After Laura Krouse suffered extensive damage to her high tunnels from the derecho in August, Practical Farmers of Iowa held a high tunnel build at her farm near Mt. Vernon last month (along with builds at two other farms damaged in the storm). We weren't able to get the plastic on during the workshop, but Laura recently shared with us that she was able to get her new high tunnel finished!

Among the final helpers were a few of Laura’s CSA members and the Sundog Farm Crew, the Wild Woods Farm Crew, Trowel and Error Farm and Rainbow Roots Farm. A true team effort!

PFI's conference attendees continually rank the exhibitor hall as a highlight of their conference experience. With the 2021 conference going virtual, we aim to maintain this positive experience with an online platform that is built for engagement.

Exhibitors can video chat with visitors, upload videos and documents to share, retrieve leads and set up appointments for private meetings with attendees, in addition to participating in all other conference activities.

Exhibitor booths start at just $150 with many additional, targeted sponsorship options for organizations to find a package that provides value within their budget.

As part of the project, PFI will work with 11 agricultural supply chain partners to help farmers in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and Wisconsin use small grains to improve fertilizer and manure management in extended crop rotations.

We received an additional $1.3 million in matching funds -- a requirement of the grant -- from supply chain partners and Walton Family Foundation, effectively yielding $2.4 million to carry out the project work.

The funds boost our ability to offer cost-share funds to farmers growing small grains, and to work with agricultural supply chain partners to grow the market for diverse crops in Iowa and elsewhere.

We're excited to see more agencies and companies recognizing and embracing the complexity of healthy agricultural systems, from diverse crop rotations to integrated crop and livestock production.

Practical Farmers is partnering with Farm Aid and Iowa Farmers Union to provide a limited amount of one-time $500 derecho storm disaster relief grants.

Family farmers who have suffered damage due to the Aug. 10, 2020 derecho storm are eligible to apply.

We know this year has been hard for everyone, and with so much isolation from other people, sometimes it's good to talk to a fellow PFIer. Our board, staff and members have formed a committee of people who are available for anyone who would like to chat.

Maren and Tom Beard of Luna Valley Farm in northeast Iowa are hosting a virtual social for people to gather informally and catch up as the wild growing season of 2020 wraps up.

Hear from them about how their pizza farm adapted throughout the year, and chat with others about their experience and their plans going forward.

Kim Anderson of Brighton was featured on the Center for Rural Affairs' website: Conferences help farmers grow crops and gain knowledge

Practical Farmers of Iowa was mentioned in Seed Today: USDA Funds Conservation Innovation With $14.6 Million Investment In New Tools And Technology Development

Have you been featured in the media? Tell us when and where to find a link to the article, and we'll feature you in a future issue of Practical News.

Contact: tamsyn@practicalfarmers.org