The Upper North Platte River watershed headwaters is located in north-central Colorado, close to Walden, CO. The Sierra Madre mountain range is on the west side of the headwaters and the Snowy Range mountain range is on the east side. Snowmelt from both of these mountain ranges together contribute approximately 75 percent of the water flow in the North Platte River. The fires’ effect on water supplies in the coming years will depend on the amount of snow fall and snowpack received in the watershed during the winter and early spring. There may be slightly higher incidences of sediment runoff in isolated areas where there is little or no ground cover due to the fire.

Fertilizer-N is a big investment for crop production in Nebraska and elsewhere. After harvest, growers tend to plan their fertilizer-N management for the next year’s crop. But the question is how much nitrogen can they apply to get the most profit from their fertilizer-N investment?

One benefit of increasing soil organic matter is to store more water in your soil. Why does this happen? Because soil organic matter creates pores in a range of sizes. Exactly how much more water is stored due to soil organic matter will depend on soil texture, though. Animal manures are one option for increasing soil organic matter and soil health.

Managing manure for economic and environmental benefit is based, in part, upon our ability to efficiently recycle manure nitrogen (N) between animals and crops. This article introduces University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) proposed changes in recommendations for crediting manure nitrogen in a crop’s fertility program.