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(The teaching tools below may be enlarged by clicking on the image.)
During the last ten years, the US Department of Agriculture's Natural Resource Conservation Service has conducted two Special Projects: the Hydrologic Unit Area (HUA) Water Quality Project and the Elephant Butte Irrigation District Water Conservation Demonstration Project (EBID-WCDP) in southern New Mexico. These Projects main emphasis were to provide basic technical and educational assistance to local producers in the Mesilla Valley near Las Cruces, New Mexico. The technical assistance given included the following areas: Irrigation Water Management (e.g., installation of High-Flow Turnouts, water metering, irrigation scheduling, irrigation system designs, reduced cultivation), nutrient management (e.g., soil, water, and plant/petiole nutrient analysis, developing basic nutrient budgets, split-application of nitrogen fertilizer, fertilizer field demonstration trials), judicious use of soil amendments (e.g., animal waste, elemental sulfur, gypsum, sulfuric acid, etc.), and other agronomic-related practices and management such as reduced tillage, crop rotations, green manure crops, record keeping, and pest and weed management. With the completion of the EBID-WCDP, it became obvious that in order for future progress to be made in the area of Holistic Irrigation Technology (HIT), a guidance manual should be developed that summarized the Project’s findings (i.e, best management practices implemented, methods of field investigation and evaluation, and progress achieved). Thus, the enclosed technical material presents basic principles and concepts embodied in our HIT Program. This information is designed to provide guidance on "how-to" evaluate and understand site specific field conditions (i.e., based on soil, pant tissue, water, and animal waste sampling and analysis; irrigation water management evaluations, etc.); the primary purpose of this assessment is to provide an increased understanding needed to evaluate and implement alternative best management practices, with the end result being a more economical, sustainable, and producer-acceptable farming enterprise. The Guide is intended to be used only as an additional "TOOL" in assisting producers in their overall farm management operations; as such, individual producers are strongly advised to work closely with their local chemical consultants, crop consultants, extension specialist, and the Natural Resource Conservation Service on any subject covered in the Guide. We hope that the Guide will spark a renewed interest in the great importance of understanding and managing our natural resources to their optimal potential. Thus, we believe that the more understanding there is in the relationships and synergy that exist between the biological, physical, and chemical properties of the soil, the better will be our ability to manage all of our natural resources.
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Note: Technical Questions
may possibly be quickly answered by contacting USDA, Natural Resources Conservation
Service Soil Conservationists: Holistic Irrigation Technology (HIT) Rudy Garcia, Soil Conservationist (Water Quality), rgarcia@nm.nrcs.usda.gov or call: (505) 522-8775, ext. 116 Remote Sensing & GIS Technology Dave Christenson, Soil Conservationist (Remote Sensing), dchriste@nm.nrcs.usda.gov or call: (505) 522-8775, ext. 115 Send mail to LaUnion@zianet.com with questions or comments about this web site.
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