A county land conservation agent in Wisconsin has started a program where farmers can grow grass buffer zones that can be harvested anytime without penalty.
Shane Wucherpfennig from Wood County tells Brownfield marginal pieces of cropland along tree lines, in odd corners, and other places that often don’t bring ideal yields for row crops can improve the farm’s bottom line by planting perenial grasses and, “Putting those areas into more of a grassland/hay type of rotation, bringing your input costs down, bringing your profit margin up, and then seeing some of the water quality and soil health benefits of doing that type of a practice.”
Wucherpfennig says the reduced inputs and ability to harvest the buffers makes the whole field more profitable, and the harvestable buffers with their deep-penetrating roots help with nutrient cycling, soil health, and water quality while limiting water runoff.
