Russian thistle thrives in the dry climate of eastern Oregon and Washington and if left unchecked develops an extensive root system that competes with wheat for water and nutrients.
Irrigating pastures can provide livestock with nutrition long into summer. Learn to monitor soil moisture to determine when to irrigate and how much water to apply.
Organic pesticides are usually considered as those pesticides that come from natural sources. They are usually minimally processed. These natural sources are usually plants or minerals. There are also microbial pesticides.
Q: What do you recommend for keeping weeds at bay in planting beds? We'd like to stop using Round-Up. Our beds are too big and the weeds are too numerous to be able to keep up mechanically. Would a vinegar solution be harmful to the soil?
The OSU Dry Farming Project continues as the go-to resource for dry farming and model for participatory climate adaptation research as growers throughout the West continue to feel the impacts of drought and seek alternatives to unreliable summer irrigation.