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Farmers sharing information with other farmers can be an effective way to promote the use of practices. The Demonstration Site Initiative gives an opportunity for producers to set up and manage an educational project on their farm. Demonstration sites will serve as an outreach and educational opportunity for local farmers and agronomists to learn about the impacts of the adopted practices. The MDA recognizes there is active and ongoing research related to nitrogen management, and development of agronomic best management practices is ongoing. Farmers should adopt best management practices as they become available. 

Requirements to qualify for Demonstration Site Initiative funding:

• Demonstration sites may consist of cover crop, perennial crop, relay crop, or small grain initiatives that were integrated into the crop rotation.
• Work with MDA field staff to plan, develop, and design a demonstration site and program based on adoption of any number of BMPs that have the potential to reduce nitrate leaching.
• The purpose of the project study is to provide site data (ex. economics, methods, or agronomic information) that will be used for demonstration, education, or outreach purposes.
• The producer agrees to hold at least one educational field day at the site and/or provide published results of the information derived from the demonstration site project during each year of participation. All information collected and released as part of this project is considered public data.
• Funding through this initiative may be available for producers operating in a Level 2 DWSMA.
• Producers are encouraged to work with partners to present educational information pertinent to nitrogen reduction or other conservation practices on the demonstration site.
• The producer will allow MDA staff to access the demonstration site for the purpose of collecting in-field information or outreach and education (field days). MDA shall provide the producer with copies of results and any written summaries for data collected at the site.

Producer Compensation

• Producers who enroll in the Demonstration Site Initiative may be eligible for compensation based on meeting the guidelines planned out and demonstrated in an individual work plan.  Producers who work with MDA field staff and complete a successful demonstration may be eligible for a payment of $5,000 for a one-year demonstration and up to $15,000 for a three-year demonstration project.

Initiate a spring pre-plant N test following University of Minnesota guidelines.

Most of Minnesota’s soil (coarse-textured sands excluded) mineralize significant amounts of nitrogen from soil organic matter throughout the summer.  This nitrate is consumed by the growing crop until the crop reaches maturity.  Typically, plant uptake of nitrate slows significantly around the first week of September and comes to a halt a few weeks after that.  Mineralization of organic matter continues, however, with significant amounts of nitrate accumulating between early September and Late October.  Because the loss process of nitrate is water-based and requires saturation of the soil, a typical wet spring will cause this nitrate to be flushed via leaching or lost to the atmosphere through denitrification.  It is for this reason that farmers typically cannot credit this “carryover” nitrogen when determining how much fertilizer to apply for the next year’s crop.  It is only through a pre-plant nitrate test that producers will be able to accurately estimate the plant-available N within the root zone.

Requirements to qualify for Perennial Crop Initiative funding:

• Initiate a spring pre-plant N test.
• Follow UMN technical guidelines for performing the pre-plant N test.
• Apply nitrogen fertilizer at rates that follow UMN technical guidelines, yet don't exceed DWSMA rates.

The MDA recognizes there still is active and ongoing research related to nitrogen management, and development of agronomic best management practices is ongoing. Farmers should adopt best management practices as they become available.

Technical Resources

• University of Minnesota Extension Minnesota Crop News blog: “For the second year in row, taking a pre-plant soil nitrate test this spring could pay big”
• University of Minnesota Extension Minnesota Crop News blog: “Taking soil samples for nitrogen analysis could pay this year”

Producer Compensation

Producers who enroll in the Pre-plant Nitrate Testing Initiative may be eligible for compensation based on meeting the components in the University of Minnesota technical resources. Producers may be eligible for a payment of $50/sample up to $5,000 maximum per producer per year.

Precision nitrogen management (PNM) aims to match N fertilizer supply with crop N demand in both space and time. It has great potential to improve corn N use efficiency, increase growers’ profitability and protect the environment while maximizing crop yield. Plant testing and analysis are also useful tools for diagnosing and monitoring nutrients in agronomic crops. The key to successful plant analysis is developing a plan that includes the correct test, timing, sampling technique and interpretation. 

General requirements to qualify for Precision Agriculture Initiative funding:

• Commercial Precision Ag Company Estimation - Provide documentation that shows fields, acres, estimated N application rates, and type of testing technology used by a commercial precision ag company to estimate in-season N rate.
• In-Season Tissue Testing or Pre-sidedress Soil N Testing - Provide test results from a lab for in-season soil or tissue testing. The PSNT is most valuable in situations where manure is used and/or legumes have been terminated in the last two years.
• Purchase Precision Testing Equipment - Provide receipts for precision equipment purchased for the purpose of in-season N testing. Before purchasing equipment, the technology being used must be reviewed by MDA field staff to verify that it provides accurate estimates of additional N need under Minnesota crop production conditions.
• Precision Soil Sampling - Conduct precision soil sampling (zone or grid based) for nitrate-nitrogen with a minimum of two zones that correspond to a minimum of two nitrogen application rates. Develop management zones or grids based on relevant information, such as soil organic matter, Lidar DEM, yield maps, digital soil survey information, remote sensing, proximal sensing or other geospatial data. Work with an agronomist to develop prescriptions for in-season application of nitrogen where no more than 75% of the DWSMA BMP rate can be applied before sidedress, and the remaining is applied in-season as a variable rate application.

The MDA recognizes there still is active and ongoing research related to nitrogen management, and development of agronomic best management practices is ongoing. Farmers should adopt best management practices as they become available.

Technical Resources

• University of Minnesota Extension Minnesota Crop News On-farm precision ag research update: In-season site-specific side-dress nitrogen rate recommendations for corn
• University of Minnesota Extension Testing and analysis
• University of Minnesota Extension Understanding plant analysis for crops
• University of Minnesota Extension Minnesota Crop News Tissue sampling tips for corn, soybean, sugarbeet and wheat
• University of Minnesota Minnesota Crop News Precision agriculture and nutrient management

Producer Compensation

Producers who enroll in the Precision Agriculture Initiative may be eligible for compensation based on meeting the requirements listed above. Financial assistance of $50/test sample (zone or grid based) up to $5,000 (provide sample data) or reimburse the cost of testing equipment up to $5,000, or reimburse the cost of commercial infrared, thermal, visible, or other spectral wavelength testing at $20/acre up to 250 acres.

Introduce relay cropping into a portion of the operated cropping acres. Relay cropping is essentially a special version of double cropping, where the second crop is planted into the first crop before harvest, rather than waiting until after harvest as in true double-cropping. In this way, both crops share a portion of the growing season, increasing solar radiation and heat available to each.

Relay crop systems may provide challenges to producers, and an increase in management is crucial for success.  Some potential advantages of relay cropping include potential reductions in nitrogen leaching, increased carbon sequestration, and potential increase in income for producers.  Some disadvantages of relay cropping include a greater level of overall management as pest management and control practices must account for more crops being grown in close sequence and it may increase the potential for insect and disease infestations if pests have more than one host in the crop sequence.  Another disadvantage may be decreased yields for both crops compared to production of each crop grown separately.  MDA is not responsible for reduced yields based on the adoption of relay crops into a cropping system.

Requirements to qualify for Perennial Crop Initiative funding:

• Introduce relay cropping on a portion of the operated crop acres.
• Follow guidelines as set forth by the University of MN for establishment, fertilizer use, etc.
• Consider past herbicide use. Provide information on herbicides used during the previous growing season. Please review herbicide application records for the past two or more cropping seasons. Some herbicides maintain long-term residual soil activity for months or years after application and could impact small grain crop establishment and/or it’s use for animal feed or forage.
• Payment for relay crop initiative may be made after successful establishment of both crops in the same field during a single growing season. A fall-seeded winter-hardy crop will be seeded in the fall and will over-winter. Then the following spring, a spring-seeded annual crop will be interseeded into the growing, fall-seeded crop. Both crops will be harvested during the same crop year.
• Introduce a relay crop system into a crop rotation where none exists. Provide crop rotation records for the last 5 years.

The MDA recognizes there still is active and ongoing research related to nitrogen management, and development of agronomic best management practices is ongoing. Farmers should adopt best management practices as they become available.

Technical Resources

• University of Minnesota Extension Contacts for crop production
• University of Minnesota Extension Relay and sequential cropping corn with winter oilseed crops in northern climates
• University of Minnesota Extension Economics and agronomists of relay-cropping pennycress and camelina with soybean in Minnesota
• University of Minnesota Extension Yield tradeoffs and nitrogen between pennycress, camelina, and soybean in relay- and double-crop systems

Producer Compensation

Producers who enroll in the Relay Crop Initiative may be eligible for compensation based on meeting the components in the technical resources mentioned above. Introduce a relay crop system into a crop rotation where none exists. Financial assistance of $50/acre up to 100 acres.

Include a small grain (oats, rye, barley, triticale, or wheat) as part of the crop rotation in one out of four years, minimum.

Small grains have shown a number of agronomic and water quality advantages when included in a crop rotation as compared to a typical corn/soybean rotation.  Small grains are versatile and can be grown as a profitable crop that is relatively inexpensive and easy to establish.  Whether established in the fall or spring, small grains are an attractive option that provides many benefits.  Their fibrous roots help hold soil in place to reduce erosion.  The biomass that they produce can help suppress weeds and add organic matter to the soil. They can also scavenge nitrate from the soil profile.  Fall established winter cereal grains have shown up to a 30% reduction in nitrate leaching in tile lines.  The greatest nitrate leaching reductions are generally seen in May and June, a time when either winter or spring small grains will be well established and have excellent nitrate leaching reduction potential.  In addition, small grains are known to break up pest cycles and can reduce herbicide use given their short growing seasons.  Most crops other than corn, including soybeans, need a minimum of a two-year break to fully exploit the benefits of a crop rotation.  Including a small grain in the rotation can aid in long-term herbicide and nitrate leaching reductions.

Requirements to qualify for Small Grains Initiative funding:

• Include a small grain (oats, rye, barley, triticale, or wheat) as part of the crop rotation in one out of four years, minimum.
• Successful applicants qualifying for payment for small grains initiative will receive half the payment ($25/acre) upon successful establishment of small grain in the rotation and the other half following harvest of the small grain ($25/acre) for one year.
• Small grains may be harvested as a grain, hay, haylage, or straw and may be established in the fall or spring.
• Follow technical requirements as set forth by the University of Minnesota for establishment, fertilizer use, management, etc.
• Introduce a small grain (oats, rye, barley, triticale, or wheat) into a crop rotation where none exists. Provide past crop rotation records for the last 5 years.

The MDA recognizes there still is active and ongoing research related to nitrogen management, and development of agronomic best management practices is ongoing. Farmers should adopt best management practices as they become available.

Technical Resources

• University of Minnesota Extension Strategic Farming: Let's talk crops focused on small grains
• University of Minnesota Extension Growing small grains

Producer Compensation

Producers who enroll in the Small Grain Initiative may be eligible for compensation based on meeting the components in the University of Minnesota technical resources. Introduce a small grain (oats, rye, barley, triticale, or wheat) into a crop rotation where none exists. Financial assistance of $50/acre up to 100 acres.