United States Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service		 Arizona Go to Accessibility Information
Skip to Page Content
 Arizona Sunset

 

Farmer Utilizes NRCS Resources

Taking the initiative to make land better

Dennis Bagnall, Morning Star Farms in Florence, Ariz. utilizes technical and financial assistance from the NRCS to improve irrigation efficiency during a time of severe drought.
Dennis Bagnall, Morning Star Farms in Florence, Ariz. utilizes technical and financial assistance from the NRCS to improve irrigation efficiency during a time of severe drought. 

Dennis received financial assistance through NRCS' Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to install new irrigation ditches.
Dennis received financial assistance through NRCS' Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to install new irrigation ditches.
 

FLORENCE, ARIZ. - July, 2011 - Long days in the field intensify as the suns powerful rays beat down. Acres of alfalfa and cotton appear through the heat waves with soil cracking at the surface, awaiting irrigation.  This is a typical image of farming in the middle of summer in Florence, Ariz.  Though at times the job is gruesome, Dennis Bagnall of Morning Star Farms wouldn’t choose any other lifestyle.

“Sure there are other things I could do, but why?  I love the freedom that comes with farming,” explained Dennis.

Healthy crops need good soil, nutrition, sun light and water.  Four simple words yet the equation to make it happen can sometimes be difficult.  Due to a dry winter and extended drought, water in the San Carlos Irrigation District is running slim.  With a maximum allotment of 7/10 of an acre foot available this year, Dennis is doing all he can to increase irrigation efficiency on his land.  By the end of August the reservoir is expected to be dry.  On severe years like this, ingenuity and planning is crucial. 

Through financial and technical assistance from the Casa Grande Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) Field Office, Dennis received an EQIP contract to land-level his fields and install new ditches. The results were highly beneficial.  Before, Dennis had acres that couldn’t be farmed at all due to their un-level conditions.  Now he has alfalfa growing on those fields, already on the fourth cutting, weighing in at a ton per acre their first year.  Not only can he utilize all his acreage, he also uses considerable less water and labor during irrigation.

“We have seen huge labor savings.  We used to have to pump 100”-140” siphon hoses with multiple irrigators day and night and now we only have one irrigator each shift to open three ports,” said Dennis.  “We save water, money, time, labor and equipment.”

Dennis has been working with the NRCS to improve his farm since 1982.  Out of all his acreage a very small percentage goes un-leveled due to rocks and other limiting factors.  “I had to take the initiative and make these fields better. It helps for really bad years like this,” said Dennis.

Dennis will continue to work in the extreme heat of the Arizona summer with a bucket of dog biscuits riding in the seat beside him. The kindness he shows to his many canine friends illustrates who this hardworking farmer is.  He is a steward of the land and everything that grows and lives on it.      

#