UW–Madison Extension
Our outreach program offers the latest irrigation information for growers. Check out the Ag Water Program!
Working together for healthy crops, soils, and water.
We help growers navigate the ever-changing terrain of sustainable agricultural practices and implement water-saving measures that advance production goals. We collaborate across disciplines and believe deeply in the power of applied research and cooperative extension.
irrigation management
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We offer extension and decision support to guide thoughtful irrigation that benefits the whole agroecological system. Optimizing irrigation is more than just applying water to meet or exceed evaporative demand. Smart irrigation management leverages water to control oxygen, nutrients, salinity, beneficial microbes, pathogens, and pests in the root zone. Controlling water stress at certain phenological stages can also manipulate carbon assimilation and allocation to different pools (e.g. root, shoot, fruit) for specific outcomes. This type of nuanced irrigation management requires tools—soil moisture probes, evapotranspiration maps, and a variety of sensors. These tools can provide useful information, but also can introduce additional complexity without decision support.
soil Physical health
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On-farm practices such as cover cropping, no-till, reduced-till, compost/biochar application, soil amendments, and conservation plantings can improve the soil’s resilience to drought and floods by changing its physical structure. We measure these improvements as increasing infiltration, hydraulic conductivity, and soil moisture retention. Increasing these physical indicators of soil health should lead greater soil moisture storage, faster infiltration, and improved drainage. However, it is not always a straightforward path to these improvements and we offer extension to help navigate the complexity of soil physical function.
drainage management
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Tile drainage is increasing in Wisconsin and we have an opportunity to buffer certain soil types against flooding, while stewarding the water we drain using innovative conservation drainage practices such as saturated buffers, bioreactors, and drainage water recycling. These practices can also be combined with soil management practices like cover cropping to further improve stewardship. We offer extension programming about tile drainage design/spacing and conservation practices.
Watch Now!
Our Latest Extension Videos
Growing food during drought in California
How Grassed Waterways Work in Wisconsin
Using Buffer Strips for Ag & Water Quality
Building Drought and Flood Resistant Soils
A national voice in water
Dr. Mallika Nocco hosts the award-winning Water Talk Podcast with Drs. Faith Kearns and Sam Sandoval