The Dirt

In this post, Lauren Pharr provides some useful tips that can help you begin identifying birds by their song

Since the coronavirus pandemic curtailed our ability to offer most in-person volunteer events, tours, workshops, talks, and other educational programming, Benton SWCD began sending out a weekly e-news to help us stay in touch. Here is a table with links to each of the e-news we’ve sent during the first year of the pandemic, from

As you prepare your garden beds for cultivation this year, place soil maintenance at the top of your list, because healthy soil is the foundation of a productive garden.

Lauren Pharr shares her top tips for new and beginning birders!

Diverse natural landscapes managed by landowners who understand and appreciate the importance of ecosystem services are fundamental to what makes Benton County a mighty fine place to live and work. One such landowner is George Ice, past BSWCD Chair. For 35 years, George worked as a research forest hydrologist with the National Council for Air

In this post, Lauren Pharr suggests three ways to make the outdoors more inclusive for all.

RD compares his livestock operation to the pieces of a puzzle. Some pieces take a long time to fit in place, such as the six years that he has invested to develop relationships with neighbors.

In her current job at NRCS and in her volunteer work Heather Medina Sauceda continues her passion for outreach to underserved communities, tribes, and youth. She feels a responsibility to help others, just as people encouraged her to reach her goals. Heather says she “always has one hand reaching up with the other extended below to help others rise to their next level. If a door gets closed, jump through the window! Don’t give up.”

Both Anthropogenic Noise and Artificial Light at Night bring about some serious impacts to wildlife, but we can make informed choices to reduce those impacts.

As a youngster exploring the wild forests and streams of his home, Alan Ayres developed an appreciation for the abundant waters and lush vegetation that gave him comfort. Now he is working with The Confluence to create a sustainable office building in downtown Corvallis.

When asked what conservation challenges she faces, Jenny says the biggest one is when she feels that what she does doesn’t do enough. “Then I remember the butterfly effect. Success is seeing the work that BSWCD does.”

“Conservation gives production a richer purpose,” Ed Easterling says. In 2012, Ed founded Crestmont Land Trust (CLT), a non-profit land trust with a mission to own and manage self-sustaining habitat with a charitable, recreational, educational, and research focus.