By Cameron Castilaw
The Southern Great Plains has seen many shifts in farming and ranching over the last 200 years. From Texas settlers managing open-range cattle in the 19th century to conversion to farmland for growing cotton and other crops and widespread groundwater pumping and irrigation in the 20th century, the land has undergone profound changes as farmers make their livelihoods.
How producers manage soil and water resources has also changed over the years as various farming practices have been studied and adopted.
Spanning portions of Texas and Oklahoma, the Southern Great Plains are semi-arid and home to both extreme weather and vital agricultural production. Approximately half of the United States’ cotton crop is produced there.
But the future of Southern Great Plains agriculture is increasingly uncertain.
Declining groundwater availability, prolonged periods of drought and severe weather, and rising production costs are forcing producers to rethink how farming practices can best sustain them and the land they depend on.
Regenerative agriculture project begins
From these growing concerns came the Agricultural Intensification and Enhancement Through the Utilization of Regenerative Agricultural Management Practices project, a $10 million, 5-year Strengthening Agricultural Systems grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture – Agriculture and Food Research Initiative.
Source : tamu.edu