Virginia State University-Virginia Cooperative Extension's environmental practices garner awards and improve the health of nature, students and the community
Uniquely situated above the Appomattox River, a National Wild and Scenic River, VSU-Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) is a transformational leader providing impactful service and innovative approaches to environmental issues. Its programs restore and revitalize natural resources and improve the quality of air, water, soil, crops, human lives and the bottom line. Furthermore, VSU-VCE establishes strategic partnerships that exponentially increase the positive effects of its programs.
In the spirit of Earth Day, four programs are highlighted that demonstrate ways in which VSU-VCE is restoring the environment:
Tree Campus USA Higher Education: Preserving the campus environment for students, staff and the greater Petersburg community.
Conservation: Leveraging partnerships to save water, soil and family farms.
Nutrient Management Planning: The key to healthier soils, yields and bottom lines.
Agricultural Drones: Improving the environment and producer’s outcomes.
VSU-VCE is actively and effectively preserving nature’s beauty and health on campus, in the community and throughout Virginia.
“VSU is proud to be a transformational leader in the environmental space that stewards well this beautiful campus,” said Corley. “By implementing effective, sustainable practices we are restoring and preserving our natural resources, ensuring the wellbeing of our community, and saving money—further evidence that GREATER Happens Here.”
Tree Campus USA Higher Education
For the ninth consecutive year, Virginia State University earned Tree Campus USA Higher Education recognition for its commitment to tree preservation, student and community well-being, and transformational leadership in the climate-change space. State Forester Rob Farrell, director of the Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF), recently presented Dr. Robert N. Corley III, interim dean/1890 Extension administrator of Virginia State University College of Agriculture and vice provost for Academic Affairs with the award.
“We are proud to recognize Virginia State University for earning this Tree Campus designation for the ninth year. We commend the University for its steadfast commitment to preserving and enhancing the campus for students, staff and the greater Petersburg community.” said Farrell.
Established in 2008 by the Arbor Day Foundation to benefit students and the environment, the program goes beyond making campuses more beautiful. Studies show that as little as 20 minutes of mindfulness in a green space reduces stress and bolsters the immune system, making the VSU campus more enjoyable and healthier for students, faculty, staff and surrounding communities.
To earn Tree Campus USA Higher Education designation, each year universities must meet criteria set by the Arbor Day Foundation. The university must establish a campus tree advisory committee, develop a campus tree-care plan, verify the plan's annual dedicated expenditures, celebrate Arbor Day, and engage the student body in a service-learning project.
One committee member is Jane Harris, assistant vice president of VSU Capital Outlay and Facilities, whose office received Environmental Excellence Awards from the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Office of the Governor and is an Exemplary Environmental Enterprise designated member of the Virginia Environmental Excellence Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Environmental Quality. Her office oversees the VSU Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4), which is an independently owned and operated network of stormwater inlets, pipes, ditches and management ponds that improve the environment.
“Extension and Capital Outlay recognize that trees are essential components of erosion control and water quality, and value action, education and outreach. Working together as a cross-functional team is a natural pairing,” said Harris. “By cultivating an above-compliance mindset to protect the quality of air, water and natural resources, and by developing cohesive, cross-functional teams with shared energy and environmental goals, we improve the environment, reduce utility costs and increase campus-community engagement in environmental programs.”
After CoVid confined many to inside spaces, mental wellness became an even higher priority at VSU.
“Because green spaces are scientifically proven to improve mental wellness and promote overall environmental health, VSU is proud to join over 400 campuses across America as we reaffirm our strong commitment to the Tree Campus program,” said Corley. “These efforts will ensure that VSU has GREATER Happenings today and tomorrow while cultivating environmentally responsive leaders.”
After the presentation, student volunteers participated in campus clean-up, tree planting and storm drain stenciling.
Conserving soil, dollars and a family’s farming legacy
For crop farmer Joe Gray, the soil is personal, part of something bigger than himself. On land that his ancestors farmed for more than a century, he grows corn, soybeans and wheat in rotation. “Conservation is my philosophy of farming,” he said.
He is extending his family’s farming legacy with a soil conservation regimen that keeps his land fertile and productive today — and for generations to come. Gray has been working with the VSU-SFOP, his local Soil and Water Conservation District and the Virginia Agricultural Cost-Share program, to implement — and fund — agricultural best-management practices that have steadily improved his soil and his bottom line.
“I’ve worked with SFOP for the last four or five years,” he said. “They are good at helping you find resources for your operation.” SFOP has helped Gray in numerous ways, including helping him locate outlets for what he produces. “And they come to you, which is great because, on the farm, time is money,” he added. “In fact, [SFOP program assistant] Michael Carter Sr. was just here last week to drop off an emergency safety kit.”
Of his often erosion-prone land, Gray said, “I farm some tough ground.” With funding from the Virginia Agricultural Cost-Share program, which he accessed through his district, he plants cover crops that have delivered more productive soils with minimal costs. His land benefits from every stage of his cover crop’s life cycle, Gray said. The living plants hold the soil in place between harvest and planting seasons, while the roots they put down loosen the deeper ground for better absorption all year. This means “dollars gained from water and nutrient retentions,” he said.
