Soil Health

Ever wondered how your field’s soil health is doing? Bring the doctor to your field with the new STAR (Saving Tomorrow’s Agriculture Resources) Tool. Using an online application, Colorado producers can find out how their field ranks on a nationally recognized scale that assesses the health of their soil. The free, straightforward, easily interpretable score reflects the many beneficial practices producers can implement to improve their soil health.

Felix Tornare, a retired baker of 40 years, has taken on a career in ranching with his wife Sarah. Located in Garfield County, Felix and Sarah spent many years transforming Milagro Ranch while running a bakery. The Tornares saw a need to improve soil health for production, specifically on irrigated pastures, and to enhance ecosystem services on their property. They enrolled in the Colorado Soil Health Program through their conservation district, and the results have been a success to say the least.

The Colorado Soil Health Program is seeking to fill four vacant positions on the Soil Health Advisory Committee, which helps advise the Department on aspects of the flagship program.

The Soil Health Advisory Committee provides a critical link between CDA and agricultural producers, water users, and others with expertise in soil health. The committee assists in the implementation of the Colorado Soil Health Program, one of the agency’s key programs that helps Colorado producers introduce or expand the use of water resilient agricultural practices.

Sitting in the newly built Confluence Theater in CSU Spur’s Hydro building, one might reasonably think that water is the subject most discussed in the location. And while it certainly was a key part of the conversation, Colorado’s water took a back seat to the main topic at hand during two sunny days in September 2023: soil health.

From all corners of the state, high schoolers converged in Divide, Colorado to learn about natural resource conservation in a week-long immersive Camp Rocky experience. Throughout the week, 31 campers delved into the world of resource stewardship, learning about the importance of protecting and preserving our environment.

The Colorado STAR soil health program is expanding to an estimated 300 producers, with the addition of 21 Conservation Districts and 7 eligible entities to the list of STAR Plus administrating entities. Funding for this expansion comes from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Climate Smart Commodities (CSC) grant, which invested $3.1 billion in 141 projects across the country. CDA was the only state department of agriculture to be selected as a project lead on a CSC grant. 

By Acres U.S.A.

The second regional Colorado STAR event took place on Friday, Feb. 24, in Rocky Ford, Colorado. Partners in the event included Acres U.S.A., the Colorado Department of Agriculture and the West Otero Timpas Conservation District.