A Family Tree Rooted in Soil Science

Over 160 high school participants from 25 different National FFA Organization (FFA) teams across the state competed in this year’s Wisconsin State FFA Land and Soil Evaluation Contest – roughly a 40 percent increase from the number of participants last year. Wisconsin USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) soil experts and staff joined the Green County Land & Water Conservation Department (LWCD), Wisconsin Association of Agricultural Educators (WAAE), Agribusiness Program staff, and many other sponsoring partners and volunteers to bring this year’s contest to the Blackhawk Technical College (BTC) Monroe Campus for the first time.

Using a backhoe, four soil pits are dug to the depth of 45 inches in four different areas on the farm selected for the diversity of soil profile, degrees of erosion and slope, rooting depth and natural drainage. The participants are scored and ranked on the accuracy of their evaluation of the landscape’s soil limitations, land capability, conservation practices for long-term land use and non-agricultural land use limitations. The top 5 winning teams receive commemorative plaques and the opportunity to compete at the National Land & Range Judging Contest held annually in Oklahoma, who hosted the first ever national contest in 1952.

This year’s contest was held on the Brooks Family Farm, a short drive from the BTC Monroe Campus and owned by the parents of the summer intern hosted by Todd Jenson, Green County Conservationist and NRCS affiliate. When Todd was a member of FFA in high school, soil-focused education and activities were not offered. Since he started working for the Green County LWCD in 1987, he has been involved with Land and Soil Judging Contests, admitting that soil and land judging is his favorite part of the job. “Everyone should have some comprehension on soils. It is not just for kids getting into farming. If you plant a garden, build a house, want to plant some trees or flowers, or put in a food plot for hunting, you need to know your soils.”

For lead judging official, Jeff Deniger, Area Resource Soil Scientist for NRCS Wisconsin, his involvement with soil judging began in college. “These contests get the kids to think about potential career paths. Soil is usually not a part of any high school curriculum, but it plays a major role in our everyday lives. So many people know so little about it.” In 2015, Wisconsin NRCS wrote the book on soil and land evaluation, playing a major role in developing the Soil Study & Land Evaluation Handbook utilized heavily by teams preparing for the annual contest.

Abilene Bartz, a freshman and new member of the Dodgeville FFA team, competed at the state contest for the first time this year after placing highest of her teammates in a local competition just weeks prior. While she prepared by studying the Soil Study & Land Evaluation Handbook on the Wisconsin NRCS website and watching the Land Judging in Wisconsin YouTube tutorial video featuring Todd Jenson and made by Green County LWCD, she was able to ask questions and gain clarification by discussing her studies at home with her mom, NRCS-WI Assistant State Conservationist (ASTC) for Financial Assistance Programs, Melissa Bartz.

Melissa participated in soil judging when she was a college student at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, where she graduated with a degree in Soil and Crop Science, and later got involved as the NRCS-WI District Conservationist in Grant and Lafayette Counties. When Abilene’s soils coach asked Melissa to help chaperone the team to this year’s state contest, the fond memories of traveling out of state for national competitions and collegiate soil lab practices under soils coach Dr. Roger Higgs made it an easy decision. Dr. Higgs is recognized in the Acknowledgements section of the Wisconsin Soil Study and Land Evaluation Handbook for "years of dedicated service to students all over Wisconsin and the Midwest. Roger’s excellent guidance and teachings are well evidenced by the number of people that have pursued careers in resource management and production agriculture." 

“I hope my career has inspired her,” said Melissa of her daughter Abilene, whose individual score tied her for 17^th in the Senior Division at this year’s contest. “But also, she helps on our farm, including laying out contour strips and taking soil tests. I have encouraged my kids to get involved in clubs and teams and nudge them to try new things and gain new experiences. I also have tried to teach them that it takes work and dedication to do well at anything they choose to do.” Adding to the family gathering, Melissa’s nephew, Jake Scheckel (also a member of the Dodgeville FFA team) competed alongside his cousin Abilene this year.

Melissa explained that soil evaluation is important because it gives students practical knowledge that they can use in life, such as limitations of soils for building houses or roads, as well as the history of the soil and how much erosion has occurred. While learning about these factors, having NRCS and county staff involved with competition helps the students learn about and identify conservation practices to determine the best land use based on the site conditions.

While Abilene enjoyed competing on a team with her cousin Jake (who ranked 11^th as an individual in the Senior Division this year) with her mom serving as chaperone, the biggest impact for her was learning about the soil profiles and technical aspects of the competition directly from Jeff Deniger, who went through each of the four soil pits with the contestants once all scorecards were submitted. “The soil was very different than what I expected, so listening to the soil scientist helped me understand how to consider all of the soil properties before deciding how its scored,” said Abilene. “I will definitely participate again next year. One takeaway is that I will always go around with the soil scientist after the contest to listen to how they described the soils because they share information from their experience that isn’t in the Handbook.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blackhawk Technical College hosted an impressive turnout of teams from all regions of the state for the 2023 Land and Soil Evaluation Contest, but not without the support of sponsors, NRCS soil experts and staff, and other contributory volunteers. Several students from visiting teams toured the agricultural lab and campus after enjoying a sponsored lunch while awaiting the results and award ceremony that followed the morning contest. The Dodgeville FFA team ranked 7^th in this year’s contest, up from 16^th they placed as a team in the 2022 contest held at Southwest Wisconsin Technical College in Fennimore, Wisconsin. The Top 5 Wisconsin teams headed to Oklahoma in the spring for the National Land & Range Judging Contest are Monticello, Potosi, River Ridge, Lancaster, and Juda.

The State FFA Land and Soil Evaluation contest will continue to be held at a technical or four-year college over a two-year span. BTC will host again for the 2024 state competition. If you are interested in learning more about the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service or participating in an upcoming land judging contest in Wisconsin, visit www.nrcs.usda.gov/resources/wi/land-judging.

 

Click here to go to NRCS-WI on flickr.com to view the complete photo album from the 2023 Wisconsin State FFA Soil and Land Evaluation Contest.

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