Porter County Soil & Water Conservation District

10/30/2023

A colorful fall photo of the Ed Ruge Family Farm in Liberty Township. Ed and family will be hosting our 2024 field day set for September 4, 2024.

10/27/2023

An overhead look at the soybean harvest and grain hopper on Soil & Water Board member, Greg Birky's combine in Morgan Township.

10/25/2023

Please be patient when traveling the roads with farm trucks and equipment during this harvest season. Semi trucks full of grain are extremely heavy and can't make quick maneuvers like a sports car!
The season is short so be patient and give the farmers who are providing us with food the right of way.

Even though harvest is moving quickly, we're not quite to the finish line. Please be mindful of large, slow moving equipment on the road!


photo by Analise Cooper, Student Conservation Intern

10/13/2023

We are excited about a new partnership with the Pinney Purdue Agricultural Research Center on the County Line Rd. We will be showcasing cover crops planted on soybean and corn fields. We are very grateful to Stephen Boyer, Superintendent of the Pinney Ag Research Center, who has been attending our meetings and devised a plan to make this demonstration area possible. Here soybeans are being harvested in advance of the cover crop planting.

10/11/2023

The 2024 tree sale order forms are now available at our website:
www.portercountyswcd.com The price is still the same after more than 10 years at $20 per bundle of ten trees. We are selling American Arborvitae, Douglas Fir, Alleghany Serviceberry and Ninebark. All are bareroot seedlings with sizes provided by the nurseries. For questions E-mail: [email protected] or call the office at 219-462-7515 ext. 3. Pick-up will be Thursday, April 11th, at the Soil & Water office on Chicago St.-Valparaiso.

10/09/2023

Mrs. Benson has been having a terrific time visiting Porter County school children with outdoor hikes around the school yard to discover plants. Thanks to all who welcome her!

10/04/2023

We are happy to support this program with staff assistance and funding. There are 450 Porter County students attending this week!

09/29/2023

This stunning Ironweed, a feast for pollinators, was found growing in the restored wetland of our 2021 Conservationist of the Year, Brian Schnick. Ironweed gets its name from its tough stem. The brilliant purple hue adds a punch of color to the fall landscape.

09/28/2023

Our focus is on providing the best possible service to the citizens of Porter County. Due to ongoing phone issues we have added a cell phone contact option. If you are unable to reach us at the office phone during business hours, please call the cell phone at 219-546-3620. We have also changed our E-mail for general inquiries to [email protected] . Thank you.

09/22/2023

The State Department of Agriculture has announced a free soil sampling program for fields in the Kankakee Watershed. Results from the sampling can help save time and money on inputs. Access more information at this link.
https://www.in.gov/isda/divisions/soil-conservation/indiana-soil-sampling-program/

If you need assistance registering for the program, please contact Jacob at our office at [email protected] or give us a ring at 219-462-7515 ext. 3.

09/20/2023

We have 2023 Porter County Plat Books for sale for $30 each cash or check. Please call the office at 219-462-7515 ext. 3 before visiting, since we are out in the field and providing science programs to schools quite a bit at this time. Thanks!

09/15/2023

The buckwheat in the cover crop is in full bloom and the corn continues to progress in the Gustafson family's fields which were the site of our field day last week.

09/11/2023

We asked those attending our field day to submit the number of acres they are responsible for managing. After we added up the numbers we discovered the total to be 96,840 acres. In today's world there are fewer farmers, but they are managing significantly more acres each than they would have in 1952 when our Soil & Water District was established.

09/06/2023

Thanks to Keith, Mary Ann, Jay and Connor Gustafson for hosting 90 folks at our Soil Health Field Day today with speaker, Rick Clark. The Gustafson Family tailored the planting of the cover crop field to enhance today's program. Rick gave an excellent presentation, engaging the crowd and answering questions from the farmers. Just a superior day all around with great advice, fellowship and of course, food!

08/28/2023

Cut-Off Date for reservations is this Thursday! Don't miss the opportunity to hear nationally recognized farmer and speaker, Rick Clark, at our Soil Health Field Day next week on September 6th from 9 am to Noon (CT) hosted by the Gustafson Family at 80 S. 200 W.-Valparaiso. PARP credits and free country lunch!

The Gustafson Family has planted a unique combination of silage and cover crops to showcase. Speakers like this are not in our area very often!

E-mail [email protected] or call the office at 219-462-7515 ext. 3.

08/21/2023

The cover crop planted for the September 6th field day is starting to poke through the ground. The recent rains have helped get the seed growing. Thanks to the Gustafson Family Farm for all their work on this project.

08/17/2023

Throughout the year we participate in several outreach events to promote conservation. Here Jacob, our District Conservation Project Manager, (left) and Alex Carrero Muniz, NRCS District Conservationist for LaPorte County, attend the Pinney Purdue Ag Center Field Day held on County Line Rd. in Wanatah.

08/17/2023

Reserve your chair now for this water quality event. Great speakers and information!

Learn how you can help your local waterways with this partnership event. Coffee and light refreshments will be provided.

08/14/2023

Ed Ruge, Porter County's River Friendly Farmer, (back row, fourth from the left) was recognized last week at a special ceremony at the Indiana State Fair by Lt. Governor, Suzanne Crouch. Ed's commitment to conservation improves soil health and in the process safeguards water quality in the Little Calumet-Galien Watershed, which drains into Lake Michigan.

