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J. Gordon Arbuckle Jr.
Articles by this author
Iowa farmers rely primarily on agribusinesses, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and state agencies for their information needs, according to the 2012 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll.
The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy recommends that farmers use a number of soil and water conservation best management practices to reduce nutrient loss into waterways. The 2016 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll asked farmers if they were using or considering use of many of those practices.
The 2016 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll examined trends in farming practices and strategies since 2013, the year that the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy was started. The results indicate that farmers are increasing their use of recommended practices and decreasing use of some practices that are not recommended.
Farmers favor learning about different types of agricultural information through in-person communication, per responses to the Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll.
Research shows that to meet the goals of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy, Iowa farmers will need to increase use of a diverse array of appropriate nutrient management and other conservation practices.
The 2017 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll surveyed Iowa farmers to ask them if they have herbicide resistant weeds in their fields, to learn about perspectives on the manageability of major weeds, and to measure their level of concern about herbicide resistance.
The Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll, the longest-running survey of its kind, is highlighted in a recent ISU Extension and Outreach video.
Research by Iowa State University shows that active farmer involvement in watershed management groups and other conservation networks is key to adopting conservation practices like cover crops.
As the percentage of rented farmland in Iowa continues to grow, farmers are seeing a steady shift in who is responsible for what happens on the land, according to the 2018 Iowa Farm and Rural Life Poll.
Word of the prairie strips practice, an innovative soil, water and habitat conservation practice developed over the last decade by researchers at Iowa State University, is spreading across the state.