Our Mission: Protect our water and land resources by assisting Rock County landowners with understanding conservation rules and implementing best-management practices.
QUICK ACCESS LINKS
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Earthwork and Tile Contractors
Tiling or Watercourse Clean-Out Requirements 1) Tiling Application 2) Watercourse cleanout |
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2022 Calendar
Monday, June 20, 2022 8 am SWCD Board Meeting Rock County Land Management Office No regular meeting in May Monday, May 23, 2022: 7 pm Rock County Planning and Zoning Meeting Rock County Law Enforcement Center 
Click the logo for more info
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CONGRATULATIONS TO TOM FICK - 2021 OUTSTANDING CONSERVATIONIST
Tom and Jodi Fick
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Tom's field of
underseeded clover. |
The Rock SWCD Board of Supervisors and staff awarded Tom Fick with the 2021 Outstanding Conservationist Award. Tom lives with his wife Jodi on the family farm where he grew up and where they raised their two children Ben and Erin. Tom graduated from Luverne High School in 1982 and pursued his associate degree in Farm Business Operations and Management at Canby Area Vocational Technical School. After graduation he worked for a custom spraying business and a neighboring farmer. In 1988 he took a position with the local Case IH dealer and began farming part time. In 1994 the opportunity presented itself and Tom began farming full time. He took a position driving bus for the Luverne school district at this time as well; a position he continues today.
he land.
The Rock SWCD Board of Supervisors and staff awarded Tom Fick with the 2021 Outstanding Conservationist Award. Tom lives with his wife Jodi on the family farm where he grew up and where they raised their two children Ben and Erin. Tom graduated from Luverne High School in 1982 and pursued his associate degree in Farm Business Operations and Management at Canby Area Vocational Technical School. After graduation he worked for a custom spraying business and a neighboring farmer. In 1988 he took a position with the local Case IH dealer and began farming part time. In 1994 the opportunity presented itself and Tom began farming full time. He took a position driving bus for the Luverne school district at this time as well; a position he continues today.
he land.
He utilizes his passion for soil health on the 500 acres he farms by incorporating a robust crop rotation of alfalfa, oats, clover, rye, corn and soybeans along with Kernza perennial wheatgrass to create a more resilient farming system than the traditional corn/soybean monoculture. He also produces small square bales from the alfalfa and grasses he raises for the horse and specialty farmer market. Tom credits his Dad with his early knowledge of crop rotation, having had the opportunity to see the benefits of crop rotation from his practices of using small grains and alfalfa. Crop rotation is also a means of pest management for Tom in an effort to reduce disease and pest pressures. He uses this in conjunction with scouting to base his pesticide applications on economic thresholds.
Tom began using cover crops in 2013 and continues to strive to improve his efforts to extend the growing season and expand the improvements crop rotation offers to more acres. He has seen benefits of reduced soil erosion and better soil health with an increase in soil microbial activity. Organic matter in his soils range from 4.7% to 5.7%, slowly improving with time. His efforts have made it easy for him to become certified in the MN Ag Water Quality Certification Program. To maintain and improve this crop rotation Tom is in the process of transitioning from traditional tillage to minimum till and eventually no-till on the contour along with a 7 species cover crop mix. He protects his valuable farm ground from wind erosion by utilizing continuous covers including under-seeding clover in his small grains, spring inter-seeding and fall seeding of multispecies cover crops in his row crop fields.
Tom currently serves on the MN Soil Health Coalition Board of Directors as treasurer, as a supervisor for the Luverne Township board and as a member of the Rock County Cover Crop/Soil Health Team since its inception in 2016, having received the Cover Crop Champion award from the National Wildlife Federation in 2017. Tom currently serves as the president of the congregation for St. John’s Lutheran Church and has served on various other boards and committees including Youth Group Counselor with his wife Jodi until 2012 and still volunteering for youth community service projects. He served the Rock County Corn and Soybean Growers Association for several years and participated in the ASA Soybean Leadership College during that time.
Tom serves as a mentor for farmers wanting to adopt soil health practices, has hosted 3 cover crop field days on his farm, has done multiple podcasts and social media videos and posts for cover crops and soil health and participates in the Soil Health event at the Rock County fair.
Through his leadership, commitment to conservation practices and efforts to improve soil health and promote and share his knowledge, Tom is a true steward of the land.
he land.
The Rock SWCD Board of Supervisors and staff awarded Tom Fick with the 2021 Outstanding Conservationist Award. Tom lives with his wife Jodi on the family farm where he grew up and where they raised their two children Ben and Erin. Tom graduated from Luverne High School in 1982 and pursued his associate degree in Farm Business Operations and Management at Canby Area Vocational Technical School. After graduation he worked for a custom spraying business and a neighboring farmer. In 1988 he took a position with the local Case IH dealer and began farming part time. In 1994 the opportunity presented itself and Tom began farming full time. He took a position driving bus for the Luverne school district at this time as well; a position he continues today.
he land.
He utilizes his passion for soil health on the 500 acres he farms by incorporating a robust crop rotation of alfalfa, oats, clover, rye, corn and soybeans along with Kernza perennial wheatgrass to create a more resilient farming system than the traditional corn/soybean monoculture. He also produces small square bales from the alfalfa and grasses he raises for the horse and specialty farmer market. Tom credits his Dad with his early knowledge of crop rotation, having had the opportunity to see the benefits of crop rotation from his practices of using small grains and alfalfa. Crop rotation is also a means of pest management for Tom in an effort to reduce disease and pest pressures. He uses this in conjunction with scouting to base his pesticide applications on economic thresholds.