Cover crops also soak up residual fertilizers from the previous year so, when they die back, those nutrients return to the ground. And, come July and August, he added, “you’re glad you have that carpet of cover crop residue to really hold in moisture.”
Gray also uses Virginia Agricultural Cost-Share to fertilize his commodity crops more efficiently — and economically. Instead of applying all the nutrients up front, he now puts down nitrogen three times between late March and mid-June. He likens this process to “spoon-feeding,” so that more nutrition goes to the plants and fewer nutrients (and dollars) are washed away.
When talking with other farmers, Gray has become something of an evangelist about conservation, cost-share and collaboration.
“Just do it,” Gray said of working with SFOP, his district and Virginia Agricultural Cost-Share. “It’s no money out of your pocket, and your yield is going to improve.”
Nutrient Management and Nutrient Management Planning
Nutrient management plans protect natural resources, optimize yields and maximize profits. When growers and farmers better understand how to apply the necessary nutrients for plant growth, at the proper rate, time, manner or location, they can make wiser investments in their farms using proven, data-driven techniques to achieve the best yields.
Not all soils have the same potential to produce similar yields. Soil constraints, such as the depth of hard rock, flooding risks, a shallow water table or other issues not only affect yields but also runoff. Steep slopes may be subject to flooding and prone to erosion which results in the loss of topsoil and phosphorus.
Research indicates that 85% of all of the phosphorus that reaches the Chesapeake Bay is attached to the silt from erosion. Likewise, nitrogen is subject to leaching past the root zone and contaminating the groundwater. Therefore nitrogen applications are usually split to provide the nutrient when the plant needs it most, which is during the fastest growth period.
Based on VSU’s Land Grant University research and on recent soil test results (those taken within the last three years), farmers can optimize their crops and help protect valuable water resources. When producers apply, phosphorus, and potassium at optimum rates in locations where plants can easily access the nutrients, they not only maximize their yields but also prevent runoff; thereby protecting the water quality in nearby streams, rivers and ultimately, the Chesapeake Bay.
The Small Farm Outreach Program (SFOP) connect producers with a Virginia Certified Nutrient Management Planner who schedules a farm visit to assess its needs. With over 870 soil types in Virginia, knowing exactly what a farm’s soil consists of is essential. The planner walks the land with the producer, takes soil samples of each field or area that will grow a crop, hay or pasture forage to understand how the fields, streams or other water bodies relate to one another. The producer can explain problem areas and ultimate goals. By understanding a farm’s crop systems, rotation plans for the next three years, and the past yields of, better plans can be provided. After reviewing the farm’s soil test results and soil-survey information, the planner meets with the producer to offer realistic recommendations to rejuvenate the farm’s soil. The planner explains the plan field-by-field, answers questions or makes changes the producer deems necessary.
Plan goals are based either on past yields or on the maximum potential of your soils using Land Grant research. All fertilizer recommendations will be based on the farm operation and locally available sources. The plan adjusts to changing needs and the planner remains available for consultation to ensure the plan remains consistent with actual farm production.
The nutrient management plan includes guidance on the types and amounts of nutrients needed for optimum yields, enabling farmers to save money by buying the exact quantity needed, not excess.
Keep records of the following for each field and crop:
• What nutrients you applied.
• The amount applied.
• The day applied.
• The application method.
This data is important for assessing results and making future adjustments to the plan for optimal outcomes.
Agricultural Drones Improve Farmers’ Outcomes
To help farmers make decisions that improve yields and lower operating costs, the Small Farm Outreach Program at Virginia State University uses aerial photography, videos, and 360-degree panoramic views with active maps processed by Drone Deploy.
These tools provide small-scale farmers a high-resolution view of their property to help them plan the layout of their fields, determine water movement and drainage needs, locate water sources for irrigation, identify problem areas and better understand how their fields are performing.
Active maps enable precision vertical and horizontal 3D views of infrastructure, crops, wooded areas and topography. These capabilities help determine distance measurements, acreage calculations and elevation differences. Using spectrometry and RGB-colorimetry, photogrammetry tools can interpret several issues, including crop health, weed and insect outbreaks, and plant counts to estimate field losses.
Variable-rate spot applications using spray drones with artificial intelligence greatly improves crop production, reduces environmental impacts and saves farmers time and money. Farmers can now apply nutrients or pesticides and herbicides exactly where they are needed, including in areas that are difficult to access by hand, tractor or conventional aircraft. This enables them to apply less spray with better results and greater cost savings. Furthermore, because spray-drone spot applications reduce the volume of chemicals applied and the amount of land area covered, they have been proven to be more environmentally friendly.
Contributors to this article include the following:
Leonel E. Castillo, VSU-VCE SFOP state program assistant, Hispanic outreach, and UAS-FAA certified drone pilot.
Rebecca Jones, VSU-VCE SFOP, Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation
Tim P. Sexton, VSU-VCE SFOP grant specialist, and licensed professional soil scientist.