08/11/2023

Preparations continue for our September 6th Field Day hosted by the Gustafson Family Farm in Valparaiso. The focus will be on regenerative agriculture with nationally recognized farmer and speaker, Rick Clark. Here is a short video of the cover crop being seeded among rows of corn planted about two weeks ago after the wheat harvest. The Gustafson Family will use the corn for silage for their cattle. Reservations for the free field day can be made by E-mail to [email protected] or by calling us at Soil & Water at 219-462-7515 ext. 3.

08/08/2023

We loved hosting our women landowners for a fun gathering, "Conservation Is For The Birds", today at Sunset Hill Park. Kim Ehn, President of the Dunes-Calumet Audubon Society, was our featured speaker. The women also created dinner plate bird feeders to take home. We began these gatherings to help women feel more comfortable about making land management decisions, and to let them know we at Porter County Soil & Water and the USDA are here to help when they need us.

07/31/2023

Yes, they grew! Even in the rocky soils of Jackson Township! We gave away 1,500 packets of chocolate cherry sunflower seed this year as our flower of the year. They make a stunning addition to a garden bouquet.

07/26/2023

"Conservation Is For The Birds!" is the topic for our free Women Landowners' Gathering on August 8th from 9:30 to Noon at Sunset Hill Park in the Horton Family Children's Education Center. Kim Ehn, President, of the Dunes-Calumet Audubon Society, will speak on birds and simple conservation practices which can be implemented to assist them. We will also have a make and take useful craft to enhance any backyard bird habitat, and of course, lunch is included! The last day to register is August 1st by E-mailing [email protected] or calling us at Soil & Water at 219-462-7515 ext. 3.

07/21/2023

A swallowtail chrysalis on an iris leaf. Lots of butterflies in South County!

07/18/2023

Be on the lookout for Monarch caterpillars like this one found in South County on a milkweed leaf.

07/14/2023

And the next day . . . The straw was baled!

07/11/2023

The Gustafson Family is harvesting wheat on the field which will be seeded to a mix of cover crops for our Soil Health Field Day on September 6th. Our featured speaker, Rick Clark, has been nationally recognized for his refinement of regenerative agriculture on his farm. This free event includes lunch and PARP credits are available. Contact us at Soil & Water: [email protected] or call 219-462-7515 ext. 3.

07/06/2023

Register Now For Our Free Women Landowners' Gathering "Conservation Is For The Birds!" August 8th 9:30-Noon (CT) Sunset Hill Park-Kimberly Ehn, Indiana Audubon Society, will be the featured speaker. Lunch provided. Register please by August 1st to 219-462-7515 ext. 3 or E-mail [email protected]

07/03/2023

Just a note that we are experiencing phone difficulties. We apologize if you are trying to call and we do not answer. Please E-mail: [email protected] if the phone does not work.

Thank you.

06/29/2023

It's not too early to start planning for cover crops. Don't forget we have a local cost share program to help with the cost of the seed.
It's a one page application to which you attach your receipts, map and seed tags. Check our website at www.portercountyswcd.com or call the office at 219-462-7515 ext. 3.

06/27/2023

We are pleased to share a summary of the free education programs we presented during the most recent school year at Porter County Schools.

06/26/2023

Some of our Porter County Soil & Water Conservation District Board Members and Associates at the June board meeting. L-R
Nathan Birky, Dean Morrow, Keith Gustafson, Greg Birky, Tom Murphy, Mike Kreiger & Brent Jarnecke.

06/20/2023

We are happy to report that the Indiana Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts has recognized Ed Ruge, Liberty Township, with the River Friendly Farmer Award. Ed's combination of no-till, crop rotation and nutrient management enhances soil health and safeguards water quality. Congratulations to Ed for his commitment to conservation!

06/16/2023

Pollinator week begins Monday, June 19th. Simple native wildflowers, like this Brown-Eyed Susan in Jackson Township, are favorites of many pollinators.

06/13/2023

Planting green in Liberty Township! Drilling soybeans into the green cover crop.

06/14/2022

Congratulations to our board member and farmer, Brad Hunter, on being recognized as a River Friendly Farmer by the Indiana Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts. This award recognizes farmers like Brad, who through good production management practices, help keep Indiana's rivers, lakes and streams clean. Brad is an enthusiastic advocate for cover crops and conservation tillage, but also has created pollinator habitat, bat habitat and tree plantings on his farm.

06/13/2022

This spotted fawn is trying to blend in with the neighborhood on the north side of Valparaiso. It's that time of the year for a little deer like this one to make an appearance.

06/09/2022

Our District Conservation Project Manager, Jacob, was at the National Park laboratory working with Julie Morris, Indiana State Department of Agriculture, Resource Specialist, to complete testing on water samples taken from the Kankakee Watershed. We are very appreciative of the partnership we enjoy with the National Park. Our summer surface water monitoring research began in 2016 in the East Branch of the Little Calumet and was expanded to the Kankakee Watershed in 2019.

06/08/2022

Plan ahead! The Pesticide Clean Sweep to dispose of agricultural chemicals properly will be held at Co-Alliance in Malden on August 24th this year. In order to participate you must submit a form to the Indiana State Chemist by August 5th. This is a great local opportunity.

06/06/2022

Our District Conservation Project Manager, Jacob Tosch, assists with field checks for the Conservation Reserve Program, which is a program that promotes tree plantings, filter strips, pollinator habitat and other conservation practices. He recently snapped this photo of a swallowtail hovering among Sweet William flowers.