MENOKEN, N.D. — The Menoken Soil Health Demonstration Farm hosted a full-day workshop on August 21, 2025, for NRCS North Dakota and SCD staff highlighting practical soil health strategies for conservation professionals and local partners. The event featured a team of seasoned presenters, including Jay Fuhrer, Lead Educator with the Burleigh County Soil Conservation District; Darrell Oswald, District Manager; Seth Boechler, Menoken Farm Manager, and Jaden Deckert, Urban Conservationist. NRCS North Dakota Soil Health instructors and organizers were Brent Gustafson and Susan Samson-Liebig.

Established in 2009 and located just east of Bismarck, Menoken Farm is a 150-acre demonstration site focusing on the five Soil Health Principles: soil armor, minimal soil disturbance, plant diversity, continual live plant/root, and livestock integration.

The morning session centered on Conservation Planning and Soil Health Management Systems  with Seth Boechler and Jay Fuhrer discussing the benefits of biodiversity in the soil. “It always starts with building a soil aggregate,” Fuhrer said. “If there’s no soil aggregate, there’s no home, there’s no air moving, there’s no water coming in.” Participants toured the Rick Clark Planting Green Soybean Fields and Alex Frasier Cover Crop Soybean Field with Darrell Oswald mentioning that soybeans have surpassed wheat as the number one crop in North Dakota. Planting Green, a conservation farming practice where cash crops—like corn or soybeans—are planted directly into living cover crops, rather than waiting to terminate the cover crop beforehand with herbicide or tillage. 

The afternoon sessions featured high tunnel systems, composting strategies, no-till gardening, and soil health demonstrations. Jaden Deckert, Urban Conservationist, spoke about the Five Soil Health Principles related to high tunnels. “It doesn’t matter if you’re farming 20,000 acres or two square feet; it’s a principle,” Deckert said. “You can scale it up; you can scale it down.”

Jay Fuhrer explained that composting transforms organic waste into a nutrient-rich soil amendment. “When the compost is done, you shouldn’t be able to recognize the original product,” he said. Jay also noted that compost emits a bad odor if not enough carbon-rich materials are present and that the ideal composting temperature is around 160°F to allow nitrogen-rich materials to fuel rapid decomposition, effectively eliminating weed seeds and pathogens.

The community has benefitted from the Menoken Farm Garden, which donated 2,500 pounds of potatoes to Heaven’s Helpers Soup Kitchen in Bismarck last year. Participants learned how the garden follows a five-year rotation and features no-dig potatoes, popcorn, sunflowers, and watermelon among other crops.

Soil health demonstrations in the afternoon included a rainfall simulator, wind erosion simulation, aggregate slake test, and water infiltration test. These activities illustrated how soil responds to real-world forces such as rain and wind, showcasing its ability to remain intact, absorb moisture, and support plant life. 

To wrap up the Soil Health Demo day, participants toured the Menoken Farm Arboretum—an opportunity to explore conservation plantings firsthand and connect with experts on helping producers design field windbreaks, shelterbelts, and pollinator-friendly landscapes tailored to their own operations.