Northwest Farm and Ranch | Spring 2014 and that extracurricular activity led to a proposal. “Curt approached me last summer and said, ‘I’ve always wanted someone to garden out here,’ ” Athey said. She was born in Salt Lake City, and spent middle school and high school in Evergreen, Colo. After studying nursing for a semester at Northern Arizona University, Athey taught English in Yangshuo, China, for six months. She caught the river guiding bug upon her return to the states, and took another stab at the nursing degree, this time at the University of Utah. “But I figured out I couldn’t work inside,” she said. The desire to work outside led her to a soil and crop science degree with a minor in organic agriculture at CSU. And after a lifetime spent jumping from one endeavor to another, Athey decided it was time to slow down and tackle a project with passion. Chang’s offer seemed like the perfect fit. “I wanted to be around and raise my kids, in the dirt,” she said of settling down with partner Mike Kittel and starting a family. A $5,000 fundraising campaign on Kickstarter. com exceeded her goal for startup money, and she got a scholarship and grant from an organic dairy in Colorado. She’s pretty much abandoned a search for someone with a double-bottom plow to break up the field, and will instead mow the grass as closely as possible and use a small tractor to till the soil. The farm won’t be certified as organic, but Athey said she will use all-organic methods. She has a web page at rivercityfarm.wordpress. com and a Facebook page for would be customers. Athey said anyone with questions can call her at (720) 3208072. Joel Mills may be contacted at jmills@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2266.
MOSCOWPULLMAN DAILY NEWS
| Friday, February 28, 2014 | 13
Research to help growers weather climate change Looking for ways to use warmer winters to offset drier summers By Sunny Browning for Northwest Farm and Ranch
Some people don’t believe in the phrase “climate change,” says Kristy Borelli. But take away the word change, she says, and what is left is climate — something that always exists, no matter what. Borrelli is the extension specialist of the Regional Approaches to Climate Change for Pacific Northwest Agriculture. “What we have is this amazing opportunity to classify our wheat-growing region based under the current conditions,” Borrelli said. “We are looking at models, cropping systems, greenhouse gas emissions, strategies, insects, pests, diseases, social and economic factors, and we have one big project that collects all of them.” Research is finding overall temperatures in the region will increase, up to 7 degrees Centigrade or 14 degrees Fahrenheit, by the end of the century, said Sanford Eigenbrode, Project Director for REACCH. Borrelli said they are also finding that while precipitation is projected to increase in the winter, spring and fall, research is showing precipitation will decrease during the summer months when crops are in their prime growing season. “By the end of the century these projections are pretty dire,” said Eigenbrode. “But this is not all bad news for farmers. The goal is to be able to take advantage of the good climate change opportunities.” REACCH is a fiveyear project funded by the National Institute for Food and Agriculture undertaking research, education and extension to improve long-term profitability and sustainability practices of cereal production in the inland Pacific Northwest, said Borrelli. She said the project has partnerships with the University of Idaho, Washington State
University, Oregon State University and the USDA Agriculture Research Services. The REACCH study area extends through the wheat growing regions of Idaho, Washington and Oregon. The land is broken into agro-ecological zones based on the growing patterns: annual crop, annual crop — fallow transition, grain — fallow, and irrigation. The project brings in data from the USDA to determine how factors in climate, soil and soil depth affect water retention and define how crops can be grown in the area, said Borrelli. The project aims to help cereal production systems in the inland Pacific Northwest to adopt more sustainable agriculture practices while mitigating the effects of climate change by using fertilizer, fuel and pesticides more efficiently and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, said Eigenbrode. Predictions are showing 60 days less of snowfall for most of the region. Researchers are looking at the freeze season to see if farmers could start growing crops earlier in the season before a drought sets in in August, said Borrelli. Eigenbrode said planting profitable winter crops and incorporating crops during the fallow years can help growers be better off as the environment changes. “If growers could plant more winter crops they would be more resilient to warmer summers,” he said. “The crops could mature sooner before the warm temperatures affect growth.” REACCH focuses on helping growers prepare for the future to sustain and enhance their crop season. The research has come up with numerous agriculture management practices that will offer benefits to farmers and the environment, both short term and long term, said Borrelli. These are what Borrelli calls win-win scenarios. Her research has found through these scenarios growers can
reap immediate benefits while affecting climate change further down the line. Those scenarios include the following: n Reduced tillage/ direct seeding: Growers see decreased soil erosion and nutrient runoff, increased soil organic matter improving soil quality, and increased nutrient storage within the next 10 years. Long-term direct seeding will reduce carbon dioxide emissions. n Crop intensification — reduce fallow: Short term, growers are seeing increased farm productivity yielding more food and feed production. Increased soil carbon sequestration noticed long-term. n Crop diversification — legumes: Short term shows improvement in pest control and grass weeds due to having a broadleaf crop in rotation while reducing greenhouse gas emissions for the future. n Crop diversification — oilseeds: Growers see similar short-term benefits as legumes along with improved soil structure and water infiltration from canola’s strong taproot. Long term, growing oilseeds can increase net productivity and can help growers avoid summer heat and drought concerns due to the crop’s short season. n Prescription nitrogen management: This practice reduces nitrogen fertilizer costs, runoff and loss while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and natural gas use in the long-run. n Recycled organic byproducts: Growers increase soil organic matter and improve soil quality while reusing valuable nutrients, leading to a reduction in nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide in the future. “Of course we should always look at conservation practices in general,” Borrelli said. “General things like making sure your spray nozzles are working right. You can save a lot in efficiency that way where you are not wasting water that is spraying out the side or not getting onto
your crops.” Borelli said farms with higher soil organic matter are less susceptible to yield losses during drought seasons. While wheat is the main crop in the region, REACCH is working to increase the incorporation of legumes and canola into rotations to reap the benefits of having multiple crops. “We are learning these crops are suitable for some parts of the region, even the ones that are currently reliant on wheat fallow systems,” Borrelli said. Researchers are working to prepare growers for warmer, wetter weather with less snowfall and less snowpack. Projections are being made based on the current trends, without considering management changes. REACCH research is showing that by making changes in the agricultural management practices, growers can have more sustainable farms in the future while helping mitigate the challenges in the environment, said Borrelli. “Humans are extremely powerful in controlling the environment and managing it so when we actually do factor in those management variables we are seeing a little more light at the end of the tunnel,” Borrelli said. Eigenbrode said through educators, 20 graduate students and five postdoctoral students, the project is finding a way where actual science can be developed to change complex problems, for example the slowly and inexorably changing climate. “Models are not telling us all is bad, we just have to be smart about it,” Eigenbrode said. “There are clear climate change opportunities. Good science should help farmers take advantage of potential benefits.” Extended information about the REACCH project can be found at reacchpna.org. Sunny Browning can be reached at (208) 883-4639, or by email to sbrowning@dnews.com.