

Several years ago,Phil decided he neededto improve his farm andherd and turned toNatural ResourcesConservation Service(NRCS) for assistance.He had heardof theEnvironmentalQualityIncentivesProgram(EQIP). RogerHornsby, SoilConservationTechnician andI assisted Phil with hisapplication for the cost-share program. Aftermeeting with Phil on thefarm and conducting acomplete inventory ofhis natural resources,several problems wereidentified. First, therewas a need to break uplarger pastures intosmaller ones to facilitatea rotational grazingprogram. That in turncreated a need for morewater sources. The lastproblem identified was aneed for better forages.

Next, a discussion ofalternatives took place.Phil decided he firstneeded to establishponds in four pastures

that were to be createdfrom larger ones. Next,fencing was to be installedto create the new pasturesand to prevent cattle fromgrazing pastures that wereto be established to newforages. And, lastly,several pastures were tobe established to improveforage quality, some forsummer grazing andsome for winter grazing.

The foragesrecommended by NRCSand chosen by Philincluded Tifton 9Bahiagrass andendophyte-free fescuemixed with clover.

Soon after beingchosen for an EQIPcontract, Phil started towork. Four dug-outponds wereconstructed in the fallof 1999. Some of thefencing was alsoinstalled and twopastures wereestablished to fescueand clover. The pondsfilled with water overthe winter, but thepasture grass survivalrates were low. The

next spring, the summerpastures wereestablished to Tifton 9bahiagrass and thebalance of the fencingwas completed. In thefall of 2000, the twofescue and cloverpastures were replantedand this time survivalrates were acceptableeven in the middle of adrought.

When asked whetherthe improvements werebeneficial to him, Philreplied, “ Establishingwatering facilities in eachnew pasture allows forbetter control of grazingand preventsovergrazing. I get moreyield from my forages. Aside benefit I havenoticed is my cattle areeasier to handle. Theyhave learned to go from

Phil Pelham works with his 2 year-old bull.

“Establishing wateringfacilities in each newpasture allows for bettercontrol of grazing andprevents overgrazing.”

one pasture to another ona schedule.”

Phil also commentedon the fact that theimprovements allow formore haying and grazingoptions. “Fencing offpastures initially allowedme to isolate pastures forrenovation, but now I canisolate pastures so I canoverseed for wintergrazing or harvest forhay.”

Overall, Phil Pelhamis very satisfied with theimprovements he hasbeen able to make withboth technical assistanceand cost-shareassistance from NRCS.

Anyone interested intechnical assistance ormore information on cost-share programs, contactthe local NRCS office.

NRCS has just implemented the Soil Data Mart(SDM) which will serve as the “one-stop-shopping” orsingle distribution point of official soil survey data forthe nation, whether it is to the eFOTG, SSURGO,Customer Service Toolkit, Technical ServiceProviders, or the general public. The SDM isdesigned as a web based application and will supplytabular data such as soil properties andinterpretations as well as digitized spatial data(suitable for GIS and Customer Service Toolkit).

The advantages of this data mart include:Provides a single distribution point to internaland external customers.Ensures the same vintage of Official SoilSurvey Data is used for SSURGO, eFOTG,Customer Service Toolkit, and other models.Provides multiple download formats (MicrosoftAccess® 97, 2000, or 2002) for tabular data,multiple geographic projections and formatsfor spatial data.Allows client (a District Conservationist forexample) to “subscribe” to a data set. Thisclient will then be notified when that data set isreplaced by an update.Provides a framework for future additions suchas manuscripts, picture database, onlinespatial queries, etc.Allows clients to generate a variety of reportsonline without a data download or any special

Soil Data MartBy Charles Love, State Soil Scientist, MLRA, Auburn, AL

software - A web browser is all that’s required(tabular data only).

All SSURGO spatial data and correspondingtabular data bases for Alabama will be transferred tothe Data Mart over the next year. Future releases orupdates of tabular and spatial data will be posted tothe Data Mart site as they become available. We planto develop a table or map for the MO-15 Soil Surveyhome page which will show availability of soil surveycounty data sets posted to the SDM. The nationalSSURGO site no longer functions. If you haveaccessed Alabama data through this site or theSSURGO FTP site in the past, remember that thesewill no longer function.

In the future, Section II (Soils information) of theeFOTG will link directly to the SDM where users willhave the option to either view or download availabledata. Most of the soils reports currently available inSection II of the eFOTG will eventually be deleted andreplaced with this link.

We plan to provide a couple of different accesspoints to the SDM. Users can log directly into theSDM home page at http://soildatamart.nrcs.usda.gov.This link allows you to register/login, and choose astate and county dataset. There will also be a linkfrom our MO-15 Soil Survey home page, and onefrom the eFOTG. You will be notified when theseadditional links are developed.

Currently, we have three counties (Limestone,Macon, and Mobile) in the compilation and digitizing

SSURGO process,and we areplanning todownload theremaining countiesby December 31,2004.

I urge you to tryout the new SDM.If you have anyquestions, pleasecontact ScottAnderson, SoilData QualitySpecialist, at (334)887-4565 or email:scott.anderson@al.usda.gov.

6

Alabama Litter Distribution Project Initial Trends ReportBy Bill Prince, State Environmental Engineer, NRCS, Auburn, AL

This project has been funded and applicationshave been received at the local district offices sinceMarch 1, 2004. The project provides for haulingpoultry litter to areas of the state that have historicallynot used litter and promotes a long-term market forlitter as fertilizer across the state. This is a report ontrends observed from the first week’s applications.

There were approximately 174 applicationsreceived across the state during the first week. Eachpreliminary application contains an estimate of themileage range that the litter will have to be hauled oneway, from the source to the receiving farm. Asummary of applications and mileage ranges are:

Applications Mileage Range40 10-2545 26-5046 51-7524 76-10015 101-125 4 126-150

This indicates that the project is reaching adispersed range of users. Forty applications were for25 miles or less, indicating litter movement possiblywithin a county. The 91 applications from the mid-mileage ranges probably indicate litter movement

from one county to an adjacent county. The 43applications in the mileage ranges over 75 milesindicate litter movement across multiple counties.

The geographic distribution of applications isencouraging as well. Fifty-five applications are fromthe LimestoneValley and Uplandsregion of northwestAlabama, 19applications arefrom theAppalachianPlateau region ofnortheast Alabama,45 applications arefrom the BlacklandPrairie region of central Alabama, and 55 applicationsare from the Coastal Plain region of southernAlabama.

The distribution of mileage ranges across themajor regions of the state is very encouraging.Hopefully, all of these preliminary applications willbecome actual contracts for 3 years of incentivepayments and will be the start of a statewide littermarket to better use and protect our state’s valuableagricultural and natural resources.

The Jimmy Carter Plant Materials Center (PMC) isstudying several native plants for forage, nutrientuptake, wildlife habitat improvement, and 2002 FarmBill implementation.

The PMC has eight active studies involving plantsnative to the Southeastern U.S. Major emphasis is onestablishment, growth, management, and culture ofnative warm season grasses. Big bluestem,switchgrass, little bluestem, indiangrass, and easterngamagrass show great potential as cattle forage andas wildlife habitat improvement plants.

Until recently there were no native warm seasongrasses selected for the Southeastern U.S. However,in the summer of 2002, the Jimmy Carter PlantMaterials Center in Americus, Georgia, released

Conservation Plant ReleasesJimmy Carter Plant Materials Center, Americus, GA

‘Americus’ Indiangrass. Americus was selected fromplant material originating in the Southeast. It isadapted to upland sites of our region for cattle forage,wildlife habitat improvement, erosion control, andplant community restoration.

For more information visit the PMC website at:http://www.ga.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/pmc/pmc.htmlor http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.govor contact Mike Owsley at the Jimmy Carter PlantMaterials Center at 229-924-4499, email atmike.owsley@ga.usda.gov or Donald Surrency at706-595-1339 ext. 3, email atdon.surrency@ga.usda.gov

(Continued Page 8)7

‘Americus’ IndiangrassIndiangrass is a native perennial warm season

forage grass. It is a tall robust grass, which produces anattractive golden panicle in the fall. USDA-NRCS JimmyCarter Plant Materials Center recently released a newcultivar called ‘Americus’.

It is the only indiangrass variety that is native to theSoutheast and has a wide range of adaptation. It hasbeen grown primarily in pure stands. Conservation usesinclude: forage, buffers, wildlife, urban landscapes andcritical areas.

‘Americus’ will be primarily used as livestock forage.However, this attractive native grass also showspotential as an urban landscape and restoration plant.

‘Kinchafoonee’ Virginia Wildrye‘Kinchafoonee’ Virginia Wildrye, Selected Class of Natural Germplasm, is a native perennial cool season grass. It

is a robust grass which produces an attractive seed head in late spring. Virginia wildrye commonly occurs in lowshaded woods; however, it also does well in full sunlight. Virginia wildrye has very long persistent awns and will notpass through conventional planting equipment unless the seed is debearded. Even after seed is debearded the seedwill require a native grass drill or broadcast spreader. Virginia wildrye is one of the few native cool season grassesuseful in soil conservation work. Conservation uses can include field borders, logging roads, critical area stabilization,restoration, and cool season cover. It provides food and cover for wildlife.

‘Highlander’ Eastern GamagrassEastern gamagrass is a native grass that can be

found from Massachusetts, west to Illinois andNebraska, and south to the West Indies, CentralAmerica, and Brazil.

‘Highlander’ is recommended for forage production.It is best used as a hay crop; however, it can be grazedif given appropriate management (i.e. rotational grazing)to prevent damage to the plant stand. It also haspotential as a perennial silage crop and as a source ofbiomass for bioenergy production. It can be used inmany types of conservation plantings such as, buffersand vegetative barriers.

8

“The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs,sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information(Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call(202) 720-5964 (voice or TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.”