USDA Blog

Working in partnership with USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), farmers are using proven conservation practices to help improve water quality downstream. Our customers are stewards of our nation’s farmland, voluntarily stepping up to the plate to make an impact. They are improving...

It’s the time of year to do your fall garden cleanup. Rather than the tedious task of raking and bagging leaves and taking them to the landfill, the best way to reduce greenhouse gases and benefit your garden is to leave the leaves!

USDA just launched a new research and visualization tool that summarizes published scientific research on bird species-vegetation relationships in the Eastern and Boreal Forests of North America. The tool, Literature Gateway: A Systematic Map of Bird-Vegetation Relationships in Eastern and Boreal...

This year marks the 133 rd anniversary of the dam breach that took the lives of more than 2,200 people and galvanized the nation to ensure such a tragic event could not happen again. On May 31, 1889, torrential rain and subsequent flooding caused the South Fork Dam to fail near Johnstown...

Did you know that worms can recycle your food scraps? Vermicomposting, or worm composting, turns food scraps into a beneficial soil amendment that can be used in home gardens, landscaping, turfgrass, farms and more. Over one-third of all available food goes uneaten through loss or waste. Composting...

During his first visit as Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment, Dr. Homer Wilkes announced additional funding to combat wildfire in Nevada and California.

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provides extensive data on the Nation’s conservation program activities through its RCA Data Viewer. And now, data visualizations have been added to the tool, making the data easier to interpret, sort, and download.

Rice producers recently honored Dave White, former chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, for his innovative conservation achievements. White was presented with the fourth annual USA Rice Federations’ Distinguished Conservation Achievement Award at the 2013 USA Rice Outlook...

During a time of year more often associated with consumption than conservation, Daniel Logan, owner and operator of Logan Tree Farm near North Plains, Ore., shows that managing and preserving the land yields both profit and holiday cheer. Raising Christmas trees is a family business for Logan, who...

Seasonal high tunnels have lots of benefits, especially in a state like Alaska where cold weather leaves a short growing season. They are incredible garden heaters, season extenders and profit generating machines for Alaska growers. Seasonal high tunnels allow farmers like Alex and Kelly Strawn in...