While Minnesota is twelfth in geographical size, our state is among the top five agricultural producers in the United States. Learn about some of the studies being conducted right now to build the future of agriculture right here.
-The University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris is currently designing and testing solar powered robotic mowers to control weeds and reduce herbicide use and energy costs while improving native vegetation on Minnesota’s agriculture lands.
-The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources learned about the benefits of cover crops, the opportunities and challenges associated with them, and the benefits of enhancing soil health over time. The insights gained from this project were instrumental in moving Minnesota forward in developing new strategies for soil health that will lead to greater adoption of cover crops and other soil health practices throughout the state.
-The Minnesota Department of Agriculture was able to measure how Kernza®, an intermediate wheatgrass, reduced nitrate nitrogen levels within wellhead protection areas in central and southeast Minnesota. A wellhead protection area is the area around the wellhead where land use activities have the potential to affect the water quality that flows into the well.
-The Science Museum of Minnesota for the St. Croix Watershed Research Station was able to demonstrate that planting native perennials (e.g., milkweed) within row-crops provides significant habitat to pollinators and aids reproduction of monarch butterflies without reducing productive land.
-The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System for Central Lakes College is learning about the conservation practice of planting camelina and kura clover as continuous living cover with corn-soybean rotations to help protect water quality in vulnerable wellhead protection areas.
-The University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center in Morris was able to evaluate the use of solar technology that will help reduce the carbon footprint of Minnesota dairy farms through energy reduction.
When you play the lottery you help make these and other important projects possible. Thank you for playing your part in helping make Minnesota an even better place to live.
