Many farmers and ranchers west of the Mississippi River had a difficult year in 2022 because of drought. And while much of the growing season is complete, it’s time to start planning for 2023 and beyond.

As you look for opportunities to mitigate drought impact on your farm, the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service has three areas to focus on to make your land and livestock more resilient to dry weather extremes and help your bottom line:

1. Improve irrigation efficiency. USDA helps you improve your irrigation efficiency to ensure each drop of water is used wisely. Saving water on your farm can help during drought and can offset rising water costs; reduce expenditures for energy, chemicals and labor; and enhance revenues through higher crop yields and improved crop quality.

Funded conservation practices include conversion to more efficient irrigation systems, such as micro-irrigation or subsurface drip irrigation, installation of irrigation pipeline, irrigation water management, structures for water control, and flow meters. Tools such as drip irrigation, which provides water precisely where and when it’s needed, can achieve greater precision with flow meters and soil moisture sensors.

2. Boost soil health. Conservation practices such as reduced- or no-till, cover crops, mulching and residue management can help to make your soil, and the plants you grow or animals you raise, healthier. Healthier soil can absorb and retain more water for longer periods of time, making your farm or ranch more resilient to drought.

Using soil health practices, you can conserve water by increasing your soil’s water-holding capacity and use conservation tillage to keep the ground covered, reducing water loss through transpiration and evaporation.

Soil health practices increase organic matter, and each pound of organic matter can hold up to 20 pounds of water. Every 1% increase in organic matter results in as much as 25,000 gallons of soil water per acre. Each 1% increase in organic matter can also provide up to 30 pounds of more available nitrogen per acre. That means less money and time spent on inputs such as water and fertilizer, which make your operation more profitable.

3. Manage grazing lands. Drought also affects grazing lands, and NRCS works with you to increase the resilience of your livestock operation. Ranchers can adapt to dry conditions in two main ways: increasing the availability and suitability of forage and ensuring that cattle have an adequate and reliable source of water.

For forage, rotational or prescribed grazing (rotating cattle among pastures) can relieve pressure on stressed vegetation and ensure a more consistent supply of forage for animals. NRCS conservationists can also work with you to plant more drought-tolerant forage species, plants best suited to local soils and conditions.

For reliable sources of water, NRCS can help you with installing watering facilities, water wells or water pipeline for livestock. Having available forage and water for livestock can make a big difference in difficult drought conditions.

USDA and NRCS can help you recover from drought and prepare for the next one. For more information on drought recovery assistance, visit farmers.gov.

For more information on conservation practices to make your operation more resilient to drought in future years, call your local NRCS office or visit nrcs.usda.gov.

Source: NRCS, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.