Agricultural Technical Assistance
RNRCD provides agricultural technical assistance to farmers and producers within Rutland County in partnership with Poultney Mettowee NRCD. Conservation Districts are non-regulatory entities who are available to advise and support farmers.
Together our Ag Team provides the following services:
- Free on-farm technical assistance
- Free soil, manure, and forage sampling
- Nutrient Management Plan support
- Conservation Planning
- Grazing plan development
- Grant application support
- Equipment rental
- Workshops and training events
For agricultural technical assistance, reach out to andie@rnrcd.org.
Aerators
The District owns and manages an aerator, which is available for use by landowners. There is no charge for use of the aerator. If farmers plan to use the aerators on hay fields with liquid manure, there may be cost-share assistance from the Vermont Agency of Agriculture.
No-till Seeder
The District rents a Haybuster 107C No-Till drill which features 2 large seed boxes and a legume/small seed box. This unit is prioritized for farms in the South Lake (Poultney and Mettowee) watershed, followed by farms in the Lake Champlain Basin of Rutland and Bennington Counties.
Scales
The District and UVM-Extension now own scales to help farmers weigh manure spreaders and harvest carts. If you need this information for your nutrient management plan, please call us to schedule a time to borrow the scales (they even come with staff to assist you!).
For more information about equipment rental availability and policies please reach out to Jennifer Alexander (jennifer@pmnrcd.org) or Whitney Hier (whitney.pmnrcd@gmail.com)
Are there other equipment or tools that you would like to see offered in Rutland County? Let us know!
