DON’T FORGET TO REPORT YOUR COVER CROP
Stop by the office to spring certify the kill-down of all cover crops as soon as possible so that the SCD can process your payment.
Get up to $1,500 to Plant Cover Crops on Your Urban or Small Scale Farm!
|
Accepting Applications through April 30, 2024
Applications are now being accepted for Maryland's 2024 Small Acreage Cover Crop Program. This financial assistance program is for urban and small-scale producers who do not qualify for traditional cover crop grants.
2024 PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
The maximum payment is $1,500 per grower, per year.
This program is for growers who plant less than ten (10) acres of qualifying cover crops.
You will be reimbursed based on paid receipts.
Eligible species include single cereal grains or cover crop seed mixes.
Plant your cover crop in open plots/fields, raised beds, or a high tunnel.
|
4/10/24 - The Talbot SCD Board of Supervisors and field staff wish to thank Lewis Smith for his 12+ years of service as a supervisor! We thank him for his support, dedication and time over all of these years! Pictured from left to right is Lewis Smith and John Swaine III, chairman.
In January, we welcomed our newest associate Board member, Gavin Roe.
Lewis Smith and John Swaine III
|
For 33 years the Talbot Soil Conservation District has sponsored the Land Stewardship Poster Contest. Each year Talbot SCD provides poster board and a theme to public and private schools in Talbot County. The 2024 theme is “MAY THE FOREST BE WITH YOU ALWAYS.” Each student may draw, paint, or color a 22” x 14” poster showcasing the theme. County wide judging will occur on Earth Day, April 22, 2024. 1st place winners of the county-wide contest will be entered in the Maryland Association of Soil Conservation District’s Poster Contest held in August. If entries are winners at the State contest they will be entered in the National Association of Conservation District’s Poster Contest held in February 2025.
|
EQIP ACT Now is a new way of conducting business that reduces waiting time for funding approvals. ACT Now allows NRCS to process applications in the order they are received, which can bypass the traditional batching process. Applications must meet specific eligibility requirements and a achieve a ranking score at or above a predetermined threshold. ACT Now Applications will be taken until May 17, 2024.
For more information on how you can benefit from ACT Now, please contact Becky Brown at rebecca.brown@usda.gov or visit the Talbot Service Center.
|
Congratulations to St. Michael's High School student Joycelyn for completing her fall internship at the Talbot Soil Conservation District! She spent over 135 hours shadowing MDA/NRCS/District staff, learning about conservation programs, best management practices, general farming, erosion & sediment control, soils and more. We wish her the best of luck as she continues her education at Towson University next year.
|
Outgoing Maryland Association of Soil Conservation Districts (MASCD) president Bruce Yerkes with John Swaine III, newly elected MASCD president for 2023-2025. John was elected by the MASCD membership at the summer meeting held in Cambridge, MD on August 29, 2023. John previously served as the vice-president for the past 4 years. As president, John will be responsible for leading the organization consisting of members from the 24 Soil Conservation Districts. John is the second president elected from Talbot County, the first was Norman Fike, who held the office from 1968-1970.
|
During the MASCD summer meeting held in August, 2023, the former FSCAP program (Farm Stewardship Certification Assessment Program) was announced to the membership as Bay Friendly Farms program. Rebranding the program to highlight the importance of good stewardship on farmland in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Farmers can now work with the Districts to certify their operation as “Bay Friendly” and receive recognition on their website, bayfriendlyfarms.com, and with a sign for their farm headquarters. To learn more about the program, visit bayfriendlyfarms.com, or stop in the District.
According the U.S. Geological Survey, wetlands "provide habitat for thousands of species of aquatic and terrestrial plants and animals. Wetlands are valuable for flood protection, water quality improvement, shoreline erosion control, natural products, recreation, and aesthetics." Recently, we provided cost-share for a large restoration project benefiting the Wye River pictured below.
|
Talbot SCD Manager, Shawn Smith, and the 2021 Cooperator of the Year, Ernie Burns, discuss the benefits of restoring wetlands on marginal farmland. To view more Maryland Conservation Spotlights, visit @MdAgDept on YouTube.