2026 Webinar Dates and Topics

February 3, 2026

Supporting Economic and Water Quality Opportunities Through Expanded Dairy Heifer Grazing

Raising dairy heifers on well managed pastures can improve soil health, water quality, and biodiversity. In addition to ecological benefits, heifer grazing offers cost savings to graziers, supporting viable farm enterprises. In this session we will learn about collaborative efforts to support increased dairy heifer grazing in the state.

Speakers: Sarah Lloyd, Value Chain Coordinator, Grassland 2.0, Stephanie Bowers, Extension Dairy Educator, and Paul Daigle, Dairy Grazing Specialist, Dairy Grazing Alliance

One Soil and Water Management CEU available

February 10, 2026

Diving Deeper Into Tile Drainage: Installation and Conservation Practice Considerations*

The use of tile drainage in Wisconsin is growing. Tile can help dry out a wet field, yet there are water quality concerns with increased nitrates in water discharging from the tile outlet. This session will dive deeper into tile and share data on how bioreactors and other conservation practices impact nutrient losses, and discuss considerations when choosing which practices fit your operation.

Speakers: Matt Helmers, Professor, Iowa State University and Director,  Iowa Nutrient Research Center and Margaret Zimmer, Associate Professor, Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences, UW–Madison

One Soil and Water Management CEU available

February 17, 2026

Reducing Phosphorus Losses by Pushing Beyond the Basics*

Phosphorus is essential in crop growth, yet its journey from field to waterway creates one of the most persistent challenges. This webinar will share research on how P interacts in the environment, especially at the shallow top two inches of soil. The audience will be pushed to consider how different types of phosphorus act during different times of the year and make farming discussions accordingly.

Speakers: Laura Paletta, UW–Madison Extension Ag Water Quality Outreach Specialist and Steve Hoffman, President and Managing Agronomist, InDepth Agronomy

One Soil and Water Management CEU available

February 24, 2026

A Bird’s Eye View of On-Farm Conservation

Tired of looking at next steps in your conservation journey from the ground? Join us in the sky to get a bird’s eye view of on-farm conservation! Open your eyes to the whole landscape; what can you observe on your farm? Matt Oehmichen offers his experience as an agronomist and Water Action Volunteer to support broadening our view of what conservation practices on the farm can mean for stream health and wildlife. Sheri Schwert brings in examples from Discovery Farms research on how farm management practices affect water quality, including in-stream data.

Speakers: Sheri Schwert, UW–Madison Extension Ag Water Quality Outreach Specialist and Matt Oehmichen, Agronomist, Farm Manager, and Water Action Volunteer

One Soil and Water Management CEU available

March 3, 2026

Finding The Right N Rate Balancing Yield, Profitability, and Water Quality

This session centers one question: can we find a nitrogen rate that balances yield, profitability, and water quality? Outreach specialist Guolong Liang and Extension Specialist Dr. Matt Ruark will talk about why it’s important to find the right rate, the process we use in generating N rate guidelines, the challenge farmers face to find the balance among yield, profitability, and nitrogen loss reduction.

Speakers: Guolong Liang, UW–Madison Extension Ag Water Quality Outreach Specialist and Matt Ruark, Professor and Extension Specialist, Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences, UW-Madison, and Discovery Farms Co-Faculty Advisor

One Nutrient Management CEU available

March 10, 2026

Understanding Nitrogen Leaching and Water Budget Measurements

There are many reasons to measure nitrate leaching and water budgets to support both water quality and quantity goals in Wisconsin. For water quality, nitrogen leaching measurements can help understand whether management practices are increasing or decreasing nitrogen loading to groundwater. For water quantity, water budgeting can help understand how different management practices are impacting groundwater recharge or replenishment of aquifers. Outreach Specialist Izze McNamee and Extension Specialist Mallika Nocco will share approaches and tools for measuring and understanding nitrate leaching and water budgets.

