SARE grants available

Without the help of a government grant, a UC Santa Cruz researcher may never have developed an on-farm transfer of a trap cropping method to control lygus bugs in conventional strawberry production. We don’t know what that means either, but apparently it’s important, and farmers, ranchers and agricultural professionals are now once again eligible for grants to help with their own important sustainable agriculture projects. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Western Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program is offering up to $15,000 for individual recipients and $30,000 for groups to work on projects that include small research trials, demonstrations, production practices, marketing, and farmer or rancher workshops. SARE started in 1988 with the mission of advancing farming systems that are profitable, environmentally sound and benefit the community. The deadline to apply is December 7 and awards are announced in the spring. For more information, visit http://wsare.usu.edu or call (435) 797-2257.