By Jamie Fisher for PPF
Peninsula Pride Farms hosted an Ahnapee watershed and mill pond tour on November 2 in Door County, Wis. More than 12 attendees, including PPF board members, collaborators and town board members, learned about the area’s topography and growing conservation practices.
Tim Dahl, Door County Soil and Water conservationist, lead the bus tour. The conversation focused on recognizing the increasing acres of cover crops, more established grass waterways and seeding of concentrated flows. The long fall days showcased many fields of green cover throughout the tour.
Attendees also recognized the topography and elevation differences in the watershed. Some have never seen the area in depth before. A lot of good changes echoed the conversations.
“There is a lot of improvement,” Tim Dahl said, “and it is good to see the Soil & Water Conservation Department, PPF members, and private landowners working together in the watershed. You don’t see that everywhere.”
Tim also shared an erosion risk analysis document completed by the Door County Soil and Water Conservation Department. The erosion risk is always the same, but the goal is to work on the higher-risk areas and encourage practices to ensure that events don’t happen as regularly. It was also noted that the department offers cost-share incentives to help improve the land.
“It’s like studying something from a book or in class for a whole year,” Mike said, “and at the end of the year, you get a tour and see firsthand how much progress has been made over the years. And we will continue working to promote cover crops, minimum till and no-till practices.”
