Continuous Living cover

1. Continuous Living cover Challenges, opportunities, activities

3. Challenges • High and rising price of grains • Low and dropping price of coal and CNG • Lack of and/or nascent biomass market(s) • Non operational land owners • Logistics, machinery, volume • Value of CLC • Policy: gov’t programs contradictory • Economic return for annual crops • Lack of business interest in developing perennial grain seed

4. Challenges • Lacks institutional support • Current rules effectively eliminate agroforestry practices from consideration for govt subsidies and cost-share programs • Limited knowledge of CLC among agency personnel • Often relegated to a number of disconnected, disperse and independent practitioners which limits impact at landscape level

5. Opportunities • Many (at-scale) projects to teach us lessons • CLC the potential to provide multiple benefits • Programs are developing metrics, including sustainability indices • Farmer learning networks • Business opportunities • Value of cover crops

6. Opportunities • Improve connections to multiple CLC strategies (and watersheds) through GLBW • Incorporating stewardship into land mgmt

7. Opportunities • Network producers – roving herds to graze cornstalks, rehabilitate land, manage public grazing lands, remove invasive species • Demonstrate opportunities for young farmers • Research and reach out to non-operating landowners • Perennial forage in rotation boosts annual crop yields and reduces input costs

9. What worked • They read about CC in a magazine & wanted to try it. *Lesson: Get this info into farm magazines. Tie it to healthy soil • Working with non-operating landowners; widowed landowners • Need dedicated staff time – face to face very important • Identify an opinion leader in the community; or a network of those; and work with them.

10. What worked • Build relationship with respected crop consulting firms • Landowners respond to seeing how their property fits into the larger landscape (maps). • Targeted placement of CLC on the landscape • Payments for practices • Coop friendly management assistance

11. What is missing • Engaging BANKERS

12. What does not work • Large outreach meetings where you get everyone together. They have an important role to play, but you need face-to-face follow-up with people. • Just throwing incentive $$$ at people isn’t enough • Inconsistent rules for programs

13. What should work • Working with CCAs is a potent idea. CCAs starting to recognize importance of soil biology, soil health. There’s some interest to build on. • Seed company meetings pull in lots more people than Extension. For cover crops, this is potentially a strategy; to get the seed companies to talk about it • Track our progress • Get NASS to track CLC

14. What should work • Better communication about CLC • Branding, consistent language • Tie message to production, different than land retirement • Provide a menu of solutions • Manage for production and environmental quality

15. What should work • Promote a new model for CRP reform that allows for working lands • Develop local markets at scale to support production • Develop payments for ecological services • We have local examples being implemented • Partner with corporate environment programs • Targeted easements requiring perennial vegetation

16. What should work • Economic analysis of CLC land-use to help with implementation • Focus on job creation/economic development first  land-use change will follow • Involving all stakeholders (agronomist, crop consultants, land owners, etc) • Producer champions • Get farmer leaders to talk with other farmers – peer to peer learning • Market development for CLC systems