Water News Archive

Agricultural Irrigation & Water Quality

Research has shown that concentrations of nitrate - nitrogen have accumulated in the groundwater beneath areas where irrigation is intense and where the soils are permeable allowing for leaching of nitrogen fertilizer. Leaching is most severe for surface irrigation systems used to irrigate sandy soils. The Platte River Valley and Eastern Sandhills have been most severely affected.

Methane (Anaerobic) Digesters

A methane digester system, commonly referred to as an AD (anaerobic digester), is a device that promotes the decomposition of manure or 'digestion' of the organics in manure to simple organics and gaseous biogas products.

Separate Turf and Ornamentals

Do you have trees growing right in the middle of your lawn? Do you swear under your breath every time you mow, having to trim around them and practice some fancy footwork trying to maneuver the mower around the trunk? If so, perhaps it's time to redesign your landscape, separating the grass and all of the other plants. If you are building a new home, or moving to one with little or no landscaping, you can avoid this maintenance nightmare by simply thinking of turf as a part of the landscape unto itself.

Weekly Irrigation Newsletter: Using Soil Water Tension to Schedule Irrigation in East-central Nebraska

In 2024, Nebraska Extension started a new collaboration with three growers located in east-central Nebraska. We installed a set of three watermark sensors at 1-, 2-, and 3-feet soil depth and the sensors were connected to datalogger (IC-10 model from Irrometer) to record and store hourly data at one-hour intervals. The data can also be accessed remotely for quick irrigation decision.

Yield Goal Development

Setting a Realistic Corn Yield Goal Nebguide Discusses how to set a realistic corn yield goal by acknowledging climatic yield limitations of corn in Nebraska and the yield history in a field.

Order CD/DVD Set

Order the Water Optimizer CD/DVD set for $7.00. The CD/DVD set contains material not available for download: background information, applications, examples and research results for the Water Optimizer program.

Environmental Planning

Large animal feeding operations (AFO's) must follow regulations to protect water quality and preserve the environment. Smaller operations can help the environment as well. Livestock Producer Environmental Assistance Project (LPEAP) works with small farms to implement appropriate technologies and best management practices designed to protect water resources and our environment.

Small AFO VTS Demonstrations

The Animal Feeding Operation, also called the Livestock Producer Environmental Assistance Project (LPEAP), provides financial and technical assistance to small livestock producers who are concerned about protecting water quality and preserving the environment, but are exempt from current regulatory requirements. The project purpose is to construct on-farm demonstration sites that minimize environmental risk using new concepts and alternative technologies. All demonstration projects are available for viewing by all producers.

Building Soils

Water should never be applied at a rate faster than it can be absorbed by the soil. Soil properties that govern water infiltration (movement of water into the soil) are texture and structure.

Variety Selection & Tests

EC197, Using Winter Wheat Yield Data to Improve Variety Selection PDF only (224 KB; 8 pages) This extension circular describes a method for comparing and selecting various wheat varieties.

Crop Water Use (Evapotranspiration)

The evapotranspiration (ET) process is a key variable in many disciplines including irrigation management, crop growth, hydrologic cycle, plant physiology, soil-plant-water-atmosphere relationships, microclimate and surface interactions, and drainage studies.

Estimating Manure P App Rates

Manure phosphorus application rates should be estimated. These estimates should be based upon the most recently available information for manure nutrient concentration (manure sample) and the estimate of crop nutrient needs. Since this information is not typically available at the time of a permit application, estimating manure phosphorus application rates as part of a permit is, at best, an educated guess made without essential information.

Design Videos for Small AFOs

Watch this series of six videos for information on planning a Vegetative Treatment System on a small AFO.

Phosphorous Dynamics

Animal manures contain both organic and inorganic forms of phosphorus. When manure mineralizes, organic phosphorus becomes inorganic phosphorus in solution and is available to plants. Some organic phosphorus is transformed to inorganic form shortly after application but other phosphorus will remain in organic form