Saving the soil

• Shari and Mark Lenz

Shari and Mark Lenz of rural Lismore stand in the expanded and improved waterway that was completed on one of their farms earlier this spring. The Lenzes were selected as Nobles County’s Conservationists of the Year.

Talk about it

LISMORE — Mark and Shari Lenz of rural Lismore will be recognized at the Minnesota Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts annual convention in early December as the Nobles County Conservationists of the Year.

The award recognizes individuals who have implemented conservation practices on their land during the past year. The Lenzes worked with the Nobles County SWCD office on a waterway restoration project this spring on land they recently purchased, and are in the midst of a second project that includes the installation of five broad-based and two narrow-based terraces on another parcel they rent. Both projects received cost-share funds from the SWCD for implementation.

Ed Lenz, Nobles SWCD manager, said the local office had approximately 20 qualifying projects during the past year, making it a challenge to choose just one honoree.

“We work with a lot of landowners over the year, and they deserve recognition,” he said. “Unfortunately, they only give us the opportunity to award one person. It’s nice that we have good stewards here in Nobles County who recognize the benefits of the programs we have and how (they can) help the environment.”

Mark Lenz has long supported conservation practices. In the more than 20 years he has farmed, he has enrolled land in the Conservation Reserve Program, implemented conservation tillage practices and completed tree plantings. All have provided noticeable benefit, from erosion control to increased wildlife habitat.

When he purchased a parcel to the north of the family farm in December 2008, he knew the waterway needed some attention.

“Some of the floodwaters ran along the waterway,” said Lenz. This spring, the waterway was reshaped and a new inlet was installed to handle water draining through the system.

The system received its biggest test with a nearly 5-inch rainfall at the end of September, and Lenz deemed the project a success.

“With this last rain we had, it really paid off. It would have been a disaster (without the improvements),” he added.

Lenz said without the improvements, the water would have carried valuable soil from his fields downstream.

“It’s amazing what that grass will do,” he said, adding that he’s noticed a great improvement in water clarity as it flows through the newly repaired waterway.

“I think what has been done in conservation has really improved water quality,” he added. “Years ago, the water was almost milky or cloudy.”

Lenz’s second project this year was the installation of terraces and new tile on an 80-acre parcel he rents. The broad-based terraces will be farmable, and the two narrow-based terraces will be in the fence line. The project was needed to reduce soil erosion.

“That farm was in the process of washing away,” said Lenz. “(The terraces are) going to slow the water down and the tile will meter the water real slow.”

The project, like the grassed waterway, will also work to keep the soil in place on the farmland “for now and for future generations,” he added.

Since Lenz rents the land where the project was completed, he needed to have the cooperation of the landowner. These days, that cooperation is often easier to get.

“Most (landowners) want to save their farm. They’re open to anything that’s going to keep their land from washing down the creek,” he said.

Lenz started farming in 1989 and now has a nephew, Troy Lenz, and cousin, Tim Lenz, who help him in the operation. Over the years, they have experimented with conservation tillage practices and saw quite a bit of success this year on a 65-acre test plot of no-till soybeans.

Yields on the field were better with no-till than they had been in previous years with conventional tillage practices, Lenz said. When considering the added costs for tillage, he said the practice just makes sense — especially on lighter soils.

He also likes to leave a lot of corn stalk residue on his fields, which helps slow water flow and keeps the soil in place during heavy rains.

Tags: nobles county, news, conservation, agriculture