Speakers: Izze McNamee, UW–Madison Extension Ag Water Quality Outreach Specialist and Mallika Nocco, Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist, Department of Biological Systems Engineering, UW–Madison

One Soil and Water Management CEU available

March 17, 2026

Impacts of Cereal Rye as a Cover Crop Depending on Farm Goals

Using cereal rye as a cover crop can be beneficial for many aspects, like impacts on water quality, soil health, and weed management. These speakers will share data that compares cover crop seeding rate to find what rate is needed for these benefits. The speakers will also discuss impacts to consider at different seedings rates, like nitrogen management.

Speakers: Rodrigo Werle, UW–Madison Associate Professor and Extension Specialist, Francisco Arriaga, UW–Madison Associate Professor and Extension Specialist, and Matt Ruark, UW–Madison Professor and Extension Specialist and Discovery Farms Co-Faculty Advisor

One Crop Management CEU available

March 24, 2026 from 9:00-11:30 a.m. CST/10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. EST

Discovery Farms 2026 Multi-State Webinar

Discovery Farms® Programs in Wisconsin, Vermont, Arkansas, and Minnesota will present program updates and new data. Join this interactive webinar to learn more about farmer-led water quality research in these four states and celebrate 25 years of the Discovery Farms Program. This 2.5  hour webinar will begin at 9:00 a.m. CST/10:00 a.m. EST. Click the boxes below to read about each state’s presentation.

Wisconsin

Celebrating 25 Years of Wisconsin Discovery Farms

Since 2001 the Wisconsin Discovery Farms program has collected over 300 site-years of water quality data from farm fields across the state. This presentation will summarize key findings from surface runoff  and tile drainage monitoring, including a comparison of tile dynamics between Wisconsin and Minnesota Discovery Farms sites. We will also share the results of case studies evaluating the water quality effects of various agricultural conservation practices, which will be included in updates to the Wisconsin Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy.

Speaker: Ellen Albright, Discovery Farms Researcher, UW–Madison Extension Ag Water Quality Program

Vermont

Innovative Approaches to Addressing Nutrient Management and Water Quality Challenges in Vermont

For five years UVM-Extension has been addressing water quality and nutrient management challenges in Vermont through Discovery Acres, a unique on-farm research trial. Discovery Acres is a unique experiment with four individual watersheds in a single field to measure the effects of tile drainage and best management practices on corn yields, cover crop growth, and water quality. As unpredictable and extreme weather events become more common in Vermont, standing water in heavy clay soil can result in decreased crop productivity, increased surface runoff, and increased subsurface flow. Increased flow of water through the agroecosystem can lead to the transport of nutrients off the field, directly impacting farmers profitability and ecosystem health.

Speakers: Claire Benning, Heather Darby, and Joshua Faulkner

Minnesota

What Do We Know About Edge-of-Field Water Quality on Minnesota Farms?

In Minnesota, the Discovery Farms program has been collecting edge-of-field water quality data on privately owned farms since 2010. This presentation will summarize key findings on the differences observed between surface runoff and subsurface tile drainage, and the amount and timing of runoff, sediment, phosphorus, and nitrogen loss. The presentation will also key on the impact of different farming practices on edge-of-field losses. 

Speakers: Tim Radatz

Arkansas

Monitoring Nutrient Losses in Runoff from Poultry Litter Applications in Rice Production

New poultry companies have been established in Northeastern Arkansas making poultry litter much more available to row crop farmers.  A new Discovery Farm,  funded by USDA-NRCS, has been established in Jackson County Arkansas to monitor the utilization of poultry litter as a soil amendment in rice production on land-leveled fields.  Edge-of-field monitoring stations were established in 2022 in three fields each amended with different rates of poultry litter, 2 tons, 3 tons and 4 tons per acre.  Water quality results will be presented as well as the effects of poultry litter on soil health.

Speaker: Mike Daniels, Distinguished Professor – Extension Soil and Water University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service