Washington

Farmers Test Whether Clay in Compost can Help Mitigate Climate Change

On a 100-acre farm in Washington, farmers David Bill and Faith Van De Putte are curing a new compost mix that could provide important clues to fighting climate change. “We’re adding a bit of clay to see if that increases nutrient density and carbon retention,” explains Bill from Midnight’s Farm on Lopez Island, where he […]

Estimating Plant-Available Nitrogen Release from Cover Crops

This Oregon State University fact sheet explains the basics of plant-available nitrogen (PAN); when to kill cover crops for the maximum PAN benefit; step-by-step instructions on how to perform site-specific measurements to predict PAN from your cover crop; and case studies from the Willamette Valley.

Pasture Calendars Help Preserve Rangeland

Forages – a diverse group of plants providing both livestock feed and important bio-products – are critical for the success of Western agriculture. That’s why Washington State University’s Dr. Steve Fransen helps develop best pasture management practices to benefit the land, environment, animals, and producers’ bottom lines. “I love going out to the field, pulling […]

Wireworms in Western Washington

Christine Langley has successfully run Lopez Harvest organic farm on Lopez Island in Washington state’s famed San Juan Islands for more than two decades. But for most of that, she wasn’t fighting wireworms. Those showed up about a dozen years ago, and have made her job a lot harder. “I grow a lot of lettuce […]

Large Raspberry Aphid

Large raspberry aphid is notable as a vector of viruses in Rubus, including Raspberry leaf mottle virus (RLMV, semi-persistent) and Raspberry latent virus (RpLV, persistent) in red raspberry, and Black raspberry necrosis virus (BRNV, non-persistent) in black raspberry. These viruses are to blame for decreased cane vigor and field decline requiring frequent replanting, as well […]

Earwigs Found to be Beneficial in Apple Orchards

Sustainable Agriculture Fact Sheet                                           April 2020 Crop: Apples                            Need: Discovering whether earwigs are pest, neutral or beneficial insects in apple orchards States: Washington                                                                                                                                    Background: Woolly apple aphids are a serious pest in apple orchards and are difficult to control with current insecticides. However, beneficial insect predators can […]

Citizen Science Guide to Wild Bees

This guide acts as an introductory document for those who would like to understand wild bee biodiversity and contribute to conservation through monitoring in western Washington.

Anaerobic Digestion Webinar Series

A series of five free webinars with Washington State University researchers and their collaborators sharing findings as they strive to quantify the climate, air, water, nutrient and economic impacts of integrating emerging, next-generation technologies within anaerobic digestion systems on U.S. dairies.

BioEarth Webinar Series

A series of four free webinars with Washington State University researchers affiliated with the BioEarth research initiative sharing findings related to climate change impacts on Northwest U.S. water resources, nutrient cycling, and managed and natural ecosystems.

People of the Land

This Extension educator curriculum focuses on successful strategies for increasing the adoption of sustainable practices on reservation lands.