Tom began using cover crops in 2013 and continues to strive to improve his efforts to extend the growing season and expand the improvements crop rotation offers to more acres. He has seen benefits of reduced soil erosion and better soil health with an increase in soil microbial activity. Organic matter in his soils range from 4.7% to 5.7%, slowly improving with time. His efforts have made it easy for him to become certified in the MN Ag Water Quality Certification Program. To maintain and improve this crop rotation Tom is in the process of transitioning from traditional tillage to minimum till and eventually no-till on the contour along with a 7 species cover crop mix. He protects his valuable farm ground from wind erosion by utilizing continuous covers including under-seeding clover in his small grains, spring inter-seeding and fall seeding of multispecies cover crops in his row crop fields.
Tom currently serves on the MN Soil Health Coalition Board of Directors as treasurer, as a supervisor for the Luverne Township board and as a member of the Rock County Cover Crop/Soil Health Team since its inception in 2016, having received the Cover Crop Champion award from the National Wildlife Federation in 2017. Tom currently serves as the president of the congregation for St. John’s Lutheran Church and has served on various other boards and committees including Youth Group Counselor with his wife Jodi until 2012 and still volunteering for youth community service projects. He served the Rock County Corn and Soybean Growers Association for several years and participated in the ASA Soybean Leadership College during that time.
Tom serves as a mentor for farmers wanting to adopt soil health practices, has hosted 3 cover crop field days on his farm, has done multiple podcasts and social media videos and posts for cover crops and soil health and participates in the Soil Health event at the Rock County fair.
Through his leadership, commitment to conservation practices and efforts to improve soil health and promote and share his knowledge, Tom is a true steward of the land.
MN CREP
WHAT IS MN CREP (Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program)?
MN CREP is a voluntary, federal-state funded natural resource conservation program that uses a science based approach to target environmentally sensitive land in 54 Counties in southern and western Minnesota. This is accomplished through permanent protection by establishing conservation practices via payments to farmers and agricultural land owners.
CLICK HERE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON:
How it works.
MN CREP Objectives
How the will be restored and protected.
Why enroll now?
Enrollment - Contact the Rock County Land Management Office
WHAT IS MN CREP (Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program)?
MN CREP is a voluntary, federal-state funded natural resource conservation program that uses a science based approach to target environmentally sensitive land in 54 Counties in southern and western Minnesota. This is accomplished through permanent protection by establishing conservation practices via payments to farmers and agricultural land owners.
CLICK HERE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON:
How it works.
MN CREP Objectives
How the will be restored and protected.
Why enroll now?
Enrollment - Contact the Rock County Land Management Office
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CURRENT RENTAL RATES
Contact the local MN-Extension office at 507-283-1302 |
Crop Equivalent Ratios (CER)
Contact the Farm Services Agency at 507-283-2369 |
BUFFER COMPLIANCE
The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources oversees implementation of the Buffer Law, which requires farmers to have vegetated buffers along cropland that borders ditches, streams, rivers and lakes. In accordance with the MN Board of Soil and Water Resources, Rock SWCD has developed a plan for Buffer Compliance Tracking. Click on the link below for further information.
Large Energy Wind Conversion Systems
Permitting Process
Minnesota Rules 7854
*Timeline from application acceptance to permit decision is 180 days.
Click here for a flowchart of the process.
Permitting Process
Minnesota Rules 7854
*Timeline from application acceptance to permit decision is 180 days.
Click here for a flowchart of the process.
MN Department of Commerce
Environmental Review of Energy Projects
The Minnesota Department of Commerce Energy Environmental Review and Analysis (EERA) unit conducts environmental review of proposed energy projects including power plants, transmission lines, wind farms, and pipelines. EERA conducts environmental review on behalf of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (Commission), and EERA’s environmental review informs the permit decisions made by the Commission.
Click here for the Department of Commerce and further information.
Environmental Review of Energy Projects
The Minnesota Department of Commerce Energy Environmental Review and Analysis (EERA) unit conducts environmental review of proposed energy projects including power plants, transmission lines, wind farms, and pipelines. EERA conducts environmental review on behalf of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (Commission), and EERA’s environmental review informs the permit decisions made by the Commission.
Click here for the Department of Commerce and further information.
Guides to Prairie Restoration in Minnesota
Restoring a prairie just got easier.
Many landowners and managers have land that they would like to see covered with native flowers and grasses. But, creating a prairie is hard and often unpredictable work. The techniques and types of seeds planted will vary depending on the current state of the land, how moist or dry the site is, and type of prairie you would like to establish.
To deal with these issues, The Nature Conservancy and the University of Minnesota have developed 20 different restoration guides, each specific to one of five different types of starting conditions, two different moisture levels, and two different intended uses for restored prairie.
Each guide includes recommended techniques, timing and plant species, as well as estimated costs for completing a successful prairie restoration. The guides can be downloaded for free at:
To deal with these issues, The Nature Conservancy and the University of Minnesota have developed 20 different restoration guides, each specific to one of five different types of starting conditions, two different moisture levels, and two different intended uses for restored prairie.
Each guide includes recommended techniques, timing and plant species, as well as estimated costs for completing a successful prairie restoration. The guides can be downloaded for free